TGT

March Retail Sales Speak to Strength in the US Economy

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Retail sales numbers issued Thursday by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), which tracks 22 retailers, reinforced what we’ve been saying for some time: the US economy continues to grow and the pace of expansion may even be accelerating, even in the face of domestic political uncertainty, concerns about a slowdown in Chinese growth, and a recession in the Eurozone. According to ICSC data, retail sales rose 4.1% for March, with strong growth across all segments. We think the strong March retail sales performance and improving employment trends bode well for the US economy as we head into the second quarter. Though we liked the underlying March performance, we’re not making any changes to our fair value estimates for … Read more

Target Rounds Out 2011 with the Strongest Annual Comp Growth Since 2007

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Target (TGT) reported fourth-quarter results Thursday and rounded off a strong 2011 that showed the best annual comparable-store sales growth since 2007. We’re sticking with our fair value estimate for Target. Target’s sales advanced 3% in the fourth quarter thanks to a 2.2% increase in US retail comparable-store sales offset by a nearly 9% reduction in credit card revenues. For the quarter, the company experienced a 0.4 percentage-point increase in the number of transactions and a 1.8 percentage-point increase in the average transaction amount. The pace of comparable-store sales, however, lagged the 2.4% increase achieved during the same period a year ago. Management noted that such performance was below internal expectations, as well, due to higher promotional activity during the … Read more

Target Posts Excellent Third-Quarter Results; Highest Quarterly Comp Growth Since Mid-2007

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Target (TGT) reported strong third-quarter results Wednesday that showed strength in its US retail stores and improved bad debt expense at its credit card operations. We liked the quarter and are maintaining our high $50s fair value estimate. The firm’s US retail sales jumped 5.4% thanks to a 4.3% increase in comparable-store sales with the balance of the increase coming from new store expansion. The same-store sales increase was Target’s best showing since the second quarter of 2007. Segment earnings (EBIT) jumped over 14% thanks to a 0.4 percentage point improvement in segment operating margins, almost entirely driven by reduced SG&A expenses (as a percentage of sales). Though we liked the firm’s US retail performance, we were equally pleased with the company’s … Read more

Target Issues Strong Second Quarter, Posts Best Comps in Four Years

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Target Corp (TGT) reported strong second-quarter results Wednesday that showed accelerating same-store sales growth (its best showing in four years), but modest operating-income and net-earnings expansion that still beat expectations. Total sales increased about 5% thanks to a 3.9% jump in comps, while segment EBIT expanded 4.6% from the same period a year ago. The firm’s earnings per share leapt 11.5% during the quarter (mostly driven by share buybacks), and the company issued full-year 2011 diluted EPS in the range of 4.15 to $4.30, a range we think is achievable. The firm’s average transaction amount increased 3.5% from the same period a year ago, thanks to a 1.8% jump in units per transaction and a 1.7% increase in the average … Read more

Valuentum: Now Bearish, We’ve Been Here Every Step of the Way

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Valuentum Has Been Here Every Step of the Way   From the COVID-19 top in February 2020 to the COVID-19 bottom to the massive bull run through the end of 2021, we’ve been here for you.    2022 started out to be a rough year, catching many by surprise.   But Valuentum stayed positive. When the markets headed south in June, Valuentum stood its ground. On June 14, Valuentum said that “we still believe stocks could make a “huge rebound” in the near term.   We reiterated our views a few days later and on June 19, we said that “investors shouldn’t panic during this bear market” and that “stocks remain an attractive proposition at the moment and a very attractive consideration … Read more

What Really Is the “S” in ESG Investing

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By Valuentum Analysts Back in October, we explored “Putting the Environmental in ESG” investing. In this article, let’s dig deep into the second consideration of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) investing — “Social.” While there has been greater attention paid to the social impact of companies in recent years–from the industries they operate in to the ways they impact their communities–this concept is definitely not a new trend. Investors have always cared about the impact of the companies they invest in. In the past, this idea has been encapsulated in the phrase Socially Responsible Investing (SRI), which is essentially the practice of seeking out companies that have a positive social impact on society. Some even put the earliest origins of … Read more

Dow Laggard Walgreens Boots Alliance Yields North of 5%; Has Raised Dividend for 47 Consecutive Years

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Image: Walgreens Boots Alliance’s shares have been pummeled during 2022. Image Source: TradingView By Brian Nelson, CFA When Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA)–forward estimated dividend yield of ~5.3%– reported first-quarter fiscal 2023 results January 5, operating performance wasn’t pretty. Sales from continuing operations dropped 1.5% in the quarter, while adjusted earnings per share fell 30.8% to $1.16 per share due to weakness at AllianceRX Walgreens from difficult comps related to COVID-19 vaccines. Its predecessor company, Walgreen Co., used to be a clean “story.” Then, the firm bought Alliance Boots several years ago, and shares have languished for the better part of a decade now, after completing that transaction. Dealmaking, a dwindling stake in AmerisourceBergen (ABC) and liabilities related to the opioid … Read more

Nelson: The 16 Most Important Steps To Understand The Stock Market

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A previous version of this article appeared on our website July 21, 2013. Refreshed and updated throughout, as of July 2018. By Brian Nelson, CFA After earning my MBA at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and training stock and credit analysts from large organizations over the past decade or so, I have heard just about every question (though I admit I am still surprised by many things and remain a very humble student of the markets). I’ve also spent years perfecting the discounted cash flow process for large research organizations such as Morningstar and studied under one of the most famed aggressive growth investors of all time, Richard Driehaus. My knowledge runs the gamut from value through … Read more