MILN

Facebook’s Huge New Opportunity in Instagram Checkout, Reiterating Fair Value Estimate ~$230

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Image Source: Facebook’s Instagram We continue to like Facebook, and we’re huge fans of Instagram Checkout. Many may not know it yet, but Instagram Checkout may mark the beginning of retailers’ websites becoming obsolete. The sell-off last summer in Facebook was a big gift for those that stuck with our thesis. Brian Nelson, CFA I think one of the things that financial advisors and financial planners do extremely well is explain the concept of patience to their clients. Can you imagine if a client cashed out upon every 15%-20% decline? That’d be a recipe for continuous disaster. On the path to the market setting broader market highs in 2018, there have been many disappointments along the way. There have been … Read more

Lyft Takes a Fall, S-1 Reads Like Business School Homework

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Image Source: Lyft’s S-1 Reminiscences of the dot-com boom came back to the markets with the over-hyped initial public offering of Lyft, a stock that continues to get shellacked as its first days as a publicly-traded enterprise. Those that know Valuentum know that we wouldn’t touch such investments with a 10-foot pole. The company lost $43 per share in 2018. By Brian Nelson, CFA Call me old school, but I’m surprised as to the widely-accepted nature of the business models of Lyft (LYFT) and Uber, and other ridesharing services. For those that don’t know Lyft, the company maintains “peer-to-peer marketplace for on-demand ridesharing,” and thus far has “facilitated over one billion rides,” according to its S-1 filing. It generates almost … Read more

Starbucks Facing New Era of Challenges?

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There are core problems lurking at Starbucks, in our view, and the idea that the chain will triple the number of company-owned store closings in US markets in fiscal 2019, to 150 (from 50, on average, in prior years), is rather telling that something’s not quite right, regardless of whether it may be too-high of prices, changing consumer preferences (millennials), increasing competition (McDonald’s, Dunkin’ Donuts), oversaturation in densely-penetrated markets–or a combination of all of the above. By Brian Nelson, CFA On June 19, Starbucks (SBUX) reset investor expectations lower, just a couple weeks after former CEO and executive chairman Howard Schultz announced he is walking away from the business to pursue other personal interests, some speculating that it will be a … Read more

Value Investors Starting to Salivate Over Facebook’s Fall

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Image Source: DonkeyHotey Facebook is becoming a value investor’s dream: a stock with fantastic free cash flow generation and balance sheet health dealing with transient headline noise. We’re waiting for shares to start to turn upward before we would consider adding to the hypothetical weighting in the simulated Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio. They look cheap! By Brian Nelson, CFA Facebook’s (FB) fall from grace has been a dream come true for many value investors looking for a company with a pristine balance sheet and tremendous free cash flow generation. By a pristine balance sheet, we mean a huge net cash position (~$41.7 billion) and no debt. By tremendous free cash flow generation, we mean that Facebook hauled in $5.4 billion … Read more

Market Overreacts to Facebook News

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Image Source: Christopher The headline news seems concerning, but we’re taking a long-term perspective with Facebook. We doubt the news will meaningfully impact the trajectory of growth of its long-term free cash flow, and we’re not reading too much into events that seem heavily-influenced by the overheated political environment. By Brian Nelson, CFA Investors are overreacting and selling shares of Facebook (FB) March 19 because they are worried about implications of a UK probe and a state investigation into the practices of Cambridge Analytica, a privately-held data mining and analysis company, and whether the way Cambridge Analytica acquired and applied data from users of Facebook was legal. The New York Times first broke the story when the paper published a … Read more

Facebook – Still One of Our Favorites

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Image Source: Facebook Let’s not beat around the bush with this article. Let’s talk about why we like Facebook in layman’s terms. The company is a veritable free-cash-flow generating powerhouse, and its balance sheet is pristine. We value shares at $238 each, and its rating of 7 on the Valuentum Buying Index isn’t bad considering the frothiness of the market. By Brian Nelson, CFA Shake off the idea that technology is riskier than any other sector because it might not be. Don’t worry about the concept of “fake news” tarnishing the Facebook (FB) brand, as that’s just noise. Facebook operates at the heart of society, and while there will inevitably be changes to its platform along the way, literally everyone … Read more

2018 Starts Out with a Bang!

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Image Shown: An ETF that measures momentum (MTUM) has done considerably better than the S&P 500 since the beginning of 2017. Among its top 5 holdings are Microsoft (MSFT), Apple (AAPL), Boeing (BA)—newsletter holdings that have had excellent value characteristics along the way. Visa (V) is also included in its top 10 holdings.

Even some the most bullish and optimistic investors have been surprised by the resiliency of today’s market environment. Why does it seem appropriate to remind members that the stock market doesn’t always go straight up with almost no volatility?

Shopping for Income Within Retail in a Digital World

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Image Source: Mike Mozart The 2017 holiday shopping season has shown that e-commerce has never been stronger and it will only continue to grow. But there is still potential for income generation among more traditional retailers. Investors must be tremendously discerning in this area, however, as margin, and ultimately free cash flow, pressures remain prevalent. We like Walmart, Target, Costco as income ideas in retail, but TJX Companies and Best Buy may be worth a look. We’re avoiding the department stores and teen retail like the plague, regardless of their Dividend Cushion ratios. By Kris Rosemann and Brian Nelson, CFA What an incredible time we’re living in. For those that study history, the US’ pressure on other countries like China … Read more

Panera Eaten Up; SeaDrill’s End, Cisco’s Dividend Hike and Much More

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Let’s go around the horn with recent investment-related news. Let’s say goodbye to Panera, talk about SeaDrill’s infamous demise, follow up on the Coach dividend saga, address Cisco’s payout strength and attractive valuation, update readers on Medtronic’s portfolio optimization initiatives, and try to reason through Tesla’s recent price surge.   By Kris Rosemann and Brian Nelson, CFA Goodbye Panera I think most of us were surprised a bit Wednesday morning, April 5, to see Panera Bread (PNRA) taken private by JAB Holding Company for $315 per share in cash. Shares of Panera started the year just above the $200 price tag, so the buyout is a nice payoff for investors that have been holding strong in the fast-casual concept. JAB … Read more

Around Retail: Aspirational Brands Battle Consumer Perception

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Summary · After positive data reads in the months of October and November, things may finally be looking up for retail spending, but the impact of discounting looms large for many in the space. There are pockets of weakness and strength. · Aspirational and luxury goods manufacturers and retailers are not only subject to the pressures of the promotional retail environment, but also are subject to additional outside forces such as tourism and brand perception. While not dead, mall traffic has been challenging. · Whether it is next-generation wearable technology, a refined online presence, a reduction in markdown allowances, or an enhanced shopping experience, luxury goods companies continue to invest for sustainable growth. Fossil and Richemont have been caught by … Read more