Valuentum Exclusive Analysis for the Discerning Investor

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Sep 1, 2020

Valuentum Website Overview
Overview of the key features of www.valuentum.com (03:55). Valuentum (val∙u∙n∙tum) [val-yoo-en-tuh-m] Securities Inc. is an independent investment research publisher, offering premium equity reports, dividend reports, and ETF reports, as well as commentary across all sectors/companies, a Best Ideas Newsletter (spanning market caps, asset classes), a Dividend Growth Newsletter, modeling tools/products, and more. Independence and integrity remain our core, and we strive to be a champion of the investor. Valuentum is based in the Chicagoland area. Valuentum is not a money manager, broker, or financial advisor. Valuentum is a publisher of financial information.

Aug 13, 2020

Cisco Responds to Near-Term Headwinds with Large Cost Cuts
Image Shown: Cisco Systems Inc’s financial performance held up well, relatively speaking, during the initial stages of the pandemic. Image Source: Cisco Systems Inc – Fourth Quarter of Fiscal 2020 IR Earnings Presentation. On August 12, Cisco Systems reported fourth quarter fiscal 2020 earnings (period ended July 25, 2020) that beat consensus estimates on both the top- and bottom-lines. However, Cisco’s outlook for the current fiscal quarter was weaker than expected which weighed on shares of CSCO during normal trading hours on August 13. Cisco’s near-term performance is facing headwinds due to the ongoing coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic as many of its customers are delaying projects until after the storm has passed. With that in mind, Cisco remained a free cash flow cow last fiscal year and that is likely to continue going forward, which supports its ability to continue paying meaningful dividends. Cisco’s strong cash flow profile is further supported by its pristine balance sheet, and we continue to like the firm as a holding in both our Best Ideas Newsletter and Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolios. Shares of CSCO yield ~3.4% as of this writing. Please note that Cisco recently announced its CFO for the past five years, Kelly Kramer, plans to leave the company once her replacement has been found.

Jul 24, 2020

Intel’s 7-nm Chips Behind Schedule, Free Cash Flows Remain Strong
Image Shown: Intel Corporation made waves on July 23 when it announced its 7-nm chips were well behind schedule. Image Source: Intel Corporation – Second Quarter Fiscal 2020 IR Earnings Presentation. On July 23, Intel Corp reported second quarter fiscal 2020 earnings (period ended June 27, 2020) that beat both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates. However, shares of INTC dropped during after hours trading that day due to Intel delaying the rollout of its 7-nanometer chips. The company offered full-year guidance for fiscal 2020 that indicated its growth trajectory was continuing in the face of the ongoing coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic, though investors were largely fixated on the delay of its 7-nm chip offerings.

Jul 22, 2020

IBM’s Cloud Transition Continues
Image Source: International Business Machines Corporation – 2019 Annual Report. On July 20, IBM reported second quarter 2020 earnings that beat both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates. Most of the market’s excitement centered on IBM’s ‘Cloud & Cognitive Software’ segment posting year-over-year revenue growth of ~3% in the second quarter while its company-wide GAAP revenue declined by ~5% year-over-year, though initial gains in IBM’s share price faded away during regular trading hours on July 21. In the earnings press release, IBM noted its “total cloud revenue” grew by 30% year-over-year last quarter. Shares of IBM are trading near their fair value estimate of $129 as of this writing, indicating that shares of IBM appear fairly valued.

Jun 26, 2020

Update on Dell Technologies and VMware
Image Source: VMware Inc – First Quarter Fiscal 2021 IR Earnings Presentation. Dell Technologies and VMware Inc are back in the news as the WSJ recently reported the former is considering spinning off its enormous equity stake in the latter. Back in September 2016, Dell completed its ~$67 billion cash-and-stock acquisition of EMC which gave Dell a controlling equity stake in VMware (and a mountain of net debt in the process). As of January 31, 2020, Dell owned approximately 80.9% of VMware’s outstanding equity. Dell can spin off its equity stake in VMware tax-free after a five-year waiting period, though Dell would need to wait until September 2021 before that could occur (given when the EMC deal closed).

Jun 25, 2020

Broadcom’s Financials Are Stabilizing
Image Source: Broadcom Inc – June 2020 IR Presentation. On June 4, Broadcom posted second-quarter earnings for fiscal 2020 (period ended May 3, 2020). Shares of AVGO are trading in the upper bound of our fair value estimate range and appear reasonably priced as of this writing considering the relatively favorable forward-guidance management offered for the fiscal third quarter. Though the ongoing coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic is negatively impacting Broadcom’s operations with an eye towards “challenges” at the firm’s supply chain, the company’s growing ‘Infrastructure software’ segment appears to be helping stabilize its financial performance. We give Broadcom a Dividend Cushion ratio of 1.0, earning the firm a “GOOD” Dividend Safety rating (these metrics factor in expectations that the firm will push through meaningful per share dividend growth over the coming fiscal years). While Broadcom carries a hefty net debt load, its business model is light on capital expenditures which allows for the firm to generate meaningful free cash flows. Shares of AVGO yield ~4.2% as of this writing.

Jun 16, 2020

Reiterating Our Bullish Long-Term View on Stocks
Image: The NASDAQ 100 Index remains resilient, bouncing off support, after breaking out to new highs recently. Some of our best ideas are included in the NASDAQ 100, and our favorite concentrations include exposure to big cap tech and large cap growth. We continue to be bullish on equities for the long run. In addition to unlimited quantitative easing and "whatever it takes, squared" Fed policy, today, June 16, the Trump administration announced that it is weighing a $1 trillion stimulus bill to help support the economy. While uncertainties remain regarding specifics of the bill (it might include state assistance, extension of unemployment benefits, etc.), the move is consistent with the outsize spending we expect to further bolster the bull case, "ICYMI -- Stay Optimistic. Stay Bullish. I Am." We continue to emphasize that, in light of unlimited QE and runaway fiscal stimulus, the longer-duration components of intrinsic values are expanding considerably, and as a result, fair values, themselves, are actually rising during this recession and pandemic [a good estimate of the value of the S&P 500 today may be between 3,530-3,920, as outlined in the following: "Scribbles and More Newsletter Portfolio Changes.]."

Jun 15, 2020

Good News for Intel
Image Source: Intel Corporation – January 2020 Presentation. In this article, we cover recent events in the semiconductor industry and how a bill that was just introduced in the US Congress could positively impact Intel Corp. We include shares of INTC as a holding in both our Best Ideas Newsletter and Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolios and continue to like the company for numerous reasons that we will cover in this piece. Shares of INTC yield ~2.2% as of this writing.

Jun 15, 2020

ICYMI: Survey Coming Later Today, More Market Volatility Expected
Image: The market's levels of volatility so far in 2020 have been among the greatest in history. Expectations for increased volatility in the marketplace as a result of the proliferation of price-agnostic trading (indexing and quantitative trading) is a key theme of Valuentum's text, Value Trap: Theory of Universal Valuation. We continue to emphasize the importance of due diligence, enterprise valuation, behavioral thinking, the information contained in prices, and stock selection across equity portfolios. Page 256. This week is setting up to be yet another volatile week of trading, but nothing too surprising. We've talked extensively about outsize levels of volatility in the book Value Trap, and many of our predictions regarding the magnitude of volatility have come to fruition, as described in this note here. But as we've also noted in Value Trap, we don't think increased volatility is a transient development. The Fed and Treasury have only further emboldened price-agnostic trading (indexing/quant) with recent bailout actions, and volatility and momentum funds, which exacerbate the swings, will only grow as a percentage of trading volumes. The magnitude of market volatility during the COVID-19 crisis has certainly been immense. During March for example, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had 8 consecutive days with a 4% move in either direction (this is the first time in history this happened--not even during the tumultuous times of the Crash of 1929 or Black Monday of 1987 or the Great Financial Crisis did this happen). Intra-day volatility has also been considerable, and it has become commonplace for equity futures to swing wildly before market open. Now, more than ever, investors need a steady hand at the wheel.

Jun 12, 2020

*ALERT* Scribbles and More Newsletter Portfolio Changes
Image: Why are stock prices increasing while the near-term economy and near-term earnings outlook isn't as bright as before...How unlimited quantitative easing, runaway government spending, increased inflation expectations impact equity values...Why this year's earnings expectations or next year's earnings expectations don't matter much...Why Valuentum thinks equity values are rising today, even as the near-term outlook remains unclear. Scribbles on page 76 of Value Trap. "I know it sounds crazy to say so during a global pandemic and during a recession, but the right multiple and the right earnings to use to value this market is an 18-20x multiple on $196 earnings, putting a fair value range on the S&P 500 today of 3,530-3,920. The S&P 500 is trading at about 3,000 today." -- Brian Nelson, CFA