Richard Drury/DigitalVision via Getty Images All financial numbers in this article are in Canadian dollars unless noted otherwise. Introduction As some might know, Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B) just had its annual conference in Omaha, Nebraska. As usual, Mr. Warren Buffett shared his views on his company, the economy, and a wide range of other issues, including…
Morsa Images/DigitalVision via Getty Images In the summer of last year, I believed that shares of Teleflex (NYSE:TFX) were flexing their muscles a bit, as operating momentum accelerated a bit again after a tougher 2022. The company announced its next bolt-on acquisition, although this strategic acquisition was rather expensive. After shares witnessed a swift 20%…
Tonktiti Brief History Bumble (NASDAQ:BMBL) was founded by Whitney Wolfe Herd as a “female-first” alternative to existing dating apps. Having cut her teeth as an early executive at Tinder (currently owned by competitor Match Group), Wolfe Herd believed women that used dating apps were turned off by stories of aggressive engagement by men and would…
Jonathan Kitchen I’ve been very vocal about the idea that I suspect we see two rotations this year. The first is out of large into mid and small-cap stocks. The second is out of growth and into value. Large-cap growth has been such an outperformer that mean reversion should, I believe, kick in and cause…
Justin Paget/DigitalVision via Getty Images Introduction Last year, I started covering Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS), the animal health-focused healthcare giant. My most recent article on this stock was written on January 10, when I went with the title “Animal Kingdom’s Ally: Zoetis And Its Path To 10%+ Returns.” Here’s a part of my takeaway back then:…
Jordan Siemens/DigitalVision via Getty Images If you are an investor who firmly believes in making investment decisions that align with your ethical principles, then the iShares MSCI KLD 400 Social ETF (NYSEARCA:DSI) is an investment vehicle that deserves your attention. DSI is a passively managed exchange-traded fund that was launched on November 14, 2006. It…
winhorse “Not pretty, but reasonably cheap” was basically the essence of my investment case when I opened on Asia-focused bank Standard Chartered (OTCPK:SCBFY)(OTCPK:SCBFF) with a Buy rating last year. More specifically, while this bank was/is structurally less profitable than certain peers, a then-valuation of 0.7x tangible book value did not require miracles in terms of…
High voltage electric power lines at sunset. imaginima As a dividend growth investor, I’m always open to examining companies that I believe fit my quality standards and could continue to be great dividend growers. It’s not an accident that many of the companies that I highlight here on Seeking Alpha are regulated utilities. It’s true…
J Studios/DigitalVision via Getty Images Investment thesis My previous bullish thesis about Enbridge (NYSE:ENB) as of November 28, 2023, aged well. The stock price lagged behind the broader market, but my bet was on safe dividend growth rather than outpacing the broader market in terms of growth. Just a couple of days after my previous…
Dennis Diatel Photography While its stock is nowhere near the peak it reached during the meme stock mania of 2021, GameStop Corp. (NYSE:GME) has the potential to rebound from current levels, in my opinion, when it posts its Q4 and full year 2023 results on March 26 after market close. Analysts expect the video game…
RyanJLane One of the most common sayings that I have heard is, ‘may we be cursed to live in interesting times’. And these most certainly are interesting times. This is true on a macro scale. But it’s also true when talking about individual investment opportunities. As an example, we need only look at International Game…
syahrir maulana 2024 has been a year of return dispersion among various US small-cap ETFs. The Vanguard Small-Cap Index ETF (VB) has performed the best, up 5% in YTD total return through intraday price action on Friday, March 22. The Russell 2000 Small-Cap ETF (IWM) is higher by nearly 3%. Flat on the year, however,…
bgsmith My dear long-term readers certainly remember that I pay special attention to multi-factor equity exchange-traded funds. Today, I would like to assess yet another such vehicle, the Global X Adaptive U.S. Factor ETF (NYSEARCA:AUSF). I initiate coverage with a Hold rating, as I am frankly unimpressed by its total returns. I believe its inability…
FotografieLink We previously covered C3.ai (NYSE:AI) in December 2023, highlighting its improved near-term prospects, attributed to the reduced sales friction with lower average contract value (lower price points) and shorter sales cycle. Combined with the growing ratio of subscription revenue and higher projected conversion rate, it appeared that the management’s new business model was working…
Sundry Photography/iStock Editorial via Getty Images SA – Magnificent 7 Dividends Some of the biggest and fastest-growing companies in the world don’t pay dividends; for those that do, you’ll see marginal yields and slow div growth for the most part. These companies generally return to shareholders via share buybacks, shareholder equity growth, and, of course,…
SDI Productions Just like with pretty much any other type of company, banks come in all shapes and sizes. One of the smallest that I have looked at is a firm called United Bancorporation of Alabama (OTCQX:UBAB). With a market capitalization of less than $150 million, this is about as small as publicly traded banks…
Sean Zanni Prelude I initially covered Block (NYSE:SQ) in February of 2023 noting that Block has very strong growth prospects with the primary risk of stock-based comp equity dilution. Management executed well on the growth thesis in 2023 and addressed equity dilution risk with a buyback program which led to my most recent Buy rating…
kampee patisena/Moment via Getty Images Pioneer Power Solutions (NASDAQ:PPSI) has a long history of providing products that support every function of the power grid. The company has shifted its product offerings to focus on two key products; E-Block systems for power distribution to capture the shift to renewable energy sources and E-Boost systems to fill…
Bloomberg/Bloomberg via Getty Images Carlsberg (OTCPK:CABGY)(OTCPK:CABJF) stock has been on a tough run since I last covered the company in May. Shares of the Danish brewer have delivered a negative 18% total return in that time, significantly underperforming peers Heineken (OTCQX:HEINY)(OTCQX:HINKF) and Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD) as well as global staples more generally. Data by YCharts…
ryasick Dividends are probably being overlooked by many investors today. Consider that low-yielding Communication Services sector companies are leading the global stock market this year, with gains also seen in the high-growth Semiconductor industry. The Fab 5, Super 6, or whatever you want to call them, it’s clear that a handful of tech-related firms are…
onurdongel Here at Value Hunters, we “hunt” for high-yield contributors to our income investment portfolio and believe we have found a gem in InfraCap MLP ETF (NYSEARCA:AMZA). Dare we write the words “high & reliable income stream” in today’s economy? Our thesis for a 2024 investment in AMZA lies with this ETF’s investment approach centered…
Paul Panayiotou/Corbis Documentary via Getty Images We are hardly the first ones to point this out, but UK stocks are looking very cheap, especially when compared to current valuations in the United States. Still, when we look under the hood, we don’t particularly like what we see. There are a lot of stagnant financial companies,…
wichianduangsri The iShares MSCI Thailand ETF (NYSEARCA:THD) is an exposure to the Thai markets, which have been performing really quite badly over the last 365 days. We think that while GDP has been under pressure, the Thai macroeconomic situation is really quite alright, and that there is space for the planned fiscal stimulus. We don’t…
Justin Sullivan A Great Paradox What would you think if I told you a major American tech business that is growing its core operations while enjoying numerous tailwinds has dramatically underperformed the market in the past 5 years? While the market is great at allocating capital to good businesses over time, sometimes Wall Street can…
Walter Bibikow Shares of Oklahoma-based BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) have been relatively flat year-to-date, as a wave of potential issues continues to wash over the banking industry. Nevertheless, this ‘super community’ bank has still outperformed peers by a fairly wide margin this year – a continuation of a longer-term trend that has seen its stock compound nicely…
Marvin Samuel Tolentino Pineda On our last coverage of ATCO Ltd. (TSX:ACO.X:CA), (TSX:ACO.Y:CA) we made the case that there was a quality investment here that was likely to give you good risk-adjusted returns. That was even more true when weighed against another utility Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (AQN:CA)(AQN). We felt there were compelling reasons…
chekyfoto/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Dear readers/followers, Iberdrola (OTCPK:IBDSF) has been an investment of mine for over a year. It’s a business that’s an attractive EU-based utility, though not as attractive currently as some other businesses, including the European utility Enel (OTCPK:ENLAY). The two utilities, together with Fortum (OTCPK:FOJCF), have been my “bets” on this…
Milko The Magnificent 7 tech-related stocks capture the spotlight, but there’s another mega-cap that is often left on its own as a remarkable 2023 winner: Eli Lilly (LLY). The Indianapolis-based $511 billion Health Care sector company boasts a premium 45x forward price-to-earnings ratio (using 2024 estimates) and is up better than 53% so far in…
libre de droit By Aditi Gupta, Client Portfolio Manager, Municipals Five reasons why municipal bonds are compelling now Between the regional banking crisis, debt ceiling melodrama that led to a further US sovereign rating downgrade, potential federal government shutdowns, heavy US Treasury issuance, and geopolitical risks, 2023 has been a tumultuous year in markets. That’s…
Edlane De Mattos/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Investment Thesis: Wabash National Corporation (NYSE:WNC) presents a compelling investment opportunity backed by strong financial performance, including a robust Q2 revenue of $687 million and an operating cash flow of $146 million year to date. The company operates under a strategic “One Wabash” structure, effectively integrating its various…
Sean Gallup Investment Thesis While PayPal’s (NASDAQ:PYPL) stock has recently hit a six-year low at $53.94 per share, the anticipation of a remarkable threefold increase in the projected EPS to $4.95 for the coming year paints a compelling growth story. Despite this growth potential, the stock price hasn’t seen a corresponding uptick, raising questions about…
Jitalia17 The Treasury term premium is back above zero. This is often a tough concept to grasp for casual investors. The term premium in yields is defined as the a bond’s yield minus the expected average short rates (over the life of the bond), and the term premium in forward rates is defined as forward…
skynesher/E+ via Getty Images Dear readers/followers, Advertising has not been in a good spot for large parts of 2023. This has especially impacted your traditional advertising businesses. I’m talking about companies I’ve covered for a long time, like Omnicom (OMC) as well as Interpublic Group (NYSE:IPG). I cover more than just these, including some European…
Hero Images Inc Shares of Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) have been a mixed performer over the past year, losing about 4% of their value. More notably, they had approached $60 before the market turmoil following the banking crisis, and shares have yet to fully recovery. BHF has a complex business-arguably somewhat of a financial “black box”-which…
gremlin/E+ via Getty Images Realty Income Corporation (NYSE:O) is perhaps the most popular blue-chip real estate investment trust, or REIT, that pays a monthly dividend for income-thirsty investors. We have been closely watching the stock looking for a tactical entry point for long-term investment. Let us say that this stock offers investors an attractive current…
champc Introduction Seneca Foods (NASDAQ:SENEA) (NASDAQ:SENEB) is a U.S. fruit and vegetable processor that popped on my radar screen following strong Q1 FY24 results as net sales rose by 12.6% while net income more than quadrupled to $23.1 million. However, this performance doesn’t seem sustainable as the financial results benefited from higher selling prices as…
Maxiphoto/E+ via Getty Images Greif, Incorporated (NYSE:GEF) produces industrial packaging and is based in Ohio. The company operates in three reportable business segments: Global Industrial Packaging, Paper Packaging and Services, and Land Management. Its products include steel and fiber drums, package lids, boxes and tubes and cores. Greif operates in 37 countries to reach local…
PM Images NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) has seen better days as its share price has declined by -19.24% in 2023. NextEra has broken through the bottom of a multiyear range, and shares are trading at the same valuation as in the summer of 2020. I normally write articles about energy infrastructure companies in the oil and…
Parradee Kietsirikul Investment Thesis Despite Brown & Brown, Inc.’s (NYSE:BRO) solid share growth of more than 16% in the previous year and more than 345% in the last decade, the company appears to be selling below its fair value, providing a good investment opportunity. I attribute this outstanding success to the company’s robust growth levers,…
G0d4ather Thesis The Enhanced Equity Income Fund (NYSE:EOI) is an equity closed end fund. The vehicle falls in the ‘buy-write’ category. We have covered this name before and actually own it. As per our prior articles, this CEF closely tracks the S&P 500 performance from a total return perspective, and represents an attractive way to…
Maskot/DigitalVision via Getty Images Thesis Although Endava plc’s (NYSE:DAVA) growth may face challenges in the coming quarters due to ongoing macroeconomic pressures, I have confidence in the company’s ability to achieve organic growth of over 20% in the long term, due to its strong focus on digital engineering and transformation services that positions it well…
Darren415 In this article, we provide an update on the Western Asset Diversified Income Fund (NYSE:WDI). The fund has continued to raise its distributions on the back of a substantial floating-rate asset base as well as stable borrowings. However, unlike bank loan funds, which have also enjoyed distribution hikes, WDI has a duration north of…
Joe Raedle/Getty Images News Listen below or on the go via Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Victor Dergunov, The Financial Prophet, on Disney’s (NYSE:DIS) recent earnings. DIS showed constructive revenue per user but needs a return to compelling content. This is an excerpt from Wall Street Breakfast’s recent episode Wall Street Lunch: A ‘Goldilocks’ July CPI…
JHVEPhoto Result Summary CNA Financial (NYSE:CNA) recently disclosed its second-quarter results, reporting steady net income of $283 million resulting in a year-to-date post-tax profit of $580 million, vs. $485 million one year ago in the same period. CNA Financial Presentation – Q2 2023 During the quarter, CNA Financial witnessed favorable earnings from higher yields on…
Kativ The past year has seen one of the most aggressive rate hiking cycles in the Fed’s history and has left the investment case for cash as strong as it has even been. Periods of high interest rates have tended to occur alongside periods of strong return prospects for a mixed portfolio of stocks and…