Valuentum Exclusive Analysis for the Discerning Investor

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Dec 19, 2019

2019: Another Market Beating Year for the Best Ideas Newsletter Portfolio!
We estimate thus far the Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio return has beat the S&P 500 by 2.8 percentage points during 2019 (34.4% versus 31.6% for the S&P 500, as measured by the SPY). Our move to overweight Apple, Facebook, and Visa worked out wonderfully for members during 2019. We continue to overweight big winners, and we credit this to our team's conviction in our very best ideas. We also made quite the savvy move in rolling over a solid gain in Chipotle (60%+) into even more shares of Apple stock during the year. We're putting some of the best ideas right in front of our membership in full transparency. Berkshire Hathaway's overweighting added some stability to the Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio, but it was a large drag on returns during the year. This is okay - we like the diversification benefits. 2019 was a very, very difficult year to beat the market, but by our estimates, the Best Ideas Newsletter did so, and by a fair margin, particularly for a large cap orientation. Note this kind of outperformance is unique as many money managers continue to trail their benchmarks during 2019. We credit the outperformance to our team's work ethic and the Valuentum methodology. We are disappointed with the current state of active management, and we are working to develop solutions for our membership. We expect to roll out an important survey in the coming months. We continue to encourage members to add the Exclusive to their membership, if they haven't considered this fantastic publication just yet. More on the Exclusive >> The Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio is part of a regular premium membership to Valuentum. More here >>

Dec 6, 2019

Dollar General Remains in Command
Image Source: Mike Mozart. Dollar General is a holding in the Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio. The company reported strong third-quarter results December 5 that showed better performance than rival Dollar Tree. Discount retail continues to feel the ill-effects of tariffs that are raising cost of goods sold, but Dollar General is taking the headwinds in stride.

Oct 12, 2019

ICYMI: Interview with Valuentum's President Brian M. Nelson, CFA
Catch up with Valuentum's President Brian M. Nelson, CFA in a recent interview with dividend growth investor Arne Magnus Lorentzen Ulland of the blog stockles.

Sep 13, 2019

Kroger Posts Solid Quarter, Issues Weak Guidance
Image Shown: Kroger Company – IR Presentation. Kroger’s same-store sales growth was a welcome sight as it relates to the current strength of the US consumer, but we are staying away from the retailer for a reason. Its large net debt load puts the company’s payout at risk during adverse economic conditions, and we think management should be battering down the hatches considering how late we are in the business cycle. Management ending Kroger’s incremental operating profit forecast is a troubling sign.

Sep 5, 2019

The Valuentum Strategy in Action: Why We Are Letting BIN Holding Dollar General Run Higher
Image Shown: Best Ideas Newsletter holding Dollar General Corporation jumped up after posting great performance during the second quarter of its fiscal 2019 on August 29. The company has trounced the market return since it was added to the Best Ideas Newsletter in April 2017. We are letting this winner run higher.We are letting Dollar General run higher because we think the market is just as optimistic, or maybe even more so, on the company’s prospects than we are, indicating there’s room for further capital appreciation. If Dollar General ever wanted to augment its dividend growth story, the firm could pare back its annual share repurchases to make room for significant per share dividend increases.

Aug 21, 2019

Target Stuns, Shares Jump Higher
Image Shown: Shares of Target Corporation (TGT) leapt higher on August 21 on the back of its strong performance during the second quarter of FY2019. In particular, the retailer’s comparable same store sales growth was quite impressive given the hard comparison period, with e-commerce and same-day fulfillment leading the way.Strong performance out of Target and other major US retailers like Walmart indicate that while headwinds are forming, the US economy remains strong for now. We've raised our fair value estimate of Target.

Aug 19, 2019

No Recession At Walmart; Estee Lauder Not Cheap
Image Source: Mike Mozart. Walmart’s results were quite reassuring regarding the health of the economy. There are also pockets of significant strength, with prestige beauty being catapulted by a “selfie generation.”

Aug 15, 2019

Macy’s Cuts Guidance, Dividend Cut Could Be on the Horizon
Image Shown: Macy’s cut adjusted EPS guidance for FY2019, which implies a material drop from its FY2018 performance. Flat revenue guidance, gross margin pressure, and rising SG&A expenses all signal there’s likely more pain yet to come. Image Source: Macy’s – IR Presentation. We are staying far away from Macy’s and most retailers in general, but continue to like Dollar General Corporation as the nimble retailer has posted stellar performance since joining the Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio in April 2017.

Jul 29, 2019

Letting Dollar General Run Higher
Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio holding Dollar General has trounced the market by roughly 70 percentage points since it was added to the Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio in April 2017. Yet another big outperformer.

Jun 16, 2019

Valuentum's June Best Ideas Newsletter
Image: Page 49, June edition of American Library Association Booklist."I hope that my book Value Trap: Theory of Universal Valuation marks a turning point in the financial research industry. To you and me, 1) looking forward, 2) understanding that stock values are based on future expectations, and 3) calculating intrinsic value is simply par for the course. If other investors are not doing this, it should be no surprise that they are failing miserably. 90% underperformance! I hope my book serves as a wake up call for readers to demand forward-looking analysis and research that calculates a best fair value estimate." -- Brian Nelson, CFA