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Surveying 3Q Performance Across the Retail Spectrum

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Sears There’s not much to say about Sears’ (SHLD) operational performance during its third quarter (results issued Thursday), except that it was atrocious. The firm lost more money in the most recently-reported quarter ($534 million) than it did through the first nine months of last fiscal year ($441 million). CEO Eddie Lampert has his hands full with the company’s multi-year transformation, but we think investors are hanging on to shares largely on hopes the firm will be able to monetize its real-estate portfolio in the future. Image Source: Sears But it seems that (lately) too many investors have been buying into this line of thinking, and the ‘real estate’ thesis continues to proliferate among investor psyches, particularly (now) with J.C. … Read more

Strong Prescription Comps Drive Walgreens

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On Tuesday, pharmacy giant Walgreens (click ticker for report: ) posted strong fourth-quarter results bolstered by solid prescription comps. Sales increased 5.1% year-over-year to $17.9 billion, roughly in-line with consensus estimates. Adjusted earnings per share increased 16% year-over-year to $0.73, also in-line with consensus expectations. For the full fiscal year, Walgreens generated free cash flow around $3 billion, equal to 4.3% of revenue. Comps Source: Company Filings, Valuentum Although the 2-year trend remains negative, Walgreens posted positive same-store sales during the fourth quarter, with front-end sales up 1.6% year-over-year and prescription sales up 6.4% year-over-year (resulting in total same-store sales growth of 4.6%). The comp gains came in spite of declining traffic, leading us to believe that new initiatives such … Read more

Weak Food Sales Spoil Walgreens’ Third Quarter

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The US’ largest drug store chain, Walgreens (click ticker for report: ), reported lackluster third quarter results Tuesday morning, but the results did not deviate enough from our forecast to warrant a change in our valuation. Revenue increased 3.2% year-over-year to $18.3 billion, falling slightly short of consensus estimates. Earnings per share were also a bit lighter than consensus expectations, increasing 18% year-over-year to $0.85 per share on a non-GAAP basis. Although results were only marginally below consensus estimates, we believe the negative reaction can be attributed to the weak comparable-store sales growth in front-end items (candy, soda, etc.), which carry higher gross margins. Front-end same-store sales increased just 0.4% in the third quarter, even though the company benefited from … Read more

The Valuentum Dividend100 Publication; A Must-Have For Any Income Investor

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Dividend investors literally have thousands of income stocks to choose from. So what are they to do, and where can they go for the most trusted forward-looking opinions on dividend growth and safety? That’s the question we seek to answer with our ValuentumDividend100 publication. In this document, we showcase the top 100 high-quality, dividend growth gems within our coverage universe. Whether you’re looking to build a portfolio consisting of high-yielding, dividend-growers or simply seeking to augment it with a few income gems, the Valuentum Dividend100 is an essential resource for any income investor. We outline some of the key components of our Dividend100 publication below, and explain how you can get the most from each of one Sign Up for … Read more

A Dual Focus on Valuation and Yield Is the Best Way to Combat Changes in Future Dividend Tax Rates

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With a potential hike in the dividend tax rate just around the corner, there is no more important time than now for income investors to evaluate their existing portfolio holdings to determine whether they are well-positioned for a higher-tax environment. Assuming there are no changes to the current trajectory, the top dividend tax rate is expected to rise to 39.6% next year (up from 15% currently), and the highest-income earners will see a Medicare surtax on top of that. Evaluate All Aspects of a Dividend Investment First of all, we think those investing in high-yielders (firms) at any price (HYAAP) may be most affected by this change in tax rates. These high-yielders at any price (HYAAP) tend to be favorites of those at or near retirement, particularly given the paltry payouts on fixed … Read more

Search Dividend Reports by Company Name: Q to Z

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Going forward, please use the ‘Symbol’ search box to download stock and dividend reports of companies you are interested in. The ‘Symbol’ search box can be found in our website header. Image shown from above. Use the active search box in the website header above. Learn more about your membership >>  Note: We have now discontinued this list. Please use the ‘Symbol’ search box in the website header for stock and dividend reports. Please read about our Valuentum Dividend Cushion score (ratio) here. Just having access to this valuable metric alone could save your income portfolio thousands of dollars! The past meets the future as we showcase the Valuentum Dividend Cushion scores of Dividend Aristocrats in this article (click here). The dividend reports below … Read more