Market Mayhem — Alerts for Members

During these extremely volatile times, it’s important to stay focused. On December 15, we informed all of our members to “Pay Attention.” Shortly thereafter, we notified members of the potential for a stock market technical breakdown. This morning, we offered a pre-market briefing about the importance of thinking about portfolio protection. For Best Ideas Newsletter and Dividend Growth Newsletter members: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?preview=true&m=1110817109903&ca=e2406cd6-c113-4344-8731-493f33fc44a4&id=preview For High Yield Dividend Newsletter members: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?preview=true&m=1110817109903&ca=b3ba530f-38b3-489a-ac96-2961dca89c6b&id=preview For Exclusive members: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?preview=true&m=1110817109903&ca=ba6d90c0-4433-48b2-9b8a-aac4ddf9006e&id=preview We’re here for any questions. Please just let us know how we can help! Kind regards, Brian Nelson, CFA  brian@valuentum.com

Consumer Staples Earnings Roundup

Image Source: Mike Mozart Let’s take a look at the earnings reports of some of the largest consumer staples companies. Margin performance left a good deal to be desired across the space as transportation and raw material costs are largely on the rise, and organic growth trends could be better. Companies included: Kellogg, Kraft Heinz, Kimberly-Clark, and Colgate Palmolive. By Kris Rosemann Macroeconomic uncertainty stemming from geopolitical tensions and potentially slowing economic growth in emerging markets have played a role in stagnant top-line growth for consumer staples entities of late, and ongoing pricing and promotional battles are not likely to go away anytime soon as the proliferation of the convenience of online shopping has brought about a new era in … Read more

Valuentum’s Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) Distribution

The weighted average cost of capital is one of the most subjective measures in corporate finance, but it is also one of the most important ones. “The most important item over time in valuation is obviously interest rates…If interest rates are destined to be at low levels…It makes any stream of earnings from investments worth more money. The bogey is always what government bonds yield….Any investment is worth all the cash you’re going to get out between now and judgment day discounted back. The discounting back is affected by whether you choose interests rates like those of Japan or interest rates like those we had in 1982…When we had 15 percent short-term rates in 1982, it was silly to pay … Read more

Study: Valuentum’s Best Ideas Newsletter Portfolio

To read the study, please click on the image to download the pdf document (pdf).

Campbell Soup Representative of Weakening Consumer Staples Equities

Image Source: Neil Conway When our team presented at the CFA Society of Houston in March 2017, we warned about the possible coming pressures on consumer staples stocks, and so far, our concerns have come to fruition. Not only have a number of high-profile players in the tobacco and beverage arena soured, but household consumer products and packaged foods players have felt the pain, too. Campbell Soup’s recent fallout has been among the worst. Shares have been halved since mid-2017. Download slide deck — March 8, 2017: Trust the Numbers, Not Just Management, CFA Society Houston, Kris Rosemann and Brian Nelson, CFA By Brian Nelson, CFA The consumer staples sector, as measured by the Consumer Staples Select SPDR ETF (XLP), has … Read more

ICYMI: Valuentum’s Improved Stock and ETF Web Pages

Valuentum has rolled out improved stock and ETF web pages on its website valuentum.com/. Now, subscribers can access key proprietary information on the stock and ETF web pages in addition to the customary stock and ETF reports. Dear reader, We have some exciting news that we can’t wait to share with you! At valuentum.com/, we have rolled out new stock and ETF pages that conveniently include a variety of our proprietary metrics from the Dividend Cushion ratio to the Economic Castle rating and beyond! There’s even mouseover functionality so you can learn about how we define the key metrics across our stock-selection and dividend growth methodologies. You’ll still have access to the stock and dividend reports on the landing pages, … Read more

General Mills’ Dividend Is Now of Questionable Health

General Mills is stuck between a rock and a hard place, and the market is finally noticing. Its best dividend growth years have been behind it, but its recent dealings have put it in a rather precarious position heading into the next recession, the timing of which is the only uncertainty. The company has never been a consideration for inclusion in the simulated Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio. By Brian Nelson, CFA On March 21, consumer staple General Mills (GIS) reported better-than-expected fiscal third-quarter results that showed reported net sales advancing 2% and operating profit increasing 9%, both measures over the comparable period last year. Though the top and bottom-line numbers appeared to be solid (adjusted diluted earnings per share leapt … Read more

The “Luck” and “Randomness” of Index Funds

Please select the image below to download the document. Image shown, page 1 of 14. Tickerized for Valuentum’s coverage universe.

In the News: General Mills, Realty Income, Energy Transfer

General Mills makes a big deal, Realty Income delivers, while Energy Transfer tries to battle back to even. By Kris Rosemann US Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis came out in support of recommendations from the Commerce Department for targeted tariffs on steel and aluminum. While the Defense Department recognizes that imports of low-cost steel (SLX) and aluminum resulting from unfair trading practices undermine national security, it also warns that more broad action could irritate allies. President Trump has until April to decide whether or not to take action on the recommendations from the Commerce Department for tariffs up to 24% and 7.7% on foreign steel and aluminum, respectively. Consumer food product giant General Mills (GIS) made a splash before the … Read more

Video: Quants! You’re NOT Measuring VALUE and Nelson’s Theory of Universal Value

President of Investment Research Brian Nelson defines the concept of universal value and shows how quantitative statistical methods are inextricably linked to those of fundamental, financial, business-model related analysis. Value does not exist in respective process vacuums! Value is universal. Find out why. Running time: ~10 minutes.  Tickerized for Valuentum’s stock and ETF coverage universe. Transcript Hi this is Brian Nelson from Valuentum Securities, and this is the tenth edition of a series that I call “Off the Cuff,” where I get in front of the camera and I talk for ten minutes. This is what we have to talk about today. We have to talk about this concept: The Theory of Universal Value. Value does not exist in vacuums … Read more