Valuentum Exclusive Analysis for the Discerning Investor

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Aug 16, 2024

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week of August 16
Let's take a look at firms raising/lowering their dividends this week.

Sep 20, 2023

Fed Rate Decision, UAW Strike Continues, Microsoft Ups Payout
Image Source: Mike Mozart. If you’re thinking like us about the ongoing Fed rate-hiking cycle, you’re probably thinking that perhaps we’ll see another rate hike or two down the road, even if the Fed pauses at today’s September 20 meeting. However, whether the Fed pauses from here on out or executes a couple more hikes, it really shouldn’t matter much to long-term investors. From where we stand, the conversation about interest rates should now be shifting away from worries about elevated inflation to the future positive prospects that correspond to the work that the Fed has already done. With the market-cap weighted S&P 500 just a stone’s throw away from all-time highs, despite aggressive contractionary monetary policy, we believe the market may start to view the existing levels of “high” near-term interest rates as dry powder for the Fed to stimulate the economy in the future, if or when it’s needed. The Fed has now built up a very nice insurance policy with little damage done to the U.S. stock market, and we think equities, particularly the stylistic area of large cap growth, may continue to reward investors as such a positive view is eventually factored in. New highs may once again be in the cards, and we remain bullish on the equity markets today, despite the ominous volatility experienced the past 20+ months.

Nov 6, 2022

Shares of Lithium Producer Albemarle Are Soaring So Far In 2022
Image: Albemarle's shares have rocketed higher the past few years and are soaring during 2022. We think Albemarle remains a great fit for ESG-related investment considerations, and we’re sticking with shares in the ESG Newsletter portfolio following the company’s third-quarter results, released November 2. The lithium producer remains well-positioned, and its growth rates remain fabulous in an undersupplied market. Prices for lithium can be volatile at times, but Albemarle’s financial leverage remains manageable, and the firm expects to churn out free cash flow during 2022 as it continues to invest aggressively in its business and pay out dividends to shareholders. Albemarle’s fundamental and relative share-pricing strength have been a sight to see thus far in 2022. We still like shares of Albemarle based on the high end of our fair value estimate range.

Mar 1, 2022

Shares of Our Favorite Miner South32 Skyrocketed During Past Year
Image Shown: South32, an idea in our ESG Newsletter portfolio and one of our favorite miners, put up tremendous financial performance during the first half of fiscal 2022 as it capitalized on surging realized prices for its commodities sales. Image Source: South32 – First Half of Fiscal 2022 IR Earnings Presentation. Shares of the American depository receipts (‘ADRs’) of one of our favorite miners, South32, have put up tremendous performance during the past year. According to data provided by Yahoo! Finance, shares of SOUHY are up over 50% during the past year on a price only basis while the S&P 500 is up ~9% on a price only basis during this period as of late February 2022. South32 is focused on building up a portfolio around high-quality nickel, aluminum, alumina, manganese, and zinc assets (these are metals and minerals that are essential for building things such as lithium-ion batteries and electric vehicles) while retaining a meaningful presence in the metallurgical coal space. Let's follow up on this excellent idea.

Feb 10, 2022

Top ESG Idea South32 Getting Closer to Launching Major Mining Project in Arizona
Image Shown: South32 is targeting ample zinc, lead, and silver resources at the Hermosa project in Arizona that could be quite economical to extract should the Australian-based miner move forward with the endeavor. Image Source: South32 – January 2022 IR Presentation. Shares of South32, one of our favorite miners, are up over 50% during the past year as of this writing and that is before taking dividend considerations into account. The Australian miner has a bright outlook after shedding virtually all its thermal coal assets last calendar year (completed in June 2021) and announcing in October 2021 that it would acquire a sizable economic interest in a Chilean copper mine. We include shares of SOUHY as an idea in the ESG Newsletter portfolio and continue to be huge fans of the company. The miner has ample exposure to the “green energy” revolution and continues to pivot towards minerals that are expected to be in high demand in the future, which in turn supports the firm’s cash flow growth runway. South32 has exposure to attractive potential mining opportunities down in Arizona and recently provided a big update on these efforts that are worth going over. Let's dig in.

Nov 26, 2021

South32 Continues to Improve Its Asset Base
Image Source: South32 – October 2021 Sierra Gorda Acquisition IR Presentation. South32 represents one of our favorite ideas in the mining space, and we include shares of SOUHY as an idea in the new ESG Newsletter portfolio. We view both South32’s capital appreciation and income generation upside quite favorably, keeping in mind the firm has a variable dividend policy that is subject to foreign currency movements. On a scale of 1-100 (with 100 being the best), South32 earns a nice ESG rating of 93 (based on our proprietary ESG rating matrix) as the miner continues to pivot towards commodities that will be essential to making the green energy revolution possible.

Sep 29, 2021

South32 Is a Great Miner
Image Shown: An overview of South32’s global asset base. We are big fans of the Australian miner. Image Source: South32 – Fiscal 2021 IR Earnings Presentation. Back in 2015, the mining giant BHP Group Ltd spun off South32. Since then, South32 has seen some major changes to its asset base through a combination of acquisitions, divestments, and organic investments. We include shares of South32’s American depository receipts (‘ADRs’) as an idea in the new ESG Newsletter portfolio. Each ADR represents five ordinary shares of South32. South32 is based in Perth, Australia, and we're huge fans of its pristine balance sheet, stellar free cash flow generating abilities, top-notch asset base, and bright growth outlook. The miner pays out a variable dividend and offers investors meaningful capital appreciation upside potential as well.