Valuentum Exclusive Analysis for the Discerning Investor

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May 17, 2024

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week of May 17
Let's take a look at firms raising/lowering their dividends this week.

May 13, 2022

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week May 13
Let's take a look at companies that raised/lowered their dividend this week.

May 21, 2021

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week May 21
Let's take a look at companies that raised/lowered their dividend this week.

Jan 15, 2021

Steris Ties the Knot with Cantel Medical
Image Shown: Cantel Medical Corp is getting bought out by Steris PLC through a cash-and-stock deal. The image up above highlights Cantel Medical’s promising long-term growth outlook, though its performance in 2020 was subdued due to headwinds created by the coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic. In our view, Steris was attracted to Cantel Medical’s improving outlook (the latter started to stage an impressive rebound in the second half of calendar year 2020) and the ability for the combined firm to generate substantial synergies. Image Source: Cantel Medical Corp – December 2020 IR Presentation. On January 12, Steris PLC announced it had reached an agreement with Cantel Medical to buy the company through a cash-and-stock deal worth ~$3.6 billion (~$4.6 billion when including the assumption of debt and convertible notes) that valued CMD at $84.66 per share based on the closing price of STE on January 11. The deal includes $16.93 in cash and 0.33787 share of STE for each share of CMD. Steris is heavily focused on sterilization products for hospitals and laboratories (it also provides related services). The company intends to fund the cash component of its deal for Cantel Medical with new debt issuance and committed bridge financing, which will also be used to refinance most of Cantel Medical’s existing debt. Shares of Cantel Medical have advanced ~38% (as of the end of normal trading hours January 13) from when we first wrote about the idea back in early December 2020. Even before the acquisition was announced, investors started to warm back up to the company due to expectations that the headwinds that held the firm back last year would start to dissipate this year. In our view, Steris’ acquisition of Cantel Medical is highly complementary. It appears Steris was optimistic that Cantel Medical’s long-term growth outlook remained bright even though the firm had a rough 2020.

Dec 8, 2020

Cantel Medical Surges Higher
Image Shown: Shares of Cantel Medical Corp popped higher during normal trading hours December 8 after the firm’s latest earnings report indicated its recovery was well underway. On December 8, Cantel Medical Corp reported first quarter earnings for fiscal 2021 (period ended October 31, 2020) that beat both top- and bottom-line consensus estimates. Furthermore, Cantel Medical’s $297 million in GAAP revenues last fiscal quarter exceeded the top end of its forecast that was published on October 22, which had been raised above the revenue guidance range management put forward during the firm’s fourth quarter of fiscal 2020 earnings call that was held on September 17. We published a note back on December 2 highlighting that “we think Cantel Medical is one for the radar of a risk-seeking investor” on the back of its improving near-term revenue outlook. In that article, we mentioned that it was crucial for Cantel Medical to show signs that its margins were moving in the right direction after deteriorating over the past couple of fiscal years. During its latest earnings report, Cantel Medical’s financial performance clearly indicated that a recovery was well underway.

Dec 2, 2020

Things Are Looking Up at Cantel Medical But Many Risks Remain
Image Source: Cantel Medical Corporation – Fourth Quarter and Full Year Earnings for Fiscal 2020 IR Presentation. Medical device and instrument maker Cantel Medical will be a major beneficiary of recent news regarding the growing chances that a safe and viable COVID-19 vaccine will potentially get approved soon. Though the company’s financial performance has deteriorated in recent fiscal years and organic revenue has faced headwinds, the firm’s upwardly-revised guidance (particularly its sales guidance) for the first quarter of fiscal 2021 was a highly encouraging sign, and Cantel noted that the level of elective medical procedures are starting to stabilize. Its recent October 2019 acquisition of Hu-Friedy’s dental operations will put the company in a better position to compete for business as well, though we note rising confirmed COVID-19 hospitalizations around the world continue to pose a threat to the pace of elective surgeries/procedures. Cantel’s near-term outlook is looking up, in our view, but high financial leverage (net debt to adjusted EBITDA), weak organic growth trends, rising expected operating expenses and capital spending, stronger and larger rivals that compete through bundling partnerships across the medical device/instrument arena, moderate customer concentration risk, and recent capital-spending cutbacks (coupled with a suspended dividend) to shore up capital put this idea firmly in the high-risk/speculative category. Nonetheless, given signs of a turnaround based on the recent guidance raise, we think Cantel Medical is one for the radar of a risk-seeking investor. We’ll be paying close attention to its revenue and margin performance when it reports fiscal first-quarter 2021 earnings December 8.

Aug 28, 2020

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week August 28
Let's take a look at companies that raised/lowered their dividend this week.

Mar 1, 2013

Firms Raising Their Dividends in the Week Ending March 1
The flurry of dividend increases continued in the week ending March 1.