CL

Valuentum Economic Castleâ„¢ Rating Update

by

Read: Keeping the Horse Before the Cart: Valuentum’s Economic Castle™ Rating The Economic Castle Focuses on the Magnitude of Economic Value Creation The Valuentum Economic Castle™ rating is an enhancement of the competitive advantage framework (commonly known as economic moat analysis) that has become widespread and ubiquitous within the investing world. Whereas an economic moat framework evaluates a firm on the basis of the sustainability and durability of its competitive advantages, Valuentum’s Economic Castle™ rating evaluates a firm on the basis of the firm’s future economic profit spread (return on invested capital less its weighted average cost of capital). The companies with the strongest Valuentum Economic Castle™ ratings are poised to generate the most economic value for shareholders in the … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week Ending March 14

by

Below we provide a list of firms that raised/lowered their dividends during the week ending March 14. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week Capstead (CMO): now $0.34 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.31. Colgate-Palmolive (CL): now $0.36 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.34. Douglas Dynamics (PLOW): now $0.2175 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.2125. Ellington Residential Mortgage REIT (EARN): now $0.55 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.50. Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS): now $0.325 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.25. General Mills (GIS): now $0.41 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.38. Gramercy (GPT): reinstates common stock dividend of $0.035 per share quarterly dividend. Hurco Companies (HURC): now $0.07 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.05. JMP Group (JMP): now $0.045 per share … Read more

Clorox Faces Cash Flow Headwinds in Fiscal 1Q

by

Our general takeaway after surveying calendar third-quarter results from peers Hershey (HSY), Colgate-Palmolive (CL), and Unilever (UN) was that performance in the consumer staples space was mostly positive during the third quarter and that emerging-market performance remains robust (even though Unilever toned down expectations a bit). Clorox’s (CLX) better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results, released Thursday, did not deviate from the mostly positive newsflow. Sales expanded 2% (3.5% excluding the negative impact from currency), and the company recorded pretax profit growth of 7%. Volume for the fiscal first quarter advanced 1% thanks to gains from Professional Products, Charcoal, Laundry and Burt’s Bees offset by declines in Home Care. Gross margins were flat as cost savings and price increases mitigated higher manufacturing and logistics … Read more

Surveying a Few Consumer Staples: Hershey, Colgate-Palmolive, and Unilever

by

<< Definition of ‘Consumer Staples’ Hershey (HSY) “We (Hershey) expect 2014 net sales growth to be within our 5 to 7 percent long-term target, including the impact of foreign currency exchange rates. As has been the case for many years, Hershey is a gross margin focused company. We have solid productivity and cost savings initiatives in place and, while early in the planning cycle, we expect adjusted gross margin expansion next year that will drive 2014 growth in adjusted earnings per share-diluted in the 9 to 11 percent range, in line with our revised long-term target.” 3Q13 press release Colgate-Palmolive (CL) “As we (Colgate-Palmolive) look ahead to 2014, while our global budget process is in its initial stages, based on … Read more

Colgate-Palmolive’s Second Quarter Impacted By Currency; Core Revenue Expansion Not Bad

by

While some consumer staples companies continue to struggle as the consumer trades down, Colgate-Palmolive (click ticker for report: ) posted decent second quarter results late last week. Revenue advanced 2% year-over-year to $4.3 billion, slightly below consensus estimates as a result of the negative impact of currency. But net of the negative impact of currency, revenue rose 5.5% year-over-year. Earnings per share grew 5% year-over-year to $0.70 when adjusted for the one-off impact of restructuring charges. Free cash flow generation was solid, totaling $1.1 billion year-to-date or 12% of revenue. On the cost side, we saw some modest profitability expansion as its gross margin rose 70 basis points year-over-year, to 58.6%. The firm’s focus on expanding its gross margin via productivity … Read more

Firms Raising Their Dividends in the Week Ending March 8

by

The flurry of dividend increases continues. Below we provide a list of firms that upped their dividends for the week ending March 8. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports, please click here. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week Allied World (AWH): now $0.50 per share share quarterly dividend, was $0.375. Agree Realty (ADC): now $0.41 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.40. Amtrust Financial (AFSI): now $0.14 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.10. Canadian Natural (CNQ): now C$0.125 per share quarterly dividend, was C$0.105. Colgate-Palmolive (CL): now $0.68 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.62. Covanta (CVA): now $0.165 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.15. Devon … Read more

A Dual Focus on Valuation and Yield Is the Best Way to Combat Changes in Future Dividend Tax Rates

by

With a potential hike in the dividend tax rate just around the corner, there is no more important time than now for income investors to evaluate their existing portfolio holdings to determine whether they are well-positioned for a higher-tax environment. Assuming there are no changes to the current trajectory, the top dividend tax rate is expected to rise to 39.6% next year (up from 15% currently), and the highest-income earners will see a Medicare surtax on top of that. Evaluate All Aspects of a Dividend Investment First of all, we think those investing in high-yielders (firms) at any price (HYAAP) may be most affected by this change in tax rates. These high-yielders at any price (HYAAP) tend to be favorites of those at or near retirement, particularly given the paltry payouts on fixed … Read more

Earnings Roundup for the Week Ended Sunday, April 19, Covering Companies Across the Board

by

By Callum Turcan Let’s take a look at several earnings reports across numerous industries in this article as the ongoing coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic forces the global economy to a crawl. Please note that as these reports primarily cover the first quarter of calendar year 2020, the impact of the pandemic has yet to be truly reflected in corporate earnings. That said, these reports still provide an important glimpse into what to expect going forward and how companies are responding to the pandemic. By ticker in alphabetical order: BBBY, CPSS, ISRG, LAKE, MRTN, OFLX, SCHW, TSM Bed Bath & Beyond Inc (BBBY) Shares of BBBY shot up on April 16 after reporting fourth quarter and full-year results for its fiscal 2019 … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week of March 15

by

Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending March 15. 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                          Aboitiz Power Corporation (ABZPY): now $0.5667 per share annual dividend, was $0.4579. Acer (ACEYY): now NT$1.60 per share dividend, was NT$1.50. AG Mortgage Investment Trust (MITT): now $0.18 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.05. Applied Materials (AMAT): now $0.40 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.32. Boston Pizza Royalties Income Fund (BPZZF): now CAD 0.113 per share monthly dividend, was CAD 0.107. Brambles (BXBLY): now … Read more