New Payment Option! Valuentum Research Update!

Hi everyone: — We’re excited to say that we’re adding additional payment flexibility at Valuentum. — Many members have expressed interest in paying via other providers, and we have added Square to the mix. You can use credit or debit card or bank (ACH) to pay via invoice. — With all of the goings-on in the financial technology and payments space, we wanted to continue to provide members options to pay their memberships how they want and through who they want. You can always reach out to us at info@valuentum.com. — You’ll notice that we’ve also tightened our focus at Valuentum during the past 12-24 months in advance of what has certainly become a more difficult 2022 than even some … Read more

Things Are Bad Out There

“I don’t like this market one bit, but we have to endure. Markets will rise again, but there will be a lot more pain to come in the near term. We think the base case is that we get a very bad recession in 2023. We’ve yet to pull the trigger on put option ideas in the simulated newsletter portfolios, but we expect things to get worse before they get better. For readers seeking ongoing option ideas each month, please consider subscribing to our options commentary here.” – Brian Nelson, CFA By Brian Nelson, CFA Things are bad out there, and there’s probably no better way to say it. On September 28, Bloomberg reported that Apple Inc. (AAPL) is now … Read more

U.S. Housing Market Showing Signs of Weakness

Image Shown: The US housing market is starting to show signs of weakness. Companies involved in the home building business in the US are starting to feel the heat, with the iShares US Home Construction ETF down ~30% year-to-date as of early September 2022 on a price-only basis. By Callum Turcan The national U.S. housing market has been on fire during the past few years. Sharp increases in U.S. housing prices are now contending with rising mortgage rates, which is prompting the question, are U.S. housing prices heading for a crash? Affordability issues are rampant, with many households now priced out of the market, and signs of weakness are emerging in the U.S. housing market. Background The Federal Reserve is … Read more

Dividend Growth Idea Home Depot Beats Estimates, Maintains Guidance

Image Shown: Dividend growth idea Home Depot Inc is a stellar free cash flow generator in almost any operating environment. Historically, the home improvement retailer’s free cash flows have fully covered its dividend obligations, and we forecast that will continue to be the case going forward. However, we caution that its sizable share repurchases are being funded in part by its balance sheet. The firm has a large net debt load on the books. Image Source: Home Depot Inc – Second Quarter of Fiscal 2022 IR Earnings Presentation By Callum Turcan On August 16, Home Depot Inc (HD) reported second-quarter earnings for fiscal 2022 (period ended July 31, 2022) that beat both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates. The home improvement … Read more

Dividend Growth Idea Home Depot Beats Estimates and Boosts Guidance

Image Shown: Dividend growth idea Home Depot Inc is a tremendous generator of shareholder value due to its stellar return on invested capital performance. Image Source: Home Depot Inc – First Quarter of Fiscal 2022 Non-GAAP Reconciliation Financial Package By Callum Turcan On May 17, Home Depot Inc (HD) reported first quarter earnings for fiscal 2022 (period ended May 1, 2022) that beat both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates. Demand from professionals remains robust, offsetting waning demand from do-it-yourself (‘DIY’) customers. In the wake of its strong fiscal first quarter performance, Home Depot boosted its fiscal 2022 guidance in conjunction with its latest earnings report. We are big fans of Home Depot’s income growth potential and include shares of HD … Read more

Dividend Growth Idea Home Depot Raises Payout as Its Growth Story Continues

Image Shown: Dividend growth idea Home Depot Inc has put up strong financial performance of late. Image Source: Home Depot Inc – Fourth Quarter of Fiscal 2021 Supplemental Material By Callum Turcan Demand for home improvement and construction activities remains strong according to Home Depot Inc (HD), an idea in the Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio. When Home Depot reported its fourth quarter earnings for fiscal 2021 (period ended January 30, 2022) in February 2022, the company beat both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates. Home Depot also announced a 15% sequential increase in its dividend and issued out favorable guidance for fiscal 2022 in conjunction with its latest earnings report. The company’s new quarterly payout sits at $1.90 per share or … Read more

Shares of Dividend Growth Idea Home Depot Roar Higher After Latest Earnings Update

Image Shown: Shares of dividend growth idea Home Depot Inc have surged higher year-to-date on the back of the home improvement retailer’s stellar operational performance and impressive free cash flow generating abilities. We liked what we saw in Home Depot’s latest earnings report published on November 16. By Callum Turcan On November 16, Home Depot Inc (HD) reported earnings for the third quarter of fiscal 2021 (period ended October 31, 2021) that smashed past both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates. Shares of HD are up ~48% year-to-date (before taking dividend considerations into account) as of the end of normal trading hours on November 16 after shares surged higher by ~6% that day as investors clearly appreciated Home Depot’s latest earnings … Read more

Dividend Growth Idea Home Depot Remains Rock-Solid

Image Shown: Shares of Home Depot Inc have moved significantly higher year-to-date and are up approximately 21% through the end of normal trading hours on August 17. By Callum Turcan On August 17, Home Depot Inc (HD) reported second quarter earnings for fiscal 2021 (period ended August 1, 2021) that beat both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates. Comparable sales were up 4.5% year-over-year last fiscal quarter though shares of HD slid lower during the trading session that day as investors were expecting even stronger performance. Shares of HD are up roughly 21% year-to-date as of the end of the normal trading session on August 17 (that includes the impact of the ~4% drop in shares of HD after its earnings … Read more

Dividend Growth Opportunity Home Depot Posts a Solid Earnings Report

Image Source: Home Depot Inc – First Quarter of Fiscal 2021 Earnings Press Release By Callum Turcan New home construction activity along with do-it-yourself (‘DIY’) and do-it-for-me (‘DIFM’) activities remains robust in the US, which is great news for Home Depot Inc (HD). On May 18, Home Depot reported first quarter fiscal 2021 earnings (period ended May 2, 2021) that beat both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates. Home Depot’s GAAP revenues rose by 33% year-over-year and its GAAP operating income grew by 76% year-over-year as the home improvement and construction retailer reported strong demand from both its professional and retail customer base. We are huge fans of Home Depot and include the company as an idea in our Dividend Growth … Read more

Home Depot Shows the Home Has Never Been More Important

Image Source: Home Depot. By Brian Nelson, CFA On Tuesday, February 23, Home Depot (HD) reported fiscal fourth-quarter 2021 results (period ending January 31, 2021) that came in better than consensus estimates across the board. Not only did the top- and bottom- lines beat, but comparable store sales growth of 24.5% exceeded even some of the most optimistic forecasts for the home improvement retailer during the period. The average ticket price and the number of transactions advanced, while both professional (“Pro”) and Do-It-Yourself (“DIY”) customer revenue increased at a double-digit pace in the quarter. Home Depot also raised its dividend 10% and now yields ~2.5% on a forward-looking basis ($6.60 per-share dividend on an annualized basis). We continue to like … Read more