Kroger Beats Estimates and Once Again Raises Guidance

Image Source: Kroger Co – Third Quarter of Fiscal 2021 IR Earnings Presentation By Callum Turcan Kroger Co (KR) recently reported third quarter earnings for fiscal 2021 (period ended November 6, 2021) that beat both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates, and the retailer also once again boosted its full-year guidance for fiscal 2021. Kroger’s operations include retail store brands such as City Market, Food 4 Less, Fred Meyers, Metro Market, and more, along with its private label brands of consumer staples offerings. Shares of KR have shifted meaningful higher since its latest earnings update as of this writing. Earnings Update In fiscal 2020 (period ended January 30, 2021), Kroger put up banner performance due in large part to the “panic” … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week November 26

Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending November 26. 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 Alpine Income Property Trust (PINE): now $0.27 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.26. Amcor (AMCR): now $0.12 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.1175. American Equity (AEL): now $0.34 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.32. Brigham Minerals (MNRL): now $0.40 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.35. Central Pacific Financial (CPF): now $0.25 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.24. Chesapeake Energy (CHK): now $0.4375 per share quarterly dividend, … Read more

Tyson’s Pricing Strength Enables Margin Expansion During Turbulent Time

Image Shown: Tyson Foods Inc put up stellar results for fiscal 2021. Image Source: Tyson Foods Inc – Fourth Quarter of Fiscal 2021 IR Earnings Presentation By Callum Turcan On November 15, Tyson Foods Inc (TSN) reported fourth quarter earnings for fiscal 2021 (period ended October 2, 2021) that beat both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates largely due to the firm’s impressive pricing strength, the focus of this article. The company is facing major headwinds from the coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic, from labor shortages to supply chain bottlenecks to rising input costs, though Tyson has adeptly navigated this turbulence while bolstering both its revenues and its margins. For reference, please note that Tyson’s fiscal year ends around late-September or early October. … Read more

Hard Work and the Trust That Binds

Image Source: Terry Johnson By Brian Nelson, CFA We’ll have our traditional Valuentum Weekly email coming out on Sunday, and I’m excited to say our team is putting the finishing touches on our technology industry update, so we’ll have a whole bunch of fresh reports for you to look at Sunday evening/Monday morning. It’s easy to forget how much we’ve been through the past two years. Often, we forget how helpful the warning that markets were going to crash was the weekend before they did on February 22, 2020, “Is a Stock Market Crash Coming? – Coronavirus Update and P/E Ratios,” how we thought dollar-cost-averaging made sense at the bottom in March 2020, and how we went “all-in” in April … Read more

Conagra Brands Facing Major Inflationary Headwinds

Image Shown: Conagra Brands Inc recently reduced its full-year guidance for fiscal 2022 in the face of major inflationary headwinds. Image Source: Conagra Brands Inc – Fourth Quarter of Fiscal 2021 IR Earnings Presentation By Callum Turcan On July 13, the company behind the Slim Jim, Duncan Hines, Gardein brands (among other), Conagra Brands Inc (CAG), reported fourth quarter earnings for fiscal 2021 (period ended May 30, 2021) that beat both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates. However, its guidance for fiscal 2022 came in a bit light in the face of major inflationary headwinds which saw shares sell off initially after the report was published. Please note that its fiscal 2020 was a 53 week reporting period while its fiscal … Read more

ICYMI — Video: Exclusive 2020 — Furthering the Financial Discipline

ICYMI — Video: Exclusive 2020 — Furthering the Financial Discipline — — In this 40+ minute video jam-packed with must-watch content, Valuentum’s President Brian Nelson talks about the Theory of Universal Valuation and how his work is furthering the financial discipline. Learn the pitfalls of factor investing and modern portfolio theory and how the efficient markets hypothesis holds little substance in the wake of COVID-19. He’ll talk about which companies Valuentum likes and why, and which areas he’s avoiding. This and more in Valuentum’s 2020 Exclusive conference call.   Note: This video was originally published August 2, 2020.    To watch the video >>   The Theory of Universal Valuation —– Valuentum members have access to our 16-page stock reports, … Read more

3 Strong Dividend Payers to Consider Within Consumer Staples

By Brian Nelson, CFA Dividend growth may never go out of style. For one, there are tremendous compounding benefits to investing in dividend growers over the long haul, “3 Substantial Benefits of Dividend Growth Investing.” A focus on traditional cash-based sources of intrinsic value and dividend health is therefore essential to avoid tragic dividend cuts in your portfolio (see our walk-through of the cash-based sources of intrinsic value and how to find them in our article/video about Apple here). Three dividend growers that we do not include in the Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio but that have recently-reported calendar first-quarter 2021 earnings and may be worth considering in a diversified equity portfolio are Kellogg (K), Colgate-Palmolive (CL) and Clorox (CLX). These three … Read more

General Mills Prepares for Cost Inflation, Pet Business Growing Rapidly

Image Source: General Mills Inc – Third Quarter of Fiscal 2021 IR Earnings Presentation By Callum Turcan On March 24, General Mills Inc (GIS) posted third quarter earnings for fiscal 2021 (period ended February 28, 2021) that beat consensus top- and bottom-line estimates on a GAAP basis, though its adjusted non-GAAP bottom-line performance missed consensus estimates. General Mills has seen demand surge higher for its products in the wake of the coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic as households stockpiled goods and started eating at home more often. The company posted a solid fiscal third quarter earnings report, though its outlook is facing headwinds as General Mills is contending with cost inflation concerns. Shares of GIS yield ~3.4% and are trading just above … Read more

ALERT: Raising Cash in the Newsletter Portfolios

January 27, 2021 ALERT: Raising Cash in the Newsletter Portfolios We are raising the cash position in the simulated Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio and simulated Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio to 10%-20%. — By Brian Nelson, CFA — Our research has been absolutely fantastic for a long time, but 2020 may have been our best year yet. You can read the 2020 recap here. With the S&P 500 trading within our fair value estimate range of 3,530-3,920 (and the markets rolling over while showing signs of abnormal behavior), we’re raising the cash position in the Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio and Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio to 10%-20%. — For more conservative investors, the high end of this range may even be larger, especially … Read more

Chicken Sandwich Wars Heating Up In the US

Image Shown: Rivals in the quick-service restaurant space are aggressively competing for share in the fast-growing premium chicken sandwich category following Popeyes’ considerable success the past couple years. Source: Images/logos property of the respective companies. By Callum Turcan and Brian Nelson, CFA Nothing has been the same in the fast-food industry since Popeyes launched its first nationwide chicken sandwich August 12, 2019. The release of the delicious chicken sandwich from the company named after Gene Hackman’s character Popeye Doyle in the 1971 film The French Connection may even have changed the fast-food industry as we know it. Popeyes’ “tender all-white meat chicken breast fillet, marinated in (its) authentic blend of Louisiana seasonings, then hand battered and breaded in (its) all … Read more