Member Articles

Eli Lilly and Vertex Pharma Provide Promising Guidance for 2021

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Image Shown: An overview of Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc’s drug pipeline and commercialized drug portfolio. Image Source: Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc – Fourth Quarter of 2020 IR Earnings Presentation By Callum Turcan Several pharmaceutical and biotech companies showcased the resilience of their business models last year when faced with severe exogenous headwinds created by the coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic. For broad-based diversified exposure tied to secular growth tailwinds across the largest drug development companies in the world (and their robust pipelines of drugs and therapies), we include the Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) in both the Best Ideas Newsletter and Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolios. We like this broad exposure to the sector, particularly within diversified portfolios. Eli Lilly (LLY) When Eli … Read more

Microsoft Churns Out Gobs of Free Cash Flow

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Image Shown: An overview of Microsoft Corporation’s performance last fiscal quarter. Image Source: Microsoft Corporation – Third Quarter of Fiscal 2021 IR PowerPoint Presentation By Callum Turcan On April 27, Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) reported third quarter fiscal 2021 earnings (period ended March 31, 2021) that smashed past both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates. Revenue growth came in strong across the board. Its cloud computing Azure segment posted 50% revenue growth, its business-facing Dynamics 365 segment posted 45% revenue growth, and its consumer-facing Xbox content and services segment posted 34% revenue growth on a year-over-year basis last fiscal quarter. Though not a large part of its business, Microsoft’s digital advertising revenues also grew nicely in the fiscal third quarter. Foreign currency … Read more

We Continue to Be Big Fans of Ameresco

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Update: We first covered Ameresco in detail through an article published back in August 2020 (link here) and followed up on that work in a subsequent article published in November 2020 (link here) and provided a brief update on the firm in a piece published in January 2021 (link here). Shares of AMRC have more than doubled since we published our first article covering the name as of mid August 2021, and we think there is ample room for additional capital appreciation upside.  Image Source: Ameresco Inc – August 2021 IR Presentation By Callum Turcan Ameresco Inc (AMRC) provides its customers with an expansive slate of clean energy and energy efficiency solutions ranging from upgrades to energy infrastructure (e.g., battery storage, … Read more

How Do We Use the Valuentum Buying Index?

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How Do We Use the Valuentum Buying Index (VBI)? By Brian Nelson, CFA   Hi everyone,     Hope you are doing great!  We often receive questions about how we use the Valuentum Buying Index (VBI) rating system, one of the key metrics we use to source ideas for our members, but we think it is equally important to mention up front that the VBI is only one of the many facets of our website and services. For example, if you haven’t checked out the Dividend Cushion ratios on the stocks in your portfolio or the dividend growth product (from individual reports to the newsletter and beyond), surely you are not maximizing your membership! Don’t forget about the Economic Castle rating, … Read more

Update: Johnson & Johnson Is A Stellar Company With Ample Upside

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Summary We view Johnson & Johnson’s capital appreciation and dividend growth upside potential quite favorably. The top end of our fair value estimate range sits at $206 per share of JNJ. In this article, we cover Johnson & Johnson’s stellar financial performance, recent guidance boosts, and some of its legal hurdles. Johnson & Johnson announced on November 12 that it would spinoff its consumer-facing operations while retaining its medical devices and pharmaceutical operations. —- By Valuentum Analysts —– On October 19, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) reported third-quarter earnings for fiscal 2021 (period ended October 3, 2021) that missed consensus top-line estimates but beat consensus bottom-line estimates. The healthcare giant also raised its full-year guidance (again) for fiscal 2021 as its ‘Pharmaceutical’ segment is growing at a … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week December 17

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Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending December 17. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week ABM Industries (ABM): now $0.195 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.190. AECOM Technology (ACM): now $0.15 per share quarterly dividend. AFC Gamma (AFCG): now $0.50 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.43. Albany (AIN): now $0.21 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.20. Ambev (ABEV): now $0.0238 per share dividend, was R$0.0767. American Tower (AMT): now $1.39 per share quarterly dividend, was $1.31. Andersons (ANDE): now $0.18 per … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week January 21

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Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending January 21. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week Alerus Financial Corporation (ALRS): now $0.16 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.15. Alliant Energy (LNT): now $0.4275 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.4025. Amerant Bancorp (AMTB): now $0.09 per share dividend, was $0.06. Banner (BANR): now $0.44 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.41. Cashmere Valley Bank (CSHX): now $0.85 per share semi-annual dividend, was $0.80. Consolidated Edison (ED): now $0.79 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.78. … Read more

PayPal and Visa Remain Attractive Long-Term Ideas

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Image Source: Visa Inc – Second Quarter of Fiscal 2022 IR Earnings Presentation By Callum Turcan The payment processing and payment solutions space is attractive. Companies operating in this industry have asset-light business models with relatively modest capital expenditure requirements to maintain a given level of revenues, making free cash flows easier to come by. Additionally, the industry’s growth outlook is incredibly bright and supported by secular tailwinds as the world continues to shift away from cash and towards other payment options (card, mobile apps, QR codes, online payment platforms). Our two favorite companies in this space are PayPal Holdings Inc (PYPL) and Visa Inc (V), and we include both as ideas in the Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio. Online spending … Read more

VBI Ratings Not as Impressive As We Would Have Liked in 2022

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Image: How the VBI rating system has ranked equities so far this year. By Brian Nelson, CFA At Valuentum, we use the Valuentum Buying Index (VBI) to source ideas into diversified simulated newsletter portfolios, and the VBI may be most applicable to the simulated Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio, where we generally like to include ideas when they register a high VBI rating and remove them when they register a low VBI rating. We always use the VBI in a portfolio setting and never by itself. But what about the Valuentum Buying Index ratings, themselves? How did they “perform” during 2022 in one of the worst years for stock market investors in history? Well, not as spectacular as we would have … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week of August 4

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Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending August 4. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week                          American States Water (AWR): now $0.43 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.40. Artisan Partners Asset Management (APAM): now $0.61 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.50. Atlas Energy Solutions (AESI): now $0.20 per share quarterly dividend. Bank7 (BSVN): now $0.21 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.16. Berry (BRY): now $0.14 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.12. BP (BP): now $0.4362/ADS dividend, was $0.3966. BTS Group … Read more