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Nikkei edges lower, investors turn focus to next week's Trump-Xi meeting * Nikkei has risen 1.5% this week so far * Nissan rises after co says to grant Renault seats on key committees By Ayai Tomisawa TOKYO, June 21 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei edged lower in choppy trade on Friday as investors awaited cues from U.S.-China trade talks, while oil and mining shares were in demand amid rising geopolitical risks in the Middle East. The Nikkei share average dropped 0.2% to 21,429.18 in midmorning trade, having lost early gains. The index has risen 1.5% and was set to post a third week of gains thanks to hopes that the U.S. central bank will cut interest rates as early as next month. Investors' focus has now shifted to a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and China's President Xi Jinping during a Group of 20 summit in Japan next week, with hopes that they can put negotiations back on track to de-escalate a trade war. Trump said that he would decide whether to carry out his threat to hit Beijing with tariffs on at least $300 billion in Chinese goods after the meeting. "If Trump decides not to carry out the threat, the market will likely rise," said Hiroyuki Ueno, a senior strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Asset Management. Meanwhile, tensions between the United States and Iran heightened after Iran shot down a U.S. military drone aircraft in the Gulf region. The jump in oil prices spurred buying in mining and oil shares. Inpex Corp surged 3%, Japan Petroleum Exploration Co jumped 3.4% and Idemitsu Kosan soared 3.2%. Financial shares lost ground after U.S. yields fell on the likelihood of an interest rate cut as early as next month following the Fed's policy meeting earlier this week. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group dropped 0.6% and MS& AD Insurance dropped 0.9%. Nissan Motor Co bucked the weakness, rising as much as 1.4% after it said on Friday it would grant alliance member Renault's representatives seats on key committees of its board, ending a dispute between the two automakers. The broader Topix dropped 0.3% to 1,555.28. Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones 1,129 to 896. (Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
Need To Know: Miko International Holdings Limited (HKG:1247) Insiders Have Been Buying Shares Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. On the other hand, we'd be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So before you buy or sellMiko International Holdings Limited(HKG:1247), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling. Most investors know that it is quite permissible for company leaders, such as directors of the board, to buy and sell stock on the market. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market. We don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. For example, a Columbia Universitystudyfound that 'insiders are more likely to engage in open market purchases of their own company’s stock when the firm is about to reveal new agreements with customers and suppliers'. See our latest analysis for Miko International Holdings While there weren't any large insider transactions in the last twelve months, it's still worth looking at the trading. In the last twelve months insiders paid HK$76k for 872k shares purchased. Miko International Holdings may have bought shares in the last year, but they didn't sell any. You can see the insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below! Miko International Holdings is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at thisfreelist of growing companies with insider buying. There was some insider buying at Miko International Holdings over the last quarter. Insiders shelled out CN¥76k for shares in that time. It's good to see the insider buying, as well as the lack of recent sellers. But the amount invested in the last three months isn't enough for us too put much weight on it, as a single factor. For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Miko International Holdings insiders own about HK$31m worth of shares. That equates to 34% of the company. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders. It is good to see recent purchasing. And an analysis of the transactions over the last year also gives us confidence. However, we note that the company didn't make a profit over the last twelve months, which makes us cautious. Insiders likely see value in Miko International Holdings shares, given these transactions (along with notable insider ownership of the company). To put this in context, take a look at how a company has performed in the past. You can accessthisdetailed graphof past earnings, revenue and cash flow. Of courseMiko International Holdings may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see thisfreecollection of high quality companies. For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
The Latest: Man at execution: 'I ain't never took a life' JACKSON, Ga. (AP) — The Latest on the scheduled execution of a Georgia inmate for a 1996 killing (all times local): 10:15 p.m. An inmate executed by the state of Georgia for a slaying decades ago said in his last moments that he never killed anyone. From the execution chamber, 42-year-old inmate Marion Wilson Jr. told witnesses gathered for his lethal injection that "I ain't never took a life in my life." He also told family, friends and supporters "I love y'all forever" before a powerful sedative began flowing. Wilson took about 10 deep breaths, paused and then took a few more breaths before falling still. Authorities say the inmate was pronounced dead at 9:52 p.m. Thursday. Wilson and Robert Earl Butts Jr. were convicted of murder and sentenced to death in the March 1996 slaying of 24-year-old Donovan Corey Parks. Prosecutors said Parks was killed after agreeing to give the two men a ride after a chance encounter outside a Walmart store in Milledgeville, rural Georgia. Butts was executed last year at the age of 40. ___ 9:52 p.m. Georgia has executed an inmate convicted of the 1996 killing of a man who agreed to give him a ride outside a Walmart. Authorities say 42-year-old Marion Wilson Jr. was pronounced dead Thursday evening following an injection of the sedative pentobarbital at the state prison in Jackson. The state attorney general's office said in a statement that Byrd was pronounced dead at 9:52 p.m. Wilson and Robert Earl Butts Jr. were convicted of murder and sentenced to death in the March 1996 slaying of 24-year-old Donovan Corey Parks. Butts was executed last year. A Georgia Supreme Court case summary says Butts and Wilson asked Parks for a ride outside a Walmart store in Milledgeville, ordered him out of the car a short distance away and fatally shot him. Butts' lawyers argued Wilson killed Parks, while Wilson's lawyers said Butts fired the fatal shot. Milledgeville is about 90 miles (145 kilometers) southeast of Atlanta. Story continues ____ 9 p.m. The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected a request to halt plans by the state of Georgia to execute an inmate for a 1996 shotgun slaying. The lawyers for 42-year-old Marion Wilson Jr. had asked as the scheduled 7 p.m. execution time approached that the nation's high court block Georgia from carrying out the death sentence so that a lower court decision rejecting Wilson's claims could be reviewed. Earlier Thursday, the Georgia Supreme Court rejected two court challenges by Wilson. The U.S Supreme Court said in a brief statement late Thursday that the request for a stay had been denied. Wilson and Robert Earl Butts Jr. were convicted of murder and sentenced to death in the March 1996 slaying of Donovan Corey Parks. Authorities have said Butts and Wilson asked Parks for a ride outside a Walmart store in Milledgeville and then fatally shot him a short distance away. The pair then stole Parks' car. Butts was executed in May 2018. ___ 4 p.m. The Georgia Supreme Court has rejected two court challenges by a death row inmate and declined to stop his scheduled evening execution. Marion Wilson Jr. is set to receive a lethal injection at 7 p.m. Wilson and Robert Earl Butts Jr. were convicted of murder and sentenced to death in the March 1996 slaying of Donovan Corey Parks. Butts was executed in May 2018. Authorities have said Butts and Wilson asked Parks for a ride outside a Walmart store in Milledgeville and then fatally shot him a short distance away. The pair then stole Parks' car. The State Board of Pardons and Paroles held a closed-door clemency hearing Wednesday and denied clemency Thursday morning. The board is the only authority in Georgia that can commute a death sentence. ___ 9 a.m. The Georgia parole board has denied clemency for a prisoner scheduled to be executed Thursday for the killing of an off-duty prison guard more than two decades ago. Marion Wilson Jr. is scheduled to receive a lethal injection at 7 p.m. Wilson and Robert Earl Butts Jr. were convicted of murder and sentenced to death in the March 1996 slaying of Donovan Corey Parks. Butts was executed in May 2018. Authorities have said Butts and Wilson asked Parks for a ride outside a Walmart store in Milledgeville and then fatally shot him a short distance away. The pair then stole Parks' car. The State Board of Pardons and Paroles held a closed-door clemency hearing Wednesday and issued its decision denying clemency Thursday morning. The board is the only authority in Georgia that can commute a death sentence. ___ 1 a.m. Georgia is preparing to execute a man convicted in the killing of an off-duty prison guard more than two decades ago. Marion Wilson Jr. is scheduled to receive a lethal injection Thursday. Wilson and Robert Earl Butts Jr. were convicted of murder and sentenced to death in the March 1996 slaying of Donovan Corey Parks. Butts was executed in May 2018. Authorities have said Butts and Wilson asked Parks for a ride outside a Walmart store in Milledgeville and then fatally shot him a short distance away. The pair then stole Parks' car. The State Board of Pardons and Paroles held a clemency hearing Wednesday and said it would release its decision Thursday. The board is the only authority in Georgia that can commute a death sentence.
‘Stranger Things’ Season 3 Trailer Gives Major ‘Jurassic Park’ Vibes and a Voice to the Monster This Independence Day, it appears that “ Stranger Things ” has more in common with Will Smith’s patriotic big-budget action movie than it may have previously let on. Netflix dropped a brand-new trailer for its third season of the Duffer Brothers’ sci-fi horror series, and the threat that’s been lurking around Hawkins, Indiana is making itself known in a big way. When last we left the gang, they were enjoying the school’s winter dance, the Snow Ball. Will no longer has the virus in him, the demodogs have all been defeated, and Eleven had sealed the portal to the Upside Down, trapping the monster on the other side. All is well… or so they thought. Related stories 'Dark' Review: Season 2 Is Defiantly Bizarre, Twisty, and More Addictive Than Ever Netflix Killed Original 'Russian Doll' Ending Because of 'Maniac' - Which Only Made It Better The latest trailer for Season 3 below gives a far better idea of the threat that is coming for Hawkins this time, and it … speaks? “You let us in and now…you are going to have to let us stay,” a rather well-cultured voice intones ominously. Here’s the official description of the season from Netflix: It’s 1985 in Hawkins, Indiana, and summer’s heating up. School’s out, there’s a brand new mall in town, and the Hawkins crew are on the cusp of adulthood. Romance blossoms and complicates the group’s dynamic, and they’ll have to figure out how to grow up without growing apart. Meanwhile, danger looms. When the town’s threatened by enemies old and new, Eleven and her friends are reminded that evil never ends; it evolves. Now they’ll have to band together to survive, and remember that friendship is always stronger than fear. Wow. “We’re going to end you. We’re going to end your friends. We’re going to end everyone,” doesn’t really leave room for misinterpretation. Eleven is going to have her work cut out for her. “Stranger Things” Season 3 premieres July 4 on Netflix. Sign up for Indiewire's Newsletter . For the latest news, follow us on Facebook , Twitter , and Instagram .
What You Must Know About Zhejiang Shibao Company Limited's (HKG:1057) Beta Value Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! If you're interested in Zhejiang Shibao Company Limited (HKG:1057), then you might want to consider its beta (a measure of share price volatility) in order to understand how the stock could impact your portfolio. Volatility is considered to be a measure of risk in modern finance theory. Investors may think of volatility as falling into two main categories. First, we have company specific volatility, which is the price gyrations of an individual stock. Holding at least 8 stocks can reduce this kind of risk across a portfolio. The second type is the broader market volatility, which you cannot diversify away, since it arises from macroeconomic factors which directly affects all the stocks on the market. Some stocks see their prices move in concert with the market. Others tend towards stronger, gentler or unrelated price movements. Beta is a widely used metric to measure a stock's exposure to market risk (volatility). Before we go on, it's worth noting that Warren Buffett pointed out in his 2014 letter to shareholders that 'volatility is far from synonymous with risk.' Having said that, beta can still be rather useful. The first thing to understand about beta is that the beta of the overall market is one. A stock with a beta greater than one is more sensitive to broader market movements than a stock with a beta of less than one. View our latest analysis for Zhejiang Shibao Given that it has a beta of 1.95, we can surmise that the Zhejiang Shibao share price has been fairly sensitive to market volatility (over the last 5 years). If the past is any guide, we would expect that Zhejiang Shibao shares will rise quicker than the markets in times of optimism, but fall faster in times of pessimism. Many would argue that beta is useful in position sizing, but fundamental metrics such as revenue and earnings are more important overall. You can see Zhejiang Shibao's revenue and earnings in the image below. Zhejiang Shibao is a small company, but not tiny and little known. It has a market capitalisation of HK$4.5b, which means it would be on the radar of intstitutional investors. It's not particularly surprising that it has a higher beta than the overall market. That's because it takes less money to influence the share price of a smaller company, than a bigger company. Beta only tells us that the Zhejiang Shibao share price is sensitive to broader market movements. This could indicate that it is a high growth company, or is heavily influenced by sentiment because it is speculative. Alternatively, it could have operating leverage in its business model. Ultimately, beta is an interesting metric, but there's plenty more to learn. In order to fully understand whether 1057 is a good investment for you, we also need to consider important company-specific fundamentals such as Zhejiang Shibao’s financial health and performance track record. I highly recommend you dive deeper by considering the following: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for 1057’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor 1057’s outlook. 2. Past Track Record: Has 1057 been consistently performing well irrespective of the ups and downs in the market? Go into more detail in the past performance analysis and take a look atthe free visual representations of 1057's historicalsfor more clarity. 3. Other Interesting Stocks: It's worth checking to see how 1057 measures up against other companies on valuation. You could start with thisfree list of prospective options. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Valve's 'Dota Underlords' open beta launches on Android, iOS and PC Less than a month after it was announced and just a weekafter being properly revealed,Dota Underlordsis available for play. Valve's take on the popularDota 2mod,Dota Auto Chess, is a turn-based strategic battle game where players try to dominate the city of White Spire. The lastDota 2spinoff,Artifact, did not experience the warmest receptionand is undergoing major changes, butUnderlordsis already topping that game's peak number of players, and seemingly with good reason. It's been stress testing with Dota 2 Battle Pass owners for the last week and now anyone can try it for free. The plan is for it to remain in early access for "a few months" before it launches fully with more Underlord characters, ranked play and seasonal changes. It's available now onSteam,Google Playand theiOS App Store, complete with cross-play so you can start a game on one platform and finish it on another.
GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian stocks fail to catch Wall St's Fed rally as trade angst persists * Asian stock markets: https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4 * Focus shifts back to G20 after Fed euphoria * MSCI Asia-Pacific index inches up 0.1% * Dollar struggles, government bonds buoyant post-Fed * Middle East tensions support crude oil By Shinichi Saoshiro TOKYO, June 21 (Reuters) - Asian stocks struggled on Friday to follow Wall Street's euphoria about a possible U.S. rate cut next month as anxiety over Sino-U.S. trade negotiations clouded investor sentiment in the region. Also tempering appetite in Asia were fresh worries about the Middle East, after Iran shot down a U.S. military drone, raising fears of a military confrontation between Tehran and Washington and pushing the crude oil price higher. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.1%. The index was up about 4% on the week, during which it brushed its highest level since May 8. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.4%, Australian stocks declined 0.3% and Japan's Nikkei shed 0.2% amid the yen's big surge. The S&P 500 hit a record high on Thursday after this week's Federal Reserve meeting boosted expectations that the central bank will cut interest rates as soon as next month to keep the U.S.-China trade war from stalling economic growth. The Fed signalled easing after the conclusion of its policy setting meeting on Wednesday, saying it was ready to battle growing global and domestic economic risks. "There is no doubt that this week's FOMC meeting outcome is positive for the financial markets including those in Asia," said Kota Hirayama, senior emerging market economist at SMBC Nikko Securities in Tokyo. "That said, the FOMC alone won't be able to sustain Asian equities indefinitely until some kind of solution can be worked out for the U.S.-China trade war at the G20, since the region is particularly vulnerable to the conflict." Investors have pinned hopes on the United States and China reaching some sort of compromise at the sidelines of the G20 summit in Japan on June 28-29. In currency markets, the prospect of U.S. interest rates being lowered put the dollar squarely on the defensive. The dollar index against a basket of six major currencies fell to a two-week low of 96.495. The index has shed roughly 1% this week. The greenback has fallen 1.3% versus the yen this week and slid to a six-month low of 107.12 yen on Friday. The euro was a touch higher at $1.1302 after popping up to an eight-day high of $1.1317 in the previous session. The single currency was headed for a weekly gain of 0.8%. With the Fed expected to ease policy soon, and with other central banks such as the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan seen following in their wake, government bonds were on a bullish footing. The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield surged in price and its yield fell below 2% for the first time in 2-1/2 years on Thursday. It last stood at 2.007%. The German 10-year bund yield touched a record low of minus 0.329% this week while Japan's 10-year yield fell to a near three-year trough of minus 0.185% overnight. "In euroland and Japan, central banks are pedal-to-the-metal to revive dead economies after a dozen years of subpar growth," wrote Carl Weinberg, chief international economist at High Frequency Economics. "In North America, the game has been to throttle well-performing economies before they overheat with inflation consequences." In oil markets, crude rose to three-week highs after Iran shot down a U.S. military drone, raising fears of about fresh conflict in the Middle East and supply constraints. U.S. crude oil futures were up 0.68% at $57.46 per barrel after rallying more than 5% the previous day. Spot gold advanced to a six-year high of $1,410.78 an ounce as the prospect of lower U.S. interest rates helped boost the non-yielding precious metal. Gold has soared nearly 5% this week. (Editing by Sam Holmes)
What To Know Before Buying Cosmos Machinery Enterprises Limited (HKG:118) For Its Dividend Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we'll take a closer look at Cosmos Machinery Enterprises Limited (HKG:118) from a dividend investor's perspective. Owning a strong business and reinvesting the dividends is widely seen as an attractive way of growing your wealth. If you are hoping to live on your dividends, it's important to be more stringent with your investments than the average punter. Regular readers know we like to apply the same approach to each dividend stock, and we hope you'll find our analysis useful. In this case, Cosmos Machinery Enterprises likely looks attractive to dividend investors, given its 4.4% dividend yield and eight-year payment history. It sure looks interesting on these metrics - but there's always more to the story . Some simple research can reduce the risk of buying Cosmos Machinery Enterprises for its dividend - read on to learn more. Click the interactive chart for our full dividend analysis Companies (usually) pay dividends out of their earnings. If a company is paying more than it earns, the dividend might have to be cut. Comparing dividend payments to a company's net profit after tax is a simple way of reality-checking whether a dividend is sustainable. Cosmos Machinery Enterprises paid out 21% of its profit as dividends, over the trailing twelve month period. We like this low payout ratio, because it implies the dividend is well covered and leaves ample opportunity for reinvestment. As Cosmos Machinery Enterprises has a meaningful amount of debt, we need to check its balance sheet to see if the company might have debt risks. A quick way to check a company's financial situation uses these two ratios: net debt divided by EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation), and net interest cover. Net debt to EBITDA measures a company's total debt load relative to its earnings (lower = less debt), while net interest cover measures the company's ability to pay the interest on its debt (higher = greater ability to pay interest costs). Cosmos Machinery Enterprises has net debt of 0.16 times its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), which is generally seen as an acceptable level of debt. We calculated its interest cover by measuring its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT), and dividing this by the company's net interest expense. Interest cover of less than 5x its interest expense is starting to become a concern for Cosmos Machinery Enterprises, and be aware that lenders may place additional restrictions on the company as well. Remember, you can always get a snapshot of Cosmos Machinery Enterprises's latest financial position,by checking our visualisation of its financial health. Before buying a stock for its income, we want to see if the dividends have been stable in the past, and if the company has a track record of maintaining its dividend. Looking at the last decade of data, we can see that Cosmos Machinery Enterprises paid its first dividend at least eight years ago. It's good to see that Cosmos Machinery Enterprises has been paying a dividend for a number of years. However, the dividend has been cut at least once in the past, and we're concerned that what has been cut once, could be cut again. During the past eight-year period, the first annual payment was HK$0.015 in 2011, compared to HK$0.02 last year. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 3.7% a year over that time. The dividends haven't grown at precisely 3.7% every year, but this is a useful way to average out the historical rate of growth. We're glad to see the dividend has risen, but with a limited rate of growth and fluctuations in the payments, we don't think this is an attractive combination. Given that the dividend has been cut in the past, we need to check if earnings are growing and if that might lead to stronger dividends in the future. Over the past five years, it looks as though Cosmos Machinery Enterprises's EPS have declined at around 9.1% a year. Declining earnings per share over a number of years is not a great sign for the dividend investor. Without some improvement, this does not bode well for the long term value of a company's dividend. We'd also point out that Cosmos Machinery Enterprises issued a meaningful number of new shares in the past year. Trying to grow the dividend when issuing new shares reminds us of the ancient Greek tale of Sisyphus - perpetually pushing a boulder uphill. Companies that consistently issue new shares are often suboptimal from a dividend perspective. To summarise, shareholders should always check that Cosmos Machinery Enterprises's dividends are affordable, that its dividend payments are relatively stable, and that it has decent prospects for growing its earnings and dividend. Firstly, we like that Cosmos Machinery Enterprises has low and conservative payout ratios. Second, earnings per share have been in decline, and its dividend has been cut at least once in the past. In sum, we find it hard to get excited about Cosmos Machinery Enterprises from a dividend perspective. It's not that we think it's a bad business; just that there are other companies that perform better on these criteria. See if management have their own wealth at stake, by checking insider shareholdings inCosmos Machinery Enterprises stock. If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at ourcurated list of dividend stocks yielding above 3%. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Slack shows up for work and rallies in Wall Street debut NEW YORK (AP) — Slack's newly public shares aren't slacking off. The work messaging service grew 49% in value after its stock started trading Thursday under the ticker "WORK." Slack's debut is the latest in several highly anticipated initial public offerings of stock for tech companies. While some such as Uber hit a few potholes on their opening day, companies focused on business services appear to be doing well. Shares in Slack debuted on the New York Stock Exchange at $38.50 and rose slightly to close at $38.62. That's 49% above the $26 reference price set by the exchange based on an analysis of recent trading activity among a more limited number of investors in the private market. Slack's IPO is using an unusual approach known as a direct listing. In such cases, a company doesn't hire underwriters or sell new shares to raise money; it simply lists existing shares. Slack launched publicly in 2014 and was quickly adopted by many workplaces, particularly in tech and media. The service aims to replace traditional work communication such as email and instant messaging. With Slack, users start "channels," or a group chat with a specific topic. New employees can see what's already been discussed and shared rather than join a conversation mid-stream. And unlike internal corporate messaging systems, Slack makes it easier for teams in different companies to collaborate on the same platform. Creative Strategies president Tim Bajarin said his firm started using Slack about five years ago. "We could have used standard messaging systems, but they're not designed for collaboration and the kind of workflow that a lot of companies use them for," he said. But with anything people spend several hours a day on, there have complaints by some, who say it can be confusing to navigate between channels and doesn't actually save much time. "Any piece of software like this is an evolutionary product, and the more feedback they get they'll just add more features," Bajarin said. Story continues Slack said 600,000 organizations in more than 150 countries use the service — the bulk on a free service, which imposes limits such as how far back an employee can view archives. The San Francisco company says its more than 10 million daily active users collectively spend more than 50 million hours on Slack in a typical week. Slack said in a regulatory filing that the volume-weighted average price of shares that changed hands in the private market from February through May was $26.38. That was partly how the New York Stock Exchange came up with the $26 base price. Kathleen Smith, principal at Renaissance Capital, which researches IPOs, said a direct listing saves the company underwriting fees, but it means the company needs a strong investor relations program since initial shares aren't being sold at a discount to attract buyers. "It's always a little challenging to get this kind of value into the market elegantly. We know it was challenging for Uber," she said. "These very large IPOs can have a rocky road when they enter the market." At its opening price, Slack is worth about $23 billion based on 599 million shares outstanding. "It's a tremendous success," said Daniel Morgan, senior portfolio manager at Synovus Trust. Still, to have such a high valuation without being profitable puts pressure on the company to perform, he said. In the February-April quarter, the company lost $33 million, or 23 cents per share, excluding one-time items, as revenue jumped 67% to $134.8 million. While revenue has been strong, growth is decelerating as the company matures: Revenue grew 81% in the fiscal year that ended Jan. 31; for the current year, Slack is predicting growth of 47% to 50%. "People are going to be looking at them to execute at a high level going forward," he said. "They're paying a lot for this company and paying a lot for predicted future growth." Slack is the second major tech company to start trading with a direct listing; Spotify did so in April 2018. More than a year later, Spotify's stock is trading at $149.87, about the same as it closed at during its first day of trading. Slack will be looking to avoid the fate of Lyft , which also isn't profitable. Lyft's stock debuted on March 28 at $87.24, up 21% from its offering price of $72. But shares have fallen since, including a drop when the company reported a steep $1.14 billion loss for the first quarter, compared with a loss of $234 million a year ago. Its shares are down 13% from their IPO price. The enterprise software sector has fared better. Zoom Video Communications, which makes video conferencing technology people use for work, is one of the rare profitable tech companies going public. Its shares are nearly triple their IPO price . Pinterest Inc., a digital scrapbooking site that went public the same day as Zoom, is 45% up from its IPO price. Uber's IPO in May was the most highly anticipated debut, but its stock fell 8% on opening day. It has regained the value, with shares now down 3% from its IPO price.
Coinbase CFO & Overstock.com CEO: Security Tokens Are the Future ByCCN Markets: What doCoinbaseGlobal CFO Alesia Haas and Overstock.com CEO Patrick Byrne have in common? Both believe that security tokens are the future, according to a panel discussionhosted by Fortune. Now that blockchain startup fundraising is in its second act, Byrne expects that security tokens will be the next “killer app.” Byrne’s Overstock.com was one of the first movers among merchants supporting bitcoin purchases, though crypto transactions never gained traction at the e-commerce company. He’s also behind tZero, which is a regulated trading platform for security tokens. He says the company has poured between $150 million and $200 million of “shareholder money” to build a system that is SEC-friendly. Byrne is no stranger to run-ins with the securities watchdog, which is why he was sure to dot the i’s and cross the t’s. “I knew that I had to be like Caesar’s wife, above reproach. I had to go right down the middle of the fairway up the front steps to the SEC. And that is how we’ve done it.” Byrne also teased that we’ll see “some very interesting things” in the current quarter involving security tokens, which are regulated tokens, though he kept the details close to the vest. Coinbase agrees security tokens are the wave of the future, though a lot of work still must be done to bring them to the forefront. Read the full story on CCN.com.
What Kind Of Shareholder Appears On The China Gem Holdings Limited's (HKG:1191) Shareholder Register? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Every investor in China Gem Holdings Limited (HKG:1191) should be aware of the most powerful shareholder groups. Insiders often own a large chunk of younger, smaller, companies while huge companies tend to have institutions as shareholders. I generally like to see some degree of insider ownership, even if only a little. As Nassim Nicholas Taleb said, 'Don’t tell me what you think, tell me what you have in your portfolio.' China Gem Holdings is not a large company by global standards. It has a market capitalization of HK$605m, which means it wouldn't have the attention of many institutional investors. Taking a look at our data on the ownership groups (below), it's seems that institutions don't own shares in the company. We can zoom in on the different ownership groups, to learn more about 1191. Check out our latest analysis for China Gem Holdings We don't tend to see institutional investors holding stock of companies that are very risky, thinly traded, or very small. Though we do sometimes see large companies without institutions on the register, it's not particularly common. There are many reasons why a company might not have any institutions on the share registry. It may be hard for institutions to buy large amounts of shares, if liquidity (the amount of shares traded each day) is low. If the company has not needed to raise capital, institutions might lack the opportunity to build a position. Alternatively, there might be something about the company that has kept institutional investors away. Institutional investors may not find the historic growth of the business impressive, or there might be other factors at play. You can see the past revenue performance of China Gem Holdings, for yourself, below. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in China Gem Holdings. We're not picking up on any analyst coverage of the stock at the moment, so the company is unlikely to be widely held. While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it. Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances. Shareholders would probably be interested to learn that insiders own shares in China Gem Holdings Limited. It has a market capitalization of just HK$605m, and insiders have HK$59m worth of shares, in their own names. Some would say this shows alignment of interests between shareholders and the board, though I generally prefer to see bigger insider holdings. But it might be worth checkingif those insiders have been selling. The general public, who are mostly retail investors, collectively hold 78% of China Gem Holdings shares. This level of ownership gives retail investors the power to sway key policy decisions such as board composition, executive compensation, and the dividend payout ratio. We can see that Private Companies own 12%, of the shares on issue. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company. It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand China Gem Holdings better, we need to consider many other factors. I like to dive deeperinto how a company has performed in the past. You can findhistoric revenue and earnings in thisdetailed graph. Of coursethis may not be the best stock to buy. Therefore, you may wish to see ourfreecollection of interesting prospects boasting favorable financials. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
UPDATE 1-S.Korea's Moon replaces economic policy aides as trade war bites (Adds details, new export figures, economists) By Choonsik Yoo SEOUL, June 21 (Reuters) - South Korean President Moon Jae-in sacked both of his top economic policy aides on Friday as Asia's fourth-largest economy cools sharply due to prolonged Sino-U.S. trade frictions. Moon appointed Korea Fair Trade Commission Chairman Kim Sang-jo as his chief policy secretary and First Vice Finance Minister Lee Ho-seung as his top economic policy secretary, the presidential office said. They replace Kim Soo-hyun and Yoon Jong-won. The government's management of the economy came under criticism from opposition parties and investors, but the new appointments fell far short of indicating any major shift in policy. "There has been criticism about the way policies are executed and so today's appointments appear to be more aimed at speedier implementation of policies than at changing policies," said Choi Seok-won, head of research at SK Securities. Local markets showed a muted reaction to the appointments. South Korea's economy surprisingly contracted by 0.4% in the first quarter from the previous quarter, and some global investment banks see full-year growth falling from 2.7% last year to below 2%, which would be the worst pace since 2009. The government has drafted a supplementary budget in April to boost the economy, but the main opposition party has refused to review it, demanding the government first acknowledge the failure of its economic management. The government has said the slowing economy was more a result of cooling global trade amid the Sino-U.S. trade dispute, which has caused South Korea's exports to fall for the past six months in a row in annual terms. Provisional data released by the customs agency early on Friday indicated exports were likely to fall again this month, as overseas shipments for the first 20 days of this month fell by 10.0% from the same period of 2018. (Additional reporting by Yena Park and Joori Roh; Editing by Shri Navaratnam & Kim Coghill)
Hannity Warns Iran: Youre Going to Get the Living Crap Bombed Out of You Fox News host Sean Hannity kicked off his show Thursday night by promising President Trump would bomb the hell of out Iran for downing an American drone and lashing out at a fellow Fox News personality who advocated for restraint. Shortly after Fox News Tucker Carlsonwho has been privately advising the president against war with Iranpraised Trump for initially resisting calls for military action , Hannity took a completely different approach, insisting that Iran has essentially left Trump no choice. A strong message needs to be sent that a huge price will be paid if you take on the United State of America, Hannity declared. Simple peace through strength, and it works. Following his short monologue, the pro-Trump primetime star welcomed on Fox News correspondent Geraldo Rivera, who immediately noted that Iran claims they have absolute, undeniable proof that the drone they shot down was over territorial waters. Hannity, meanwhile, wanted to hear none of it. They shot an American drone out of the air, they are not getting away with it, he huffed. As Rivera attempted to make the point that Iran may not be in the wrong if the drone was indeed over their airspace, Hannity said Trump was very clear that the aircraft was over international waters before claiming Iran wants to wipe the United States off the map and is fomenting terror. Rivera, for his part, cautioned against rushing into another military conflict, prompting Hannity to clarify that he just wanted the U.S. military to shoot missiles and drop bombs on Iran. If you shoot an American missile or a drone out of the air and you attack tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, youre going to get the living crap bombed out of you, Hannity declared. The Fox host, who is reportedly referred to as the White House shadow chief of staff, went on to argue with Rivera some more, at one point describing Iranians as radical terrorists who killed our boys in Iraq when Rivera suggested a renegotiation of the 2015 nuclear deal that Trump pulled out of. Story continues What has happened to you?! Hannity yelled at one point to Rivera. I want the next generation of military weaponry so we cant let these idiots in Washington, they have to be able to blow them out of the water and they must pay to take out a drone in international waters, he continued. Im not believing a word that these lying mullahs say! Read more at The Daily Beast. Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now! Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
Introducing Herantis Pharma Oyj (HEL:HRTIS), The Stock That Soared 576% In The Last Three Years Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! We think that it's fair to say that the possibility of finding fantastic multi-year winners is what motivates many investors. Not every pick can be a winner, but when you pick the right stock, youcanwin big. One bright shining star stock has beenHerantis Pharma Oyj(HEL:HRTIS), which is 576% higher than three years ago. It's also up 11% in about a month. It really delights us to see such great share price performance for investors. View our latest analysis for Herantis Pharma Oyj Herantis Pharma Oyj didn't have any revenue in the last year, so it's fair to say it doesn't yet have a proven product (or at least not one people are paying for). So it seems shareholders are too busy dreaming about the progress to come than dwelling on the current (lack of) revenue. Investors will be hoping that Herantis Pharma Oyj can make progress and gain better traction for the business, before it runs low on cash. As a general rule, if a company doesn't have much revenue, and it loses money, then it is a high risk investment. There is usually a significant chance that they will need more money for business development, putting them at the mercy of capital markets. So the share price itself impacts the value of the shares (as it determines the cost of capital). While some companies like this go on to deliver on their plan, making good money for shareholders, many end in painful losses and eventual de-listing. Some Herantis Pharma Oyj investors have already had a taste of the sweet taste stocks like this can leave in the mouth, as they gain popularity and attract speculative capital. Our data indicates that Herantis Pharma Oyj had €5,051,289 more in total liabilities than it had cash, when it last reported in December 2018. That puts it in the highest risk category, according to our analysis. So the fact that the stock is up 89% per year, over 3 years shows that high risks can lead to high rewards, sometimes. Investors must really like its potential. You can click on the image below to see (in greater detail) how Herantis Pharma Oyj's cash levels have changed over time. Of course, the truth is that it is hard to value companies without much revenue or profit. Given that situation, many of the best investors like to check if insiders have been buying shares. If they are buying a significant amount of shares, that's certainly a good thing. Luckily we are in a position to provide you with thisfreechart of insider buying (and selling). While the broader market gained around 0.8% in the last year, Herantis Pharma Oyj shareholders lost 18%. Even the share prices of good stocks drop sometimes, but we want to see improvements in the fundamental metrics of a business, before getting too interested. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 9.6% over the last half decade. Generally speaking long term share price weakness can be a bad sign, though contrarian investors might want to research the stock in hope of a turnaround. Shareholders might want to examinethis detailed historical graphof past earnings, revenue and cash flow. But note:Herantis Pharma Oyj may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at thisfreelist of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast). Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on FI exchanges. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Did Zen Technologies Limited (NSE:ZENTEC) Use Debt To Deliver Its ROE Of 9.9%? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! One of the best investments we can make is in our own knowledge and skill set. With that in mind, this article will work through how we can use Return On Equity (ROE) to better understand a business. To keep the lesson grounded in practicality, we'll use ROE to better understand Zen Technologies Limited (NSE:ZENTEC). Over the last twelve monthsZen Technologies has recorded a ROE of 9.9%. One way to conceptualize this, is that for each ₹1 of shareholders' equity it has, the company made ₹0.099 in profit. View our latest analysis for Zen Technologies Theformula for return on equityis: Return on Equity = Net Profit ÷ Shareholders' Equity Or for Zen Technologies: 9.9% = ₹133m ÷ ₹1.4b (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2019.) It's easy to understand the 'net profit' part of that equation, but 'shareholders' equity' requires further explanation. It is all the money paid into the company from shareholders, plus any earnings retained. Shareholders' equity can be calculated by subtracting the total liabilities of the company from the total assets of the company. Return on Equity measures a company's profitability against the profit it has kept for the business (plus any capital injections). The 'return' is the amount earned after tax over the last twelve months. The higher the ROE, the more profit the company is making. So, all else equal,investors should like a high ROE. That means ROE can be used to compare two businesses. By comparing a company's ROE with its industry average, we can get a quick measure of how good it is. However, this method is only useful as a rough check, because companies do differ quite a bit within the same industry classification. The image below shows that Zen Technologies has an ROE that is roughly in line with the Electronic industry average (9.4%). That's neither particularly good, nor bad. ROE doesn't tell us if the share price is low, but it can inform us to the nature of the business. For those looking for a bargain, other factors may be more important. For those who like to findwinning investmentsthisfreelist of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket. Companies usually need to invest money to grow their profits. That cash can come from issuing shares, retained earnings, or debt. In the first and second cases, the ROE will reflect this use of cash for investment in the business. In the latter case, the use of debt will improve the returns, but will not change the equity. Thus the use of debt can improve ROE, albeit along with extra risk in the case of stormy weather, metaphorically speaking. Although Zen Technologies does use debt, its debt to equity ratio of 0.31 is still low. Although the ROE isn't overly impressive, the debt load is modest, suggesting the business has potential. Conservative use of debt to boost returns is usually a good move for shareholders, though it does leave the company more exposed to interest rate rises. Return on equity is useful for comparing the quality of different businesses. Companies that can achieve high returns on equity without too much debt are generally of good quality. All else being equal, a higher ROE is better. Having said that, while ROE is a useful indicator of business quality, you'll have to look at a whole range of factors to determine the right price to buy a stock. It is important to consider other factors, such as future profit growth -- and how much investment is required going forward. So I think it may be worth checking thisfreethisdetailed graphof past earnings, revenue and cash flow. If you would prefer check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss thisfreelist of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
'White Knight' Delta buys stake in Korean Air parent, dampens activist threat By Hyunjoo Jin and Tracy Rucinski SEOUL/CHICAGO (Reuters) - Delta Air Lines bought a small stake in Korean Air Lines Co's parent company and said it wants to increase it to 10%, giving a boost to the management of South Korea's top carrier that seeks to thwart a local activist fund's challenge. Shares of the parent, Hanjin Kal Corp, tumbled 15 percent on Friday, as Delta's move dashed investor hopes of a battle to control the family-run group that had driven up shares since the death of patriarch Cho Yang-ho in April. Korean Air, which has a joint venture with Delta since last year, said on Friday it believes Delta's 4.3 percent stake buy intends to ensure the 'stable management" of the company and support for its leadership. Should the No. 2 U.S. carrier raise its stake to 10% in Hanjin Kal, the airline's founding family and its allies will have a total stake of 39%, versus the 16% stake held by the activist fund, Korea Corporate Governance Improvement (KCGI). "Delta played a role as a white knight for Hanjin," said Choi Nam-gon, an analyst at Yuanta Securities. "Now it would be impossible for KCGI to take control of the group. The stake buy removes the chance of a management battle at Hanjin Group," he said. KCGI said in a statement that if Delta's investment decision intends to "simply defend the management rights of the controlling family members, this would go against the honour and principles that it has built so far." It proposed Delta, backed by U.S. investor Warren Buffett, work together to eliminate inefficiencies and improve management transparency at the Hanjin Group. Korean Air shares fell 2.6% and its budget affiliate Jin Air Co Ltd rose 0.2% in the wider market that was down 0.3%. KOREAN AIR SUCCESSOR Korean Air has been plagued in recent years by a series of scandals involving its founding family members. In April, the tycoon suddenly died at age 70, just weeks after shareholders decided to end his 27-year tenure on the airline's board, in a show of growing shareholder activism in Asia's fourth-biggest economy that has long been dominated by family-owned conglomerates. The group subsequently appointed his only son Walter Cho, 43, as CEO and chairman, but the company has yet to inform regulators about a definitive succession plan. He and his two sisters have small stakes in Hanjin Kal, in which the late Cho has a 17.8% stake. Against that backdrop, KCGI raised its stake to nearly 16%, fueling speculation about an impending ownership battle at the conglomerate. Delta Chief Executive Ed Bastian said earlier this month he had "a lot of confidence" in Walter Cho, noting their friendship had gone back 20 years. "The investment demonstrates Delta’s commitment to the success of its joint venture with Korean Air," Delta said in a statement. The venture includes 290 U.S. destinations and over 80 in Asia. The U.S. airline did not disclose how much it paid for the 4.3% stake. It also did not say who it bought the stake from or when it may raise it to 10 percent. Atlanta-based Delta has been growing internationally both through joint ventures - which allow airlines to coordinate fares and schedules while building a presence in new markets - and direct equity investments, which help airlines align their respective strategies. Delta also owns stakes in Grupo Aeromexico, Air France KLM, China Eastern, Brazil's Gol and Virgin Atlantic, and has been negotiating a stake in Alitalia. Shares in Delta closed down 0.7% at $55.97 in New York on Thursday. (Reporting by Tracy Rucinski in Chicago and Hyujoo Jin in Seoul; Additional reporting by Rachit Vats in Bengaluru, Ju-Min Park and Hayoung Choi in Seoul and Jamie Freed in Singapore; Editing by G Crosse, Peter Cooney and Muralikumar Anantharaman)
The Zelda Therapeutics (ASX:ZLD) Share Price Is Down 55% So Some Shareholders Are Wishing They Sold Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Even the best stock pickers will make plenty of bad investments. And there's no doubt thatZelda Therapeutics Limited(ASX:ZLD) stock has had a really bad year. To wit the share price is down 55% in that time. Zelda Therapeutics hasn't been listed for long, so although we're wary of recent listings that perform poorly, it may still prove itself with time. The falls have accelerated recently, with the share price down 20% in the last three months. View our latest analysis for Zelda Therapeutics Zelda Therapeutics recorded just AU$235,428 in revenue over the last twelve months, which isn't really enough for us to consider it to have a proven product. You have to wonder why venture capitalists aren't funding it. So it seems shareholders are too busy dreaming about the progress to come than dwelling on the current (lack of) revenue. For example, they may be hoping that Zelda Therapeutics comes up with a great new product, before it runs out of money. Companies that lack both meaningful revenue and profits are usually considered high risk. You should be aware that there is always a chance that this sort of company will need to issue more shares to raise money to continue pursuing its business plan. While some such companies do very well over the long term, others become hyped up by promoters before eventually falling back down to earth, and going bankrupt (or being recapitalized). It certainly is a dangerous place to invest, as Zelda Therapeutics investors might realise. When it last reported its balance sheet in December 2018, Zelda Therapeutics had cash in excess of all liabilities of AU$3.8m. While that's nothing to panic about, there is some possibility the company will raise more capital, especially if profits are not imminent. With the share price down 55% in the last year, it seems likely that the need for cash is weighing on investors' minds. You can see in the image below, how Zelda Therapeutics's cash levels have changed over time (click to see the values). Of course, the truth is that it is hard to value companies without much revenue or profit. Would it bother you if insiders were selling the stock? It would bother me, that's for sure. It only takes a moment for you tocheck whether we have identified any insider sales recently. While Zelda Therapeutics shareholders are down 55% for the year, the market itself is up 12%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. With the stock down 20% over the last three months, the market doesn't seem to believe that the company has solved all its problems. Given the relatively short history of this stock, we'd remain pretty wary until we see some strong business performance. If you want to research this stock further, the data on insider buying is an obvious place to start. You canclick here to see who has been buying shares - and the price they paid. If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love thisfreelist of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them). Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on AU exchanges. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Strike forces Taiwan's Eva Air to cancel scores of flights, suspend bookings TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan's Eva Airways Corp said it has cancelled 71 flights on Friday, affecting around 15,000 passengers, and suspended bookings temporarily due to a strike by flight attendants over pay. Eva Air's website showed that flights from Taipei to New York, Toronto, Chicago, Los Angeles, Paris, Singapore and Osaka were among those cancelled. The airline said about half of its operations were impacted by the strike. Bookings are suspended for flights departing from Friday through to June 29, the company said. Eva Air shares closed 3.85% lower on Friday, while shares in rival China Airlines Ltd were up 1%. Eva Air, best known internationally for the Hello Kitty livery on some of its jets, operates flights to many destinations around Asia as well as to North America and Europe. The carrier said its Hello Kitty jets, service and meal items would not be available during the strike due to the need for frequent changes to its fleet. (Reporting by Yimou Lee in Taipei; writing by Jamie Freed; Editing by Stephen Coates)
Damian Lillard responds to Marvin Bagley's rap challenge No time like the NBA draft to drop a diss track. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski) Damian Lillard — in addition to being one of the top point guards in the NBA — has long been considered the league’s top freestyle rapper . Lillard had that title challenged by Sacramento Kings rookie Marvin Bagley III during an appearance on ESPN’s “First Take” on Thursday morning. He responded with the Damian Lillard fury we’ve all come to know and love. Are we gonna see Marvin Bagley III and @Dame_Lillard go bar for bar on First Take one of these days? @MB3FIVE is ready whenever :eyes: pic.twitter.com/6bITh8kX86 — First Take (@FirstTake) June 20, 2019 A transcript of the exchange that got this all started: KELLERMAN: Roy Jones, who is a colleague of mine at HBO Boxing, played me a clip of you freestyling in the hallway, and it has been my opinion since then that the best MC in the NBA is either you or Damian Lillard. But who is the best MC in the NBA? BAGLEY: Man, me. I love music, so I’m going to go with myself. KELLERMAN: Would you ever battle Damian Lillard? BAGLEY: Yeah, for sure. KELLERMAN: So if Damian Lillard would accept that battle, would you do it here on First Take? BAGLEY: On First Take? Whatever, whatever man. I’ll do whatever. I make music, it’s one of my loves, so we can see. As it turns out, Lillard couldn’t wait until even the next morning’s “First Take” to respond. Less than 10 hours after the Bagley clip was posted and in the middle of the NBA draft, Lillard posted a bona fide diss track on Twitter. https://t.co/ZPv9kvIGSZ pic.twitter.com/SmWjwWKTsZ — Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) June 21, 2019 We’ll see how Bagley responds, unless he realizes that getting into a war with a man who attempts this kind of shot with a playoff series on the line isn’t someone you want to mess with. More from Yahoo Sports: Zion breaks down next to mom after being selected No. 1 Why the No. 4 pick won't be a Laker but still wore team's hat Minor league team loses on outfielder's mindless flub Shaq's son 'could've died' from heart defect
Is BH Global Corporation Limited's (SGX:BQN) Balance Sheet Strong Enough To Weather A Storm? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! While small-cap stocks, such as BH Global Corporation Limited (SGX:BQN) with its market cap of S$21m, are popular for their explosive growth, investors should also be aware of their balance sheet to judge whether the company can survive a downturn. Since BQN is loss-making right now, it’s vital to evaluate the current state of its operations and pathway to profitability. We'll look at some basic checks that can form a snapshot the company’s financial strength. However, potential investors would need to take a closer look, and I recommend youdig deeper yourself into BQN here. BQN's debt levels surged from S$15m to S$26m over the last 12 months – this includes long-term debt. With this increase in debt, the current cash and short-term investment levels stands at S$4.7m , ready to be used for running the business. On top of this, BQN has generated S$1.1m in operating cash flow during the same period of time, leading to an operating cash to total debt ratio of 4.4%, indicating that BQN’s operating cash is less than its debt. With current liabilities at S$22m, the company has been able to meet these commitments with a current assets level of S$45m, leading to a 2.05x current account ratio. The current ratio is calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities. Generally, for Electrical companies, this is a reasonable ratio since there is a bit of a cash buffer without leaving too much capital in a low-return environment. With a debt-to-equity ratio of 40%, BQN can be considered as an above-average leveraged company. This is a bit unusual for a small-cap stock, since they generally have a harder time borrowing than large more established companies. Though, since BQN is presently unprofitable, there’s a question of sustainability of its current operations. Maintaining a high level of debt, while revenues are still below costs, can be dangerous as liquidity tends to dry up in unexpected downturns. BQN’s high cash coverage means that, although its debt levels are high, the company is able to utilise its borrowings efficiently in order to generate cash flow. Since there is also no concerns around BQN's liquidity needs, this may be its optimal capital structure for the time being. Keep in mind I haven't considered other factors such as how BQN has been performing in the past. You should continue to research BH Global to get a better picture of the small-cap by looking at: 1. Valuation: What is BQN worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether BQN is currently mispriced by the market. 2. Historical Performance: What has BQN's returns been like over the past? Go into more detail in the past track record analysis and take a look atthe free visual representations of our analysisfor more clarity. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Malaysia aims to recover about $5 billion in 1MDB-linked assets By Rozanna Latiff KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia is looking to recover about $5 billion worth of foreign assets linked to state fund 1MDB, set up in 2009 by then prime minister Najib Razak and the subject of money laundering probes, an anti-graft official said on Friday. Malaysian and U.S. investigators believe about $4.5 billion was misappropriated from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) by high-level officials of the fund and associates between 2009 and 2014. But many of the assets sought by investigators may have since increased in value, and include those linked to 1MDB's former subsidiary SRC International, Azam Baki, a deputy commissioner at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), told reporters. "The amount is about $5 billion...in many countries, all related to 1MDB," said Azam, adding a separate taskforce will be set up to recover the assets. At least six countries, including Singapore and Switzerland, are investigating alleged graft and money laundering at 1MDB. SRC is also the subject of graft and money-laundering probes in Malaysia. Najib has been charged with 42 criminal offences related to losses at 1MDB and other state entities. He has consistently denied wrongdoing. Investigators allege about $1 billion in 1MDB funds flowed into the bank accounts of Najib, who was ousted in a general election last year amid widespread public anger over the scandal. On Friday, authorities filed civil forfeiture suits to seize 270 million ringgit ($65 million) disbursed from an account belonging to Najib, MACC's chief commissioner Latheefa Koya said. The suits were filed on 41 people, companies and entities, most of them linked to Najib's party, the United Malays National Organisation, Latheefa said. Malaysia has so far recovered about 919 million ringgit in 1MDB funds, including cash voluntarily returned by those under probe for receiving illegal proceeds, she added. Since 2016, the U.S. Department of Justice has filed forfeiture lawsuits on about $1.7 billion in assets allegedly bought with stolen 1MDB funds, including a private jet, luxury real estate and jewelery. Last month, the United States began returning to Malaysia some $200 million recovered from the sale of seized assets. ($1 = 4.1480 ringgit) (This story corrects figure in paragraph 10 to 919 million and not 990 million) (Reporting by Rozanna Latiff; Editing by Stephen Coates)
The UK Leadership Race Update: The Showdown There was plenty of action ahead of the final vote for the next Conservative Party leader and British PM. In a surprising twist of events, Rory Stewart was the first of the 5 voted out of the leadership contest. Rory Stewart lost significant Tory Party support going into Wednesday’s ballot. In Wednesday’s ballot, Stewart got just 27 votes, down from 37 votes from Tuesday’s ballot. Why the loss of support? News of Stewart previously being a Labour Party supporter seemed to have done the damage ahead of the Wednesday poll. Going into Thursday, Boris Johnson remained the clear front runner, with outsider Sajid Javid continuing to remain an outsider. It was all about the number 2-spot, with Jeremy Hunt and Michael Gove left to fight it out. The 4thballot on Thursday left 3 in the running, with Sajid Javid the next to fall out of the leadership race. Javid received just 34 of the votes, well behind 3rdplaced Jeremy Hunt, who garnered 59 votes. Few were concerned with the likely winner, while there was plenty of uncertainty over who would fight it out against Boris Johnson. Michael Gove managed to jump into 2ndplace in the 4thballot with 61 votes, to leave the 5thballot to decide the last 2 men standing. Jeremy Hunt had held onto 2ndplace through the first 3-ballots. Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt go head-to-head into the leadership party race showdown. 160 Conservative Party MPs backed the bookies favorite, which was just over half of the 313 MP votes on offer. Jeremy Hunt managed to prise back the number 2 spot, with 77 votes, just 2 more than Michael Gove how fell out of the leadership contest. While Johnson managed to get more than half of the votes, the last ballot result continued to reflect the division within the Tory Party ranks. The next Conservative Party leader and British Prime Minister is going to need a lot more than half of the party’s backing to successfully guide Britain out of the EU. This coming Saturday, the first husting for members will take place in Birmingham. Both Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt will then deliver speeches to the attendees before a Q&A session. There are a reported total of 16 hustings, including Saturday’s kick-off in Birmingham. On the 9thJuly, Johnson and Hunt are also scheduled to go head-to-head in a live televised debate. Boris Johnson won’t be able to shy away from this one… While Conservative Party members are expected to receive their postal ballots by 8thJuly, the final hustings take place on 17thJuly. In the week of 22ndJuly and prior to 25thJuly recess, the new Conservative Party leader will be announced. Unsurprisingly, the key topic will remain Brexit throughout the hustings and live televised debate. There are 160,000 Conservative Party member votes on offer. While Boris Johnson continues to be the bookies favorite, the televised debate could ultimately decide who leads Britain out of the EU. On the face of it, Boris Johnson is the British Prime Minister most likely to steer Britain of the EU without a deal. The coming weeks will be telling. Boris Johnson could fall at the last hurdle if there is no clear plan on Brexit. Interestingly, Jeremy Hunt has also stated that he would support a no-deal Brexit rather than stay within the EU. Should the EU and the Democratic Unionist Party continue to dig their heels in, it would ultimately mean a no-deal Brexit. Well, that is assuming that the UK Parliament allows such an eventuality. Parliament could bring the curtain down on Brexit entirely. After all, the next British PM will have minority support in Parliament… A forced General Election could see the Labour Party seize power. The Labour Party have been steering towards the Remain Camp. A 2ndreferendum? To throw the Brexit cat amongst the pigeons, there is also Nigel Farage and the Brexit party to consider. Will they be able to get enough support to really contest for number 10? Farage would certainly be looking for a General Election. For those who had hoped for some sanity come the week of 22ndJuly, they will likely be disappointed. There will be more volatility to come. While we have the Brexit Party and Nigel Farage in Europe, will it be enough to deliver the people’s vote? At the time of writing, the Pound was up by just 0.11% to $1.27148. There will be little from the UK Parliament to influence today, but expect things to get interesting after the weekend. Thisarticlewas originally posted on FX Empire • Gold Price Prediction – Gold Prices Trend Higher as Geopolitical Issues Brew • Forex Daily Recap – US Dollar Index Descended to a Three-Month Bottom • U.S. Dollar Index Futures (DX) Technical Analysis – Closed on Weak Side of Retracement Zone at 95.849 to 96.206 • USD/JPY Forex Technical Analysis – Daily Reversal Bottom Confirmed by Trade Through 107.735 • S&P 500 Weekly Price Forecast – Stock markets rally again for the week • Financial Sector Paints A Clear Picture For Trading Profits
Bella Thorne Reveals She 'Never Learned How to Read' or 'Count' So She Taught Herself Bella Thorne is opening up about why learning to read and count later in life is one of her biggest accomplishments. On Thursday’s episode of the podcast Chicks in the Office , Thorne, 21, explained some of the “main points” in her upcoming book The Life of a Wannabe Mogul that she’s proud of. “I don’t talk about it in this one, but in the third book it would be the fact that I never learned how to read and I learned how to read from reading scripts,” Thorne told hosts Maria Ciuffo and Francesca Mariano. Thorne revealed she “learned how to count from counting my dad’s cash.” “I’m obsessed with money and literal cash,” the Midnight Sun star said. Thorne went on to share that she’s used all of the things she couldn’t do before as motivation, which has allowed her to conquer goals she claims no one thought she would. “I was tone deaf and I now own a record label and I’m signed to Sony as an artist and I can sing acapella like a bitch ass so f— with me,” she said. “I had $200 to my name by 18 and bought a house by 19.” Bella Thorne \| Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic RELATED: Bella Thorne Posts Nude Photos to Twitter in Retaliation Against Alleged Hacker “I never learned to write a script, but I’m writing a series and got an Oscar winner to play my mom,” Thorne continued. “I’m out here doing s— that people say is impossible,” Thorne added. Thorne made headlines this week after releasing her own nude photos in an attempt to take power back from a hacker. “Yesterday as u all know, all my s— was hacked. For the last 24 hours I have been threatened with my own nudes and I feel gross, I feel watched, I feel someone has taken something from that I only wanted one special person to see,” the star said on Saturday. But despite feeling violated, Thorne made it clear that she was not going to let the hacker’s actions faze her. “For too long I let a man take advantage of me over and over and I’m f—ing sick of it,” she said. “I’m putting this out because it’s MY DECISION NOW U DON GET TO TAKE ANOTHER THING FROM ME.” Story continues Along with three angry face emojis, Thorne wrote, “F— u and the power u think you have over me. I’m gonna write about this in my next book,” in a tweet which featured several of the hacked photos. Bella Thorne \| Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images While many supported Thorne’s decision, Whoopi Goldberg did not praise her and seemingly blamed Thorne for taking nudes in the first place. “If you’re famous, I don’t care how old you are. You don’t take nude pictures of yourself,” Goldberg, 63, said Monday’s episode of The View on the show as co-host Sunny Hostin defended the Famous in Love star. “It just saddens me that these kids have to go through this,” Hostin, 50, said. “For someone to extort her or threaten her with posting these pictures, it’s terrible.” Goldberg, however, had little sympathy. “Once you take that picture it goes into the cloud and it’s available to any hacker who wants it, and if you don’t know that in 2019 that this is an issue, I’m sorry. You don’t get to do that,” Goldberg said. Thorne addressed Goldberg’s sentiments on her Instagram Stories on Tuesday, writing in a note, “Dear whoopi, I have loved u for so long but honestly I’m so displeased and saddened by your response to my leek [sic]. Blaming girls for taking the photo in the first place? Is sick and honestly disgusting.” “Is that what u want our women to be like? Scared of the masses for their sexuality?? Is that what u want? I don’t. I’m offended for anyone out there who has ever taken a sexy photo. I am offended for Jennifer Lawrence who feels publicly raped. I am offended for every person who has committed suicide for someone leaking their nudes. Ur view on this matter is honestly awful and I hope u change ur mind set as u are on a show talking to young girls,” Thorne wrote. Bella Thorne The singer also revealed in a different post that she was “supposed to go on The View ,” but has since changed her mind as she doesn’t “feel like being beaten down by a bunch of older women.” Thorne later posted a video of herself breaking down into tears over Goldberg’s words, saying, “I’m not going to lie, I want to say I feel pretty disgusting, you know, I feel pretty disgusting.” “Whoopi, now that everyone’s seen my s—, I hope you’re so f—ing happy.” She then began to cry uncontrollably. “I can only imagine all the kids who have their s— released and then they commit suicide. You’re so crazy for thinking such terrible things on such an awful situation,” she said. RELATED: Rob Lowe Slams Bella Thorne For Tweeting Mudslides Road Closures Were Affecting Her Commute Several celebrities have since spoken out in support of Thorne following Goldberg’s comments, including Zendaya Coleman and Lucy Hale . “Just a reminder that you are strong and courageous and beautiful inside and out,” Coleman, 22, wrote. “You f—— broke my heart with that damn ig post but anyway, just being a f—— right now just letting you know you’re a light and I’m super proud. Love you,” Coleman added. Hale, 30, wrote, “Good for you baby girl. I’m so proud of you for speaking up.” “This breaks my heart. But you’re making a difference for other girls and women!”
Why BLS International Services Limited (NSE:BLS) Could Have A Place In Your Portfolio Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Building up an investment case requires looking at a stock holistically. Today I've chosen to put the spotlight on BLS International Services Limited (NSE:BLS) due to its excellent fundamentals in more than one area. BLS is a company with great financial health as well as a an impressive history of performance. Below is a brief commentary on these key aspects. If you're interested in understanding beyond my broad commentary, take a look at thereport on BLS International Services here. BLS has a strong track record of performance. In the previous year, BLS delivered an impressive double-digit return of 28% Not surprisingly, BLS outperformed its industry which returned 12%, giving us more conviction of the company's capacity to drive bottom-line growth going forward. BLS is financially robust, with ample cash on hand and short-term investments to meet upcoming liabilities. This implies that BLS manages its cash and cost levels well, which is an important determinant of the company’s health. BLS appears to have made good use of debt, producing operating cash levels of 1.92x total debt in the prior year. This is a strong indication that debt is reasonably met with cash generated. For BLS International Services, I've compiled three pertinent aspects you should further examine: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for BLS’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor BLS’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is BLS worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether BLS is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other Attractive Alternatives: Are there other well-rounded stocks you could be holding instead of BLS? Exploreour interactive list of stocks with large potentialto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Integrated Payment Technologies Limited (ASX:IP1) Insiders Increased Their Holdings Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. On the other hand, we'd be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares inIntegrated Payment Technologies Limited(ASX:IP1). Most investors know that it is quite permissible for company leaders, such as directors of the board, to buy and sell stock on the market. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market. Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. As Peter Lynch said, 'insiders might sell their shares for any number of reasons, but they buy them for only one: they think the price will rise.' See our latest analysis for Integrated Payment Technologies Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Executive Chairman Donald Sharp for AU$258k worth of shares, at about AU$0.01 per share. Although we like to see insider buying, we note that this large purchase was at significantly below the recent price of AU$0.017. But because it occurred at a lower valuation, it doesn't tell us much about whether insiders might find today's price attractive. Happily, we note that in the last year insiders bought 32.1m shares for a total of AU$321k. In the last twelve months Integrated Payment Technologies insiders were buying shares, but not selling. The chart below shows insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date! There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. So if that suits your style you could check each stock one by one or you could take a look at thisfreelist of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them). Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider buying at Integrated Payment Technologies. In total, insiders bought AU$321k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any sales whatsoever. This could be interpreted as suggesting a positive outlook. Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It appears that Integrated Payment Technologies insiders own 23% of the company, worth about AU$1.2m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders. The recent insider purchases are heartening. We also take confidence from the longer term picture of insider transactions. But we don't feel the same about the fact the company is making losses. When combined with notable insider ownership, these factors suggest Integrated Payment Technologies insiders are well aligned, and that they may think the share price is too low. To put this in context, take a look at how a company has performed in the past. You can accessthisdetailed graphof past earnings, revenue and cash flow. If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss thisfreelist of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt. For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Can We See Significant Insider Ownership On The Intense Technologies Limited (NSE:INTENTECH) Share Register? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! If you want to know who really controls Intense Technologies Limited (NSE:INTENTECH), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. Institutions will often hold stock in bigger companies, and we expect to see insiders owning a noticeable percentage of the smaller ones. Warren Buffett said that he likes 'a business with enduring competitive advantages that is run by able and owner-oriented people'. So it's nice to see some insider ownership, because it may suggest that management is owner-oriented. Intense Technologies is not a large company by global standards. It has a market capitalization of ₹688m, which means it wouldn't have the attention of many institutional investors. Taking a look at our data on the ownership groups (below), it's seems that institutional investors have not yet purchased much of the company. Let's delve deeper into each type of owner, to discover more about INTENTECH. View our latest analysis for Intense Technologies Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices. Less than 5% of Intense Technologies is held by institutional investors. This suggests that some funds have the company in their sights, but many have not yet bought shares in it. So if the company itself can improve over time, we may well see more institutional buyers in the future. It is not uncommon to see a big share price rise if multiple institutional investors are trying to buy into a stock at the same time. So check out the historic earnings trajectory, below, but keep in mind it's the future that counts most. Hedge funds don't have many shares in Intense Technologies. As far I can tell there isn't analyst coverage of the company, so it is probably flying under the radar. The definition of company insiders can be subjective, and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it. I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions. It seems insiders own a significant proportion of Intense Technologies Limited. Insiders own ₹233m worth of shares in the ₹688m company. I would say this shows alignment with shareholders, but it is worth noting that the company is still quite small; some insiders may have founded the business. You canclick here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling. The general public, who are mostly retail investors, collectively hold 58% of Intense Technologies shares. With this size of ownership, retail investors can collectively play a role in decisions that affect shareholder returns, such as dividend policies and the appointment of directors. They can also exercise the power to decline an acquisition or merger that may not improve profitability. We can see that Private Companies own 5.6%, of the shares on issue. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company. While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Many find it usefulto take an in depth look at how a company has performed in the past. You can accessthisdetailed graphof past earnings, revenue and cash flow. If you would prefer check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss thisfreelist of interesting companies, backed by strong financial data. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
India Motor Parts and Accessories Limited's (NSE:IMPAL) Earnings Grew 32%, Did It Beat Long-Term Trend? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Examining India Motor Parts and Accessories Limited's (NSE:IMPAL) past track record of performance is a useful exercise for investors. It allows us to reflect on whether the company has met or exceed expectations, which is a powerful signal for future performance. Below, I will assess IMPAL's latest performance announced on 31 March 2019 and weight these figures against its longer term trend and industry movements. Check out our latest analysis for India Motor Parts and Accessories IMPAL's trailing twelve-month earnings (from 31 March 2019) of ₹413m has jumped 32% compared to the previous year. Furthermore, this one-year growth rate has exceeded its 5-year annual growth average of 4.5%, indicating the rate at which IMPAL is growing has accelerated. What's enabled this growth? Well, let’s take a look at whether it is only due to industry tailwinds, or if India Motor Parts and Accessories has experienced some company-specific growth. In terms of returns from investment, India Motor Parts and Accessories has fallen short of achieving a 20% return on equity (ROE), recording 4.1% instead. However, its return on assets (ROA) of 3.4% exceeds the IN Retail Distributors industry of 1.1%, indicating India Motor Parts and Accessories has used its assets more efficiently. Though, its return on capital (ROC), which also accounts for India Motor Parts and Accessories’s debt level, has declined over the past 3 years from 13% to 4.0%. India Motor Parts and Accessories's track record can be a valuable insight into its earnings performance, but it certainly doesn't tell the whole story. Positive growth and profitability are what investors like to see in a company’s track record, but how do we properly assess sustainability? I suggest you continue to research India Motor Parts and Accessories to get a more holistic view of the stock by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for IMPAL’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor IMPAL’s outlook. 2. Financial Health: Are IMPAL’s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why we’ve done it for you. Check out ourfinancial health checks here. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the trailing twelve months from 31 March 2019. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
NBA draft: Bol Bol finally drafted, selected by Nuggets at No. 44 The lottery picks came and went in the NBA draft on Thursday night, and Bol Bol was not among them. Then the first round ended, and Bol was still sitting in the green room, watching. Finally, though, the once-projected top-10 pick found a home in the NBA. The Denver Nuggets selected Bol in the second round with the No. 44 overall pick on Thursday night, via a trade with the Miami Heat. The 19-year-old was then welcomed to the stage with a loud cheer from those fans still left at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, a gesture that surprised even him. Denver has acquired Bol Bol in a trade, league source says. https://t.co/BPtsQCDrVj Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 21, 2019 Bol the son of former NBA star Manute Bol who, at 7-foot-7, is tied as the tallest player in league history only played in nine games at Oregon last season due to a stress fracture in his foot. The 7-foot-2 center averaged 21 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.7 blocks in that time, and shot an impressive 56.1 percent from the field. Once the injury hit, Bol naturally fell from his projected spot as a lottery pick. Still, he was predicted by many to be taken in the first round, and was even projected to go No. 20 overall in the last Yahoo Sports mock draft . His health issues, however, clearly caused many teams to hesitate, causing him to plummet down the draft board. The late departure from the green room, however, didnt appear to bother him. In fact, it seemed to do just the opposite. I just want to prove everybody wrong and just come out and be the best player I can be, Bol said on ESPN. Bol Bol says he just wants to "prove everybody wrong" pic.twitter.com/FmTMi0C13B Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 21, 2019 The move by the Nuggets marks the second-straight year they have drafted a player with significant injury concerns. Denver selected Missouri star Michael Porter Jr. with the No. 14 overall pick in last years draft, though Porter ended up sitting out the entire season while rehabbing a back injury he sustained with the Tigers. Story continues Bol, though, wont be required to step into a major role with the Nuggets right away as star center Nikola Jokic can handle the responsibilities down low. That should give Bol the opportunity to develop at his own pace. If things work out for Bol and the Nuggets, the organization may have pulled off one of the great steals of the 2019 NBA draft. The Nuggets drafted the son of former NBA standout Manute Bol on Thursday night with the No. 44 overall pick. (Sarah Stier/Getty Images) More from Yahoo Sports: Zion breaks down next to mom after being selected No. 1 Why the No. 4 pick won't be a Laker but still wore team's hat Minor league team loses on outfielder's mindless flub Shaq's son 'could've died' from heart defect
What You Should Know About Bonava AB (publ)'s (STO:BONAV B) Financial Strength Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Investors are always looking for growth in small-cap stocks like Bonava AB (publ) (STO:BONAV B), with a market cap of kr12b. However, an important fact which most ignore is: how financially healthy is the business? Assessing first and foremost the financial health is essential, since poor capital management may bring about bankruptcies, which occur at a higher rate for small-caps. Let's work through some financial health checks you may wish to consider if you're interested in this stock. However, potential investors would need to take a closer look, and I recommend youdig deeper yourself into BONAV B here. Over the past year, BONAV B has ramped up its debt from kr5.3b to kr7.4b – this includes long-term debt. With this increase in debt, BONAV B's cash and short-term investments stands at kr314m , ready to be used for running the business. Moving on, operating cash flow was negative over the last twelve months. As the purpose of this article is a high-level overview, I won’t be looking at this today, but you can assess some of BONAV B’soperating efficiency ratios such as ROA here. Looking at BONAV B’s kr13b in current liabilities, it appears that the company has been able to meet these obligations given the level of current assets of kr22b, with a current ratio of 1.73x. The current ratio is calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities. For Consumer Durables companies, this ratio is within a sensible range as there's enough of a cash buffer without holding too much capital in low return investments. With debt reaching 98% of equity, BONAV B may be thought of as relatively highly levered. This is somewhat unusual for small-caps companies, since lenders are often hesitant to provide attractive interest rates to less-established businesses. No matter how high the company’s debt, if it can easily cover the interest payments, it’s considered to be efficient with its use of excess leverage. A company generating earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) at least three times its net interest payments is considered financially sound. In BONAV B's case, the ratio of 18.49x suggests that interest is comfortably covered, which means that lenders may be willing to lend out more funding as BONAV B’s high interest coverage is seen as responsible and safe practice. BONAV B’s high cash coverage means that, although its debt levels are high, the company is able to utilise its borrowings efficiently in order to generate cash flow. Since there is also no concerns around BONAV B's liquidity needs, this may be its optimal capital structure for the time being. This is only a rough assessment of financial health, and I'm sure BONAV B has company-specific issues impacting its capital structure decisions. I recommend you continue to research Bonava to get a better picture of the small-cap by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for BONAV B’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor BONAV B’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is BONAV B worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether BONAV B is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Is CdR Advance Capital S.p.A.'s (BIT:CDR) Balance Sheet A Threat To Its Future? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Investors are always looking for growth in small-cap stocks like CdR Advance Capital S.p.A. (BIT:CDR), with a market cap of €19m. However, an important fact which most ignore is: how financially healthy is the business? Evaluating financial health as part of your investment thesis is vital, as mismanagement of capital can lead to bankruptcies, which occur at a higher rate for small-caps. The following basic checks can help you get a picture of the company's balance sheet strength. Nevertheless, this is not a comprehensive overview, so I’d encourage you todig deeper yourself into CDR here. CDR's debt level has been constant at around €28m over the previous year – this includes long-term debt. At this stable level of debt, the current cash and short-term investment levels stands at €9.0m to keep the business going. Additionally, CDR has generated €20m in operating cash flow in the last twelve months, leading to an operating cash to total debt ratio of 72%, meaning that CDR’s current level of operating cash is high enough to cover debt. Looking at CDR’s €25m in current liabilities, the company has maintained a safe level of current assets to meet its obligations, with the current ratio last standing at 2.17x. The current ratio is the number you get when you divide current assets by current liabilities. For Professional Services companies, this ratio is within a sensible range since there's a sufficient cash cushion without leaving too much capital idle or in low-earning investments. With total debt exceeding equity, CDR is considered a highly levered company. This is a bit unusual for a small-cap stock, since they generally have a harder time borrowing than large more established companies. CDR’s high cash coverage means that, although its debt levels are high, the company is able to utilise its borrowings efficiently in order to generate cash flow. This may mean this is an optimal capital structure for the business, given that it is also meeting its short-term commitment. Keep in mind I haven't considered other factors such as how CDR has been performing in the past. You should continue to research CdR Advance Capital to get a more holistic view of the small-cap by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for CDR’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor CDR’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is CDR worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether CDR is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Gold rises above $1,400 on cenbank stimulus hopes, U.S.-Iran tensions By Sethuraman N R (Reuters) - Gold rose above $1,400 on Monday, hovering near a six-year high touched in the previous session, driven by dovish signals from global central banks and increased tensions between the United States and Iran. Spot gold was up 0.6% at $1,406.83 per ounce as of 0959 GMT, heading for a fifth straight session of gains. Gold prices hit $1,410.78 on Friday, their highest since Sept. 4, 2013. U.S. gold futures rose 0.7% to $1,410.20 an ounce. "The weakness of the U.S. dollar, gold's technical picture and interest from investors themselves have become self-sustaining factors, especially after the massive inflows into the gold exchange-traded funds (ETF)," Commerzbank analyst Eugen Weinberg said, adding that tensions between the United States and Iran also supported gold. Holdings of the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust, rose 4.57% on Friday from a day earlier, in its biggest one-day percentage gain since September 2008. The U.S. Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank last week hinted that they were open to ease policies to counter a global economic slowdown, exacerbated by global trade tensions. Helping gold's appeal, the dollar fell to a three-month low against a basket of currencies on bets the U.S. central bank would start lowering interest rates as early as next month. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday he was not seeking war with Tehran, but tensions remain high between the longtime foes, with Washington due to announce "significant" sanctions on Iran on Monday. Gold prices have risen 7.7% so far this month, and more than $70 just over the past one week. Hedge funds and money managers boosted their bullish stance in COMEX gold in the week to June 18 and speculators switched to a net long in silver futures and options, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission said on Friday. Gold holding above the psychologically important $1,400 level is a positive signal of consolidation after last week’s rally, said Carlo Alberto De Casa, chief analyst at ActivTrades. "The gold rally pushed silver up too, but the scenario in this case is less strong, as prices keep bouncing on the resistance area at $15.5." Silver edged 0.1% higher to $15.37 per ounce and platinum was up 0.9% at $813.82. Palladium rose 1.1% to $1,516.03 an ounce. The market's focus now shifts to whether Washington and Beijing can resolve their trade dispute at a summit in Japan this week of leaders from the Group of 20 leading world economies. (Reporting by Nallur Sethuraman and Eileen Soreng in Bengaluru, editing by Louise Heavens)
NUVO Token Exchange Listing Date Announced; Nuvo Blockchain Witness Applications Now Being Accepted After two IEO rounds on the Probit exchange, the NUVO token will be listed on the Probit exchange starting on Monday, June 24, 2019. The Nuvo blockchain network has also recently introduced its third social community in just its sixth month of operation, with a fourth network set to launch in the near future. Additionally, applications for witnesses on the Nuvo blockchain network are presently being accepted. Witnesses will be added beginning when a new version of the Nuvo blockchain's software becomes available on Friday, July 26, 2019. Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 21, 2019) - METAVERSE CAPITAL CORP. (CSE: FORK) (OTC Pink: GBCHF) ("FORK" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the listing date for the NUVO token has been finalized, following the conclusion of its sale initiatives. The NUVO token is the proprietary digital asset of the Nuvo blockchain network, a platform on which decentralized, censorship-resistant social communities and communication applications can operate. The Nuvo blockchain network was founded by UK-based technology firm Nuvo Cash Ltd. ("Nuvo Cash") with an objective of leveraging blockchain technology to deliver engaging and unbiased social media experiences to regions which are affected by social and political restrictions such as censorship. In a press release dated December 13, 2018, FORK announced it had been commissioned by Nuvo Cash to assist in developing the Nuvo blockchain network, and to administer sales for the NUVO token. In April and May, the NUVO token was made available to purchasers in a two-round Initial Exchange Offering (IEO) on the South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Probit ( http://probit.com ). Following the conclusion of the second and final IEO round, the NUVO token will be listed on Probit starting on Monday, June 24, 2019, with deposits for NUVO tokens being accepted as of today. The NUVO token has a primary purpose of determining influence on the Nuvo blockchain network, based on a user's commitment to the network. Social communities on the Nuvo blockchain network deliver a unique value to users by paying them NUVO tokens from a reward pool in exchange for actions such as posting and sharing content, as well as voting and commenting on content. By issuing these rewards, users are incentivized to post and curate high-quality content, as well as to provide feedback on content through methods such as voting. This feedback has the effect of filtering content by enabling relevant postings to gain visibility, and unfavourable postings (e.g. irrelevant content, fake news) to be "voted out". Story continues As NUVO tokens will be earned based on the value of a user's input, a user's NUVO token balance will represent their dedication to the network either by way of effort (i.e. posting high-quality content and voting) or investment (i.e. making a financial commitment by purchasing NUVO tokens). This dedication is rewarded in kind with a proportionate level of influence. That is, the power of a user's vote is directly tied to their holdings of NUVO tokens. As the Nuvo blockchain grows in usership, this influence can increase in value. The NUVO token's value proposition is explained in depth in the " What gives NUVO tokens value?" section of the Nuvo blockchain whitepaper, which may be accessed at the following link: https://jamaa.com/docs/whitepaper As of this writing, there are three active social communities on the Nuvo blockchain network: Jamaa (for users in Africa - http://jamaa.com ) GameKarma (for video game players - http://gamekarma.gg ) HighMiles (for cannabis product users - http://highmiles.com ) At a later date, Nuvo Cash is also planning on launching Tambay , a social community for users in the Philippines. Additionally, the Company has an agreement with Cannadex Labs Inc. ("Cannadex") in which FORK is to delegate the totality of its NUVO token holdings to Cannadex for a period of five years in exchange for 25% of Cannadex's equity. Cannadex founder Steven Dryall played a key role in developing the Nuvo blockchain network. It was announced on May 6, 2019 that Cannadex has plans to develop a spot exchange for commodities (the "Cannadex Exchange") on a variant of the Nuvo blockchain network known as "Nuvo 2.0". As of June 12, 2019, Cannadex Exchange remains on track to be launched in Q4 of 2019. For network participants who are interested in operating witnesses on the Nuvo blockchain network, a new version of the Nuvo blockchain's software will be made available on Friday, July 26, 2019, at which point new witnesses will be able to begin operating on the network. Interested parties may begin the application process at the following link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc8iKZO4oGeo6dqw3ecamtz8625ZD17dQGnFZyudTl68a-gHw/viewform FORK President and CEO Shidan Gouran commented, "Ever since we partnered with Nuvo Cash, we have always known that blockchain and crypto can do great things for social media networks. Now that Facebook has officially announced its Libra cryptocurrency, this validates that notion in a very significant way; though social communities on the Nuvo blockchain will deliver much greater value to users. We thank all NUVO token purchasers for their participation in the IEO, and we look forward to bringing the Nuvo blockchain network into its next phase with the NUVO token's listing on the Probit exchange this coming Monday." On behalf of the Company: Shidan Gouran, President and CEO info@metaverse.capital For more information please contact: Metaverse Capital Corp. Investor Relations info@metaverse.capital 1-888-983-4771 About Metaverse Capital Corp . With blockchain technology rapidly re-shaping the models of many companies, industries, and their business processes, Metaverse Capital Corp. ("FORK") places a focus on the common needs of early-stage blockchain adopters. Originally founded with a focus on crypto-mining, FORK has recently diversified its offerings by placing an emphasis on professional services such as developing and administering launches of tokens and digital assets. Adapting to changes in blockchain technology, FORK is also now utilizing its computing power to provide consensus services, such as the operation of masternodes, servicenodes, and witnesses which are alternative methods to cryptocurrency mining for generating and acquiring digital assets. Investors, through their investment in the Company, are provided with exposure to these tokens, cryptocurrencies and digital assets without the lengthy, and complicated process that interested investors must ordinarily undergo in order to gain exposure to these cryptocurrencies and digital assets. The Company is listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange ("CSE") and its common shares trade under the ticker symbol "FORK". Additional information relating to the Company is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com , the CSE at www.theCSE.com as well as on the Company's website at: www.metaverse.capital Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information Forward-Looking Information: This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". The use of any of the words "anticipate", "continue", "estimate", "expect","may", "will", "would", "project", "should", "believe" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed onthe forward-looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. These statements speak only as of the date of this News Release. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks including various risk factors discussed in the Company's disclosure documents which can be found under the Company's profile on www.sedar.com Neither the CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/45788
Why ESI Group SA's (EPA:ESI) High P/E Ratio Isn't Necessarily A Bad Thing Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today, we'll introduce the concept of the P/E ratio for those who are learning about investing. We'll apply a basic P/E ratio analysis to ESI Group SA's (EPA:ESI), to help you decide if the stock is worth further research.What is ESI Group's P/E ratio?Well, based on the last twelve months it is 51.21. That means that at current prices, buyers pay €51.21 for every €1 in trailing yearly profits. See our latest analysis for ESI Group Theformula for P/Eis: Price to Earnings Ratio = Price per Share ÷ Earnings per Share (EPS) Or for ESI Group: P/E of 51.21 = €30.4 ÷ €0.59 (Based on the year to January 2019.) A higher P/E ratio implies that investors paya higher pricefor the earning power of the business. All else being equal, it's better to pay a low price -- but as Warren Buffett said, 'It's far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price.' Companies that shrink earnings per share quickly will rapidly decrease the 'E' in the equation. That means even if the current P/E is low, it will increase over time if the share price stays flat. So while a stock may look cheap based on past earnings, it could be expensive based on future earnings. ESI Group increased earnings per share by a whopping 40% last year. And earnings per share have improved by 6.1% annually, over the last five years. I'd therefore be a little surprised if its P/E ratio was not relatively high. In contrast, EPS has decreased by 15%, annually, over 3 years. We can get an indication of market expectations by looking at the P/E ratio. As you can see below, ESI Group has a higher P/E than the average company (24.9) in the software industry. ESI Group's P/E tells us that market participants think the company will perform better than its industry peers, going forward. The market is optimistic about the future, but that doesn't guarantee future growth. So investors should always consider the P/E ratio alongside other factors, such aswhether company directors have been buying shares. The 'Price' in P/E reflects the market capitalization of the company. That means it doesn't take debt or cash into account. The exact same company would hypothetically deserve a higher P/E ratio if it had a strong balance sheet, than if it had a weak one with lots of debt, because a cashed up company can spend on growth. Such spending might be good or bad, overall, but the key point here is that you need to look at debt to understand the P/E ratio in context. Net debt totals 16% of ESI Group's market cap. It would probably deserve a higher P/E ratio if it was net cash, since it would have more options for growth. ESI Group trades on a P/E ratio of 51.2, which is above the FR market average of 17.8. While the company does use modest debt, its recent earnings growth is superb. So to be frank we are not surprised it has a high P/E ratio. When the market is wrong about a stock, it gives savvy investors an opportunity. As value investor Benjamin Graham famously said, 'In the short run, the market is a voting machine but in the long run, it is a weighing machine.' So thisfreevisual report on analyst forecastscould hold the key to an excellent investment decision. But note:ESI Group may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at thisfreelist of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a P/E ratio below 20). We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
What Do Investors Need To Know About Kapsch TrafficCom AG's (VIE:KTCG) Long Term Outlook? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! The most recent earnings update Kapsch TrafficCom AG's (VIE:KTCG) released in June 2019 signalled that the company experienced a large tailwind, leading to a high double-digit earnings growth of 67%. Below, I've laid out key growth figures on how market analysts view Kapsch TrafficCom's earnings growth trajectory over the next couple of years and whether the future looks even brighter than the past. I will be looking at earnings excluding extraordinary items to exclude one-off activities to get a better understanding of the underlying drivers of earnings. View our latest analysis for Kapsch TrafficCom Analysts' expectations for this coming year seems pessimistic, with earnings declining by a double-digit -20%. In the next couple of years, earnings are expected to continue to be below today's level, with a decline of -35% in 2021, eventually reaching €31m in 2022. Even though it’s informative knowing the growth year by year relative to today’s value, it may be more insightful gauging the rate at which the business is moving every year, on average. The advantage of this technique is that we can get a bigger picture of the direction of Kapsch TrafficCom's earnings trajectory over the long run, irrespective of near term fluctuations, fluctuate up and down. To compute this rate, I put a line of best fit through the forecasted earnings by market analysts. The slope of this line is the rate of earnings growth, which in this case is -15%. This means, we can presume Kapsch TrafficCom will chip away at a rate of -15% every year for the next couple of years. For Kapsch TrafficCom, I've compiled three key aspects you should further research: 1. Financial Health: Does it have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Valuation: What is KTCG worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether KTCG is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Growth Alternatives: Are there other high-growth stocks you could be holding instead of KTCG? Exploreour interactive list of stocks with large growth potentialto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Witness in Navy SEAL trial takes blame for killing SAN DIEGO (AP) When the prosecution called a special forces medic to testify, they expected him to bolster their murder case against a decorated Navy SEAL accused of stabbing an Islamic State fighter in his care. Corey Scott delivered on that count, saying Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher had unexpectedly plunged a knife into the adolescent detainee after treating his wounds in 2017 in Iraq. But the government was stunned with what came next: Scott took the blame for the killing, saying he had suffocated the boy shortly after Gallagher had stabbed him. Scott called the asphyxiation an act of mercy. It was a stunning twist in an already tumultuous case that illustrates the challenges of prosecuting war crimes cases, especially those involving members of the secretive special forces, and the risks of granting immunity. Scott wanted to invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when called by the prosecution. But he was granted immunity and ordered to testify. "You're assuming a certain amount of risk that you know what they're going to say and that what they're going to say is truthful," said Retired Army Maj. Gen. John Altenburg Jr., who handled or oversaw about 1,000 military trials. "If you get surprised, you get surprised. That's what can happen when you have cases like this." A visibly angry prosecutor accused Scott of lying, saying he had told investigators a different story several times and changed it only after he was granted immunity and ordered to testify. "So you can stand up there and you can lie about how you killed the ISIS prisoner so Chief Gallagher does not have to go to jail," John said. "You don't want Chief Gallagher to go to jail, do you?" "He's got a wife and family," Scott said. "I don't think he should be spending his life in prison." The testimony is the latest setback for prosecutors and a big boost for Gallagher, who is fighting charges of premeditated murder in the boy's death and attempted murder in the shooting of civilians. Story continues The defense has said Gallagher only treated the prisoner for a collapsed lung and that disgruntled sailors fabricated the murder accusations because he was a demanding leader and they didn't want him promoted. When asked if Scott's testimony, which did not dispute that Gallagher stabbed the militant in his care, would mean a lesser charge of premeditated attempted murder for the special operator, defense attorney Tim Parlatore said it only proved one thing: "It means he's not guilty," he said. Gallagher's wife said she was relieved to have the truth come out. "To hear today that someone's finally had the bravery to stand up for the truth was refreshing after all these years," Andrea Gallagher said as she stood with her husband and their two children outside of court. The Navy said in a statement it will not drop the premediated murder charge and it's up to jurors to decide the credibility of the witness. Before the stabbing, Scott said that he and Gallagher had stabilized the sedated prisoner who was wounded in an airstrike and that he was breathing normally through a tube inserted to clear his airway. Scott said he was shocked when Gallagher, the platoon's leader, stabbed the boy at least once below the collarbone. He said there was no medical reason for it. Gallagher then grabbed his medical bag and walked away. "I was startled and froze up for a little bit," Scott said. Scott said the patient would have survived the stabbing, but he plugged the youth's breathing tube with his thumb because he believed the prisoner would eventually be tortured by the Iraqi forces who had captured him and delivered him to the SEAL compound for medical treatment. "I knew he was going to die anyway, and I wanted to save him from waking up to whatever would happen to him," Scott said. Scott said no one asked him how the patient died. Four SEALs and one former SEAL have taken the stand. Scott was the second to say they witnessed Gallagher stab the militant. Several of the SEALs also described instances when they said Gallagher had fired at civilians, once shooting an old man. Gallagher's case has drawn the attention of President Donald Trump, who is reportedly considering a pardon. The trial comes after months of turmoil and follows a judge's removal of the lead prosecutor over a bungled effort to track emails sent to defense lawyers in order to find the source of news leaks. The judge determined that the effort violated Gallagher's constitutional rights and reduced the maximum possible punishment from life in prison without parole to the possibility of parole. The seven-man jury is made up of five Marines and two sailors all veterans of war zones. A two-thirds majority at least five is needed to convict. Anything less ends in acquittal. The Navy said the jury can convict Gallagher of a lesser charge, such as premeditated attempted murder, which carries a maximum penalty of life with parole. There is no minimum sentence.
Where EMS-CHEMIE HOLDING AG (VTX:EMSN) Stands In Terms Of Earnings Growth Against Its Industry Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! After looking at EMS-CHEMIE HOLDING AG's (VTX:EMSN) latest earnings update (31 December 2018), I found it helpful to revisit the company's performance in the past couple of years and compare this against the latest numbers. As a long-term investor I tend to focus on earnings trend, rather than a single number at one point in time. Also, comparing it against an industry benchmark to understand whether it outperformed, or is simply riding an industry wave, is an important aspect. In this article I briefly touch on my key findings. Check out our latest analysis for EMS-CHEMIE HOLDING EMSN's trailing twelve-month earnings (from 31 December 2018) of CHF520m has increased by 7.9% compared to the previous year. However, this one-year growth rate has been lower than its average earnings growth rate over the past 5 years of 11%, indicating the rate at which EMSN is growing has slowed down. What could be happening here? Well, let's look at what's transpiring with margins and if the whole industry is feeling the heat. In terms of returns from investment, EMS-CHEMIE HOLDING has invested its equity funds well leading to a 32% return on equity (ROE), above the sensible minimum of 20%. Furthermore, its return on assets (ROA) of 24% exceeds the CH Chemicals industry of 8.9%, indicating EMS-CHEMIE HOLDING has used its assets more efficiently. And finally, its return on capital (ROC), which also accounts for EMS-CHEMIE HOLDING’s debt level, has increased over the past 3 years from 31% to 35%. This correlates with a decrease in debt holding, with debt-to-equity ratio declining from 8.2% to 0.3% over the past 5 years. While past data is useful, it doesn’t tell the whole story. Companies that have performed well in the past, such as EMS-CHEMIE HOLDING gives investors conviction. However, the next step would be to assess whether the future looks as optimistic. I suggest you continue to research EMS-CHEMIE HOLDING to get a more holistic view of the stock by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for EMSN’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor EMSN’s outlook. 2. Financial Health: Are EMSN’s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why we’ve done it for you. Check out ourfinancial health checks here. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the trailing twelve months from 31 December 2018. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Naomi Wolf promotes new book delayed in the US by errors NEW YORK (AP) — Naomi Wolf says she has no hard feelings about the BBC interviewer who pointed out errors in her new book, "Outrages," which has been delayed for release in the U.S. against her wishes. "The bottom line is he did me a favor," she said Thursday night at the Strand Book Store in Manhattan. Asked by an audience member if she felt "humiliated," Wolf said that "in an ideal world" the errors would not have been in her book and that she felt "accountable" to her readers. "I'm glad that he brought them up," she said. Wolf's book, originally scheduled to come out this week in the U.S., is an attack on the punitive treatment of gays in Victorian England. Her promotion for "Outrages" was upended last month, when the BBC's Matthew Sweet challenged some of her findings, notably on how often the death penalty was applied. Wolf's U.S. publisher, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, subsequently postponed the book's publication, along with her U.S. tour, making the event at the Strand somewhat of a rebellion. Wolf and Strand owner Nancy Bass Wyden are old friends and agreed she should appear as planned. Wolf had previously chastised her publisher for the publication delay, saying she had made the necessary corrections. "I strongly objected to this decision," Wolf, who has been criticized frequently over the years for inaccuracies, tweeted June 14. But on Thursday, Wolf acknowledged she had made mistakes and otherwise made no criticisms of her publisher. In announcing the postponement last week, Houghton Mifflin cited "new questions" that had arisen about the text. Houghton Mifflin declined to be more specific when asked by The Associated Press and declined comment on Wolf's decision to continue promoting her book. Wolf, in an email earlier Thursday to the AP, also declined to discuss the additional questions and said she "remained committed" to her book's U.S. release. She said that she was "in communication" with Houghton Mifflin and had no intentions of finding a new U.S. publisher. Story continues Having returned the U.S. editions to Houghton Mifflin, the Strand was selling copies of "Outrages" already published in the United Kingdom by Virago. Around two dozen people turned out on a muggy, rainy night to see the author, whose previous books include such bestsellers as "The Beauty Myth" and "Misconceptions." She was interviewed by the author and editor Will Schwalbe, whom she has known since attending Yale University together in the 1980s. Asked by Schwalbe what she hoped readers would take from "Outrages," Wolf said she hoped it would bring new attention to its central figure, the British poet and cultural historian John Addington Symonds, a gay man who spent much of his adult life married to a woman before finding love with another man in his final decade. "He just didn't give up on love," Wolf said. "And I think that's a universal message."
NorCom Information Technology GmbH & Co. KGaA (ETR:NC5A): Immense Growth Potential? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! In April 2019, NorCom Information Technology GmbH & Co. KGaA (ETR:NC5A) released its most recent earnings announcement, which indicated that the company experienced a major headwind with earnings falling by -66%. Below is a brief commentary on my key takeaways on how market analysts predict NorCom Information Technology GmbH KGaA's earnings growth outlook over the next few years and whether the future looks brighter. I will be looking at earnings excluding extraordinary items to exclude one-off activities to get a better understanding of the underlying drivers of earnings. View our latest analysis for NorCom Information Technology GmbH KGaA Market analysts' consensus outlook for next year seems optimistic, with earnings growing by a robust 36%. This growth in earnings is expected to continue at an exponential rate, bringing the bottom line up to €2.6m by 2022. Even though it’s useful to understand the growth rate year by year relative to today’s figure, it may be more valuable to determine the rate at which the business is growing on average every year. The benefit of this method is that it removes the impact of near term flucuations and accounts for the overarching direction of NorCom Information Technology GmbH KGaA's earnings trajectory over time, which may be more relevant for long term investors. To compute this rate, I put a line of best fit through the forecasted earnings by market analysts. The slope of this line is the rate of earnings growth, which in this case is 45%. This means that, we can anticipate NorCom Information Technology GmbH KGaA will grow its earnings by 45% every year for the next few years. For NorCom Information Technology GmbH KGaA, there are three relevant aspects you should look at: 1. Financial Health: Does it have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Valuation: What is NC5A worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether NC5A is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Growth Alternatives: Are there other high-growth stocks you could be holding instead of NC5A? Exploreour interactive list of stocks with large growth potentialto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Is GrandVision N.V. (AMS:GVNV) Trading At A 34% Discount? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we will run through one way of estimating the intrinsic value of GrandVision N.V. (AMS:GVNV) by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to today's value. I will be using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward. We generally believe that a company's value is the present value of all of the cash it will generate in the future. However, a DCF is just one valuation metric among many, and it is not without flaws. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of theSimply Wall St analysis model. View our latest analysis for GrandVision We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years. A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, so we need to discount the sum of these future cash flows to arrive at a present value estimate: [{"": "Levered FCF (\u20ac, Millions)", "2019": "\u20ac273.00", "2020": "\u20ac322.93", "2021": "\u20ac346.15", "2022": "\u20ac405.50", "2023": "\u20ac436.66", "2024": "\u20ac459.78", "2025": "\u20ac477.33", "2026": "\u20ac490.61", "2027": "\u20ac500.71", "2028": "\u20ac508.49"}, {"": "Growth Rate Estimate Source", "2019": "Analyst x2", "2020": "Analyst x5", "2021": "Analyst x3", "2022": "Analyst x1", "2023": "Analyst x1", "2024": "Est @ 5.29%", "2025": "Est @ 3.82%", "2026": "Est @ 2.78%", "2027": "Est @ 2.06%", "2028": "Est @ 1.55%"}, {"": "Present Value (\u20ac, Millions) Discounted @ 6.25%", "2019": "\u20ac256.95", "2020": "\u20ac286.07", "2021": "\u20ac288.60", "2022": "\u20ac318.20", "2023": "\u20ac322.50", "2024": "\u20ac319.61", "2025": "\u20ac312.29", "2026": "\u20ac302.11", "2027": "\u20ac290.20", "2028": "\u20ac277.37"}] Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF)= €2.97b "Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St The second stage is also known as Terminal Value, this is the business's cash flow after the first stage. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 10-year government bond rate of 0.4%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 6.2%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF2029× (1 + g) ÷ (r – g) = €508m × (1 + 0.4%) ÷ (6.2% – 0.4%) = €8.7b Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= €€8.7b ÷ ( 1 + 6.2%)10= €4.74b The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is €7.71b. The last step is to then divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding.This results in an intrinsic value estimate of €30.38. Relative to the current share price of €20.12, the company appears quite good value at a 34% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Remember though, that this is just an approximate valuation, and like any complex formula - garbage in, garbage out. Now the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate, and of course, the actual cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at GrandVision as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 6.2%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.986. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business. Whilst important, DCF calculation shouldn’t be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. What is the reason for the share price to differ from the intrinsic value? For GrandVision, There are three fundamental aspects you should further research: 1. Financial Health: Does GVNV have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Future Earnings: How does GVNV's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with ourfree analyst growth expectation chart. 3. Other High Quality Alternatives: Are there other high quality stocks you could be holding instead of GVNV? Exploreour interactive list of high quality stocksto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every NL stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock justsearch here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
What Should You Know About Phoenix Mecano AG's (VTX:PM) Growth? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Based on Phoenix Mecano AG's (VTX:PM) earnings update in December 2018, the consensus outlook from analysts appear bearish, as a 5.6% fall in profits is expected in the upcoming year relative to the past 5-year average growth rate of 9.7%. Currently with a trailing-twelve-month profit of €32m, the consensus growth rate suggests that earnings will drop to €31m by 2020. Below is a brief commentary on the longer term outlook the market has for Phoenix Mecano. For those interested in more of an analysis of the company, you canresearch its fundamentals here. View our latest analysis for Phoenix Mecano Longer term expectations from the 3 analysts covering PM’s stock is one of positive sentiment. Generally, broker analysts tend to make predictions for up to three years given the lack of visibility beyond this point. To reduce the year-on-year volatility of analyst earnings forecast, I've inserted a line of best fit through the expected earnings figures to determine the annual growth rate from the slope of the line. From the current net income level of €32m and the final forecast of €33m by 2022, the annual rate of growth for PM’s earnings is 2.2%. EPS reaches €34.41 in the final year of forecast compared to the current €33.79 EPS today. Analysts are predicting this high revenue growth to squeeze profit margins over time, from 5.0% to 4.7% by the end of 2022. Future outlook is only one aspect when you're building an investment case for a stock. For Phoenix Mecano, I've compiled three essential aspects you should further research: 1. Financial Health: Does it have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Valuation: What is Phoenix Mecano worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether Phoenix Mecano is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Growth Alternatives: Are there other high-growth stocks you could be holding instead of Phoenix Mecano? Exploreour interactive list of stocks with large growth potentialto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Examining Facebook’s Claim Its Crypto Is for the Unbanked Daniel Evans is part of the team that started the Gibraltar Stock Exchange (GSX), which is now open for security token listings. Opinions are his own. The excitement about Libra is premature. Maybe Zuck’s got more to share, but right now there’s very little information, and Libra has a lot to prove. Libra’s main stated mission is to service the world’s poor and unbanked. This seems unlikely to be the whole story… Facebook’s source for the 1.7 billion figure is theWorld Bank’s Global Findex Database 2017. Findex also believes that 1 billion of these have mobile phones and 500 million have internet access. Related:Libra Could Be Unbalanced by Indian Crypto Laws However, Findex also says that over half of the 1.7 billion come from just seven countries: Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria and Pakistan. More than half of these are in places where: • Cryptocurrencies are banned • Facebook can’t freely operate • The country is under heavy FATF restrictions (due to money-laundering and anti-crime concerns) • Or, it faces other limitations. Targeting these unbanked just doesn’t seem plausible. How are they going to get in and get people to use it? Who and how many people are realistically going to join? How fast does Libra realistically expect adoption to be and is it worth it? These jurisdictional limitations also help to explain why Libra doesn’t have any local partners anywhere with a relevant market presence or customer base. Out of the 28 founder members of the Libra Association, only one, Mercado, is based in a developing part of the world (South America). None are based in Africa or Asia where most of the world’s unbanked actually are. Related:Rep. Waters: US Can’t Let Facebook’s Crypto ‘Compete With the Dollar’ Libra expects to have 100 members by 2020. Perhaps some of them will be in places, with networks, and local ground presence and knowledge, to actually roll it out. Then again, theBreakthrough Initiative, a founding member with Zuckerberg on the board, says its main mission is searching for alien life, so Libra already has outer space covered I guess… Stable currency plans also need further explanation. The countries left where it can access the unbanked sometimes have significant currency swings. The proposal is to make Libra very stable by backing it with a basket of yet undecided fiat currencies hoped to have “low volatility.” OK. Well, the definition of volatility and its adjunct risk is tied to the asset/liability profile of the user. In any economy it’s a better idea that your earnings and debts should be in same currency. There are numerous cases of developing economies taking on debt in or relying on foreign currencies and it ending in disaster. Never mind developing economies, just look at southern Europe and the northern dominated euro. Libra risks inflicting this sort of mess on the people it wants to help and who need this problem even less than comparably richer Europeans. It doesn’t work for countries to rely on foreign currencies. For individuals or small businesses with wages and expenses in local fiat…this looks suicidal. Libra may have good intentions. It needs to answer why this isn’t just a rich country solution being pushed on poor country problems. It’s like when well-meaning philanthropists donate solar panels without engineers to maintain them, or livestock which are ill-suited to the local climate, or irrigation pumps where there is no power grid. The stakes are obviously much higher if a new currency is implemented and it goes wrong. Facebook also have some questions to answer about China. China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is sprawling. China has signed cooperation documents with 126 countries and 29 international organizations, many in the places where Facebook might hope to service. Many large projects are already underway with Chinese cooperation. Ports, railways, highways, power stations, aviation, telecommunications and finance. It seems very unlikely that China wouldn’t also want to target the unbanked in these countries and extend its technological and financial influence. Is Facebook prepared to go up against China? That’s after it’s done looking domestically at anti-trust monopoly cases, objections from regulators, the Federal Reserve andCongress, and internationally at places like theBank of Englandor theFrench Finance Ministry. On the other hand, China has long been a big center for bitcoin miners, cryptocurrency trade and was a major centre of the ICO craze in 2017. It seems highly unlikely that similar-profile Chinese companies to Facebook have not already considered this idea and run some numbers. They are reportedlynot following Facebook any time soon. Has someone like Jack Ma figured it’s perfectly fine selling things to unbanked Chinese in the existing way? Is a new system and having to educate people on a new cryptocurrency not worth the hassle? For now, big Chinese technology companies seem happy to stick with conventional payment networks, don’t want a blockchain solution, and don’t want to try a battle with the Chinese treasury. And that brings things to the final thought. Facebook got big by giving away free social media and selling targeted advertising mostly in G7 countries. This works when the targets have money to buy things. What is targeting the subset of 1.7 billion unbanked actually worth? What do they buy that is worth advertising? How is Libra actually intending to make any money? What is the point of Libra? Skeptics and general grumpies might say it’s one of these: 1. Publicity stunt.Maybe Facebook wants to divert attention away from accusations of grubby deeds like privacy violations, political manipulation, and censorship, and toward a lofty and socially pleasing enterprise? Maybe Facebook wants to recover its image from 10 years ago when it was still cool, new, and energetic? 2. Search for new revenue.Maybe Facebook is trying to make up for its decreasing, aging user base? 3. Financial data.Maybe this is a longer-term Trojan Horse or a test-bed for Facebook’s future? 4. Crush competition before it gets started.Maybe Facebook is getting spooked by the growing numbers of smaller social media and messaging platforms which are crypto ready, like Minds, Kik or Telegram, which threaten to keep sapping Facebook’s and WhatApp’s user bases and threaten their standing? 5. ‘Are we alone?’Maybe Breakthrough Initiatives has finally fulfilled its goal of finding alien life, specifically Zuck’s own extra-terrestrial race? They’re all unbanked, with no accounts at JPMorgan, and a prime new untapped demographic perfect for Libra. 6. Zuck the Benevolent.Believers and optimists may well say that maybe Zuck’s interested in technological progress, believes he can do a good job, and likes new challenges etc. Sure, why not? This piece truly isn’t about making any judgement on any of the guesses above or any other plans for Libra. Not much has really been announced and it’s too early to assess. However, a dispassionate, fact-based and common-sense analysis shows Libra is likely not anything to do with servicing the 1.7 billion poor and unbanked in developing countries. Maybe the unbanked are a lot richer than we realize or will be soon. Maybe Libra has made more progress than we realize in getting the right governmental permission to access crypto-hostile and generally difficult countries. At the moment this just looks either poorly planned or there are other, smarter things to come. It just isn’t credible that this is about servicing the unbanked. Zuck, if you want help, I have some ideas. You can find me on Facebook. Zuckerberg imagevia Shutterstock • Will Facebook’s Libra Be an On-Ramp or Dead End for Crypto? • Senate Banking Committee Schedules July Hearing on Facebook’s Libra Crypto
How Good Is Georg Fischer AG (VTX:FI-N) At Creating Shareholder Value? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we'll evaluate Georg Fischer AG (VTX:FI-N) to determine whether it could have potential as an investment idea. Specifically, we're going to calculate its Return On Capital Employed (ROCE), in the hopes of getting some insight into the business. First up, we'll look at what ROCE is and how we calculate it. Then we'll compare its ROCE to similar companies. Finally, we'll look at how its current liabilities affect its ROCE. ROCE measures the amount of pre-tax profits a company can generate from the capital employed in its business. All else being equal, a better business will have a higher ROCE. Ultimately, it is a useful but imperfect metric. Renowned investment researcher Michael Mauboussinhas suggestedthat a high ROCE can indicate that 'one dollar invested in the company generates value of more than one dollar'. Analysts use this formula to calculate return on capital employed: Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities) Or for Georg Fischer: 0.16 = CHF379m ÷ (CHF3.4b - CHF1.1b) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2018.) So,Georg Fischer has an ROCE of 16%. View our latest analysis for Georg Fischer One way to assess ROCE is to compare similar companies. We can see Georg Fischer's ROCE is around the 14% average reported by the Machinery industry. Separate from Georg Fischer's performance relative to its industry, its ROCE in absolute terms looks satisfactory, and it may be worth researching in more depth. Remember that this metric is backwards looking - it shows what has happened in the past, and does not accurately predict the future. Companies in cyclical industries can be difficult to understand using ROCE, as returns typically look high during boom times, and low during busts. This is because ROCE only looks at one year, instead of considering returns across a whole cycle. Future performance is what matters, and you can see analyst predictions in ourfreereport on analyst forecasts for the company. Current liabilities are short term bills and invoices that need to be paid in 12 months or less. Due to the way ROCE is calculated, a high level of current liabilities makes a company look as though it has less capital employed, and thus can (sometimes unfairly) boost the ROCE. To check the impact of this, we calculate if a company has high current liabilities relative to its total assets. Georg Fischer has total liabilities of CHF1.1b and total assets of CHF3.4b. As a result, its current liabilities are equal to approximately 33% of its total assets. With this level of current liabilities, Georg Fischer's ROCE is boosted somewhat. While its ROCE looks good, it's worth remembering that the current liabilities are making the business look better. Georg Fischer shapes up well under this analysis,but it is far from the only business delivering excellent numbers. You might also want to check thisfreecollection of companies delivering excellent earnings growth. If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love thisfreelist of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them). We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
What Investors Should Know About Prevas AB's (STO:PREV B) Financial Strength Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Prevas AB (STO:PREV B) is a small-cap stock with a market capitalization of kr240m. While investors primarily focus on the growth potential and competitive landscape of the small-cap companies, they end up ignoring a key aspect, which could be the biggest threat to its existence: its financial health. Why is it important? Assessing first and foremost the financial health is essential, since poor capital management may bring about bankruptcies, which occur at a higher rate for small-caps. We'll look at some basic checks that can form a snapshot the company’s financial strength. Nevertheless, this is just a partial view of the stock, and I’d encourage you todig deeper yourself into PREV B here. PREV B's debt levels surged from kr58m to kr87m over the last 12 months , which includes long-term debt. With this increase in debt, the current cash and short-term investment levels stands at kr542k to keep the business going. Additionally, PREV B has produced cash from operations of kr12m over the same time period, resulting in an operating cash to total debt ratio of 14%, indicating that PREV B’s debt is not covered by operating cash. With current liabilities at kr195m, the company has been able to meet these commitments with a current assets level of kr201m, leading to a 1.03x current account ratio. The current ratio is calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities. Generally, for IT companies, this is a reasonable ratio since there's a sufficient cash cushion without leaving too much capital idle or in low-earning investments. With a debt-to-equity ratio of 52%, PREV B can be considered as an above-average leveraged company. This is a bit unusual for a small-cap stock, since they generally have a harder time borrowing than large more established companies. No matter how high the company’s debt, if it can easily cover the interest payments, it’s considered to be efficient with its use of excess leverage. A company generating earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) at least three times its net interest payments is considered financially sound. In PREV B's case, the ratio of 4.88x suggests that interest is appropriately covered, which means that lenders may be inclined to lend more money to the company, as it is seen as safe in terms of payback. Although PREV B’s debt level is towards the higher end of the spectrum, its cash flow coverage seems adequate to meet obligations which means its debt is being efficiently utilised. This may mean this is an optimal capital structure for the business, given that it is also meeting its short-term commitment. I admit this is a fairly basic analysis for PREV B's financial health. Other important fundamentals need to be considered alongside. I recommend you continue to research Prevas to get a better picture of the small-cap by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for PREV B’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor PREV B’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is PREV B worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether PREV B is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Is ProfilGruppen AB (publ)'s (STO:PROF B) High P/E Ratio A Problem For Investors? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! This article is written for those who want to get better at using price to earnings ratios (P/E ratios). We'll show how you can use ProfilGruppen AB (publ)'s (STO:PROF B) P/E ratio to inform your assessment of the investment opportunity.What is ProfilGruppen's P/E ratio?Well, based on the last twelve months it is 10.29. In other words, at today's prices, investors are paying SEK10.29 for every SEK1 in prior year profit. See our latest analysis for ProfilGruppen Theformula for P/Eis: Price to Earnings Ratio = Share Price ÷ Earnings per Share (EPS) Or for ProfilGruppen: P/E of 10.29 = SEK112.5 ÷ SEK10.93 (Based on the trailing twelve months to March 2019.) The higher the P/E ratio, the higher the price tag of a business, relative to its trailing earnings. All else being equal, it's better to pay a low price -- but as Warren Buffett said, 'It's far better to buy a wonderful company at a fair price than a fair company at a wonderful price.' P/E ratios primarily reflect market expectations around earnings growth rates. If earnings are growing quickly, then the 'E' in the equation will increase faster than it would otherwise. That means unless the share price increases, the P/E will reduce in a few years. Then, a lower P/E should attract more buyers, pushing the share price up. ProfilGruppen's earnings per share were pretty steady over the last year. But it has grown its earnings per share by 84% per year over the last three years. One good way to get a quick read on what market participants expect of a company is to look at its P/E ratio. You can see in the image below that the average P/E (10.1) for companies in the metals and mining industry is roughly the same as ProfilGruppen's P/E. ProfilGruppen's P/E tells us that market participants think its prospects are roughly in line with its industry. If the company has better than average prospects, then the market might be underestimating it. I inform my view byby checking management tenure and remuneration, among other things. It's important to note that the P/E ratio considers the market capitalization, not the enterprise value. Thus, the metric does not reflect cash or debt held by the company. In theory, a company can lower its future P/E ratio by using cash or debt to invest in growth. Such expenditure might be good or bad, in the long term, but the point here is that the balance sheet is not reflected by this ratio. Net debt is 29% of ProfilGruppen's market cap. While it's worth keeping this in mind, it isn't a worry. ProfilGruppen trades on a P/E ratio of 10.3, which is below the SE market average of 16.9. The company does have a little debt, and EPS is moving in the right direction. The P/E ratio implies the market is cautious about longer term prospects. Investors should be looking to buy stocks that the market is wrong about. If the reality for a company is not as bad as the P/E ratio indicates, then the share price should increase as the market realizes this. We don't have analyst forecasts, but shareholders might want to examinethis detailed historical graphof earnings, revenue and cash flow. Of course,you might find a fantastic investment by looking at a few good candidates.So take a peek at thisfreelist of companies with modest (or no) debt, trading on a P/E below 20. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Are Endesa, S.A.'s (BME:ELE) Interest Costs Too High? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Endesa, S.A. (BME:ELE), a large-cap worth €25b, comes to mind for investors seeking a strong and reliable stock investment. Big corporations are much sought after by risk-averse investors who find diversified revenue streams and strong capital returns attractive. But, the key to extending previous success is in the health of the company’s financials. Let’s take a look at Endesa’s leverage and assess its financial strength to get an idea of their ability to fund strategic acquisitions and grow through cyclical pressures. Note that this information is centred entirely on financial health and is a high-level overview, so I encourage you to look furtherinto ELE here. See our latest analysis for Endesa Over the past year, ELE has ramped up its debt from €6.3b to €7.1b , which includes long-term debt. With this increase in debt, ELE's cash and short-term investments stands at €1.3b to keep the business going. On top of this, ELE has produced cash from operations of €2.7b during the same period of time, resulting in an operating cash to total debt ratio of 38%, meaning that ELE’s debt is appropriately covered by operating cash. Looking at ELE’s €7.6b in current liabilities, it seems that the business arguably has a rather low level of current assets relative its obligations, with the current ratio last standing at 0.79x. The current ratio is calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities. With debt reaching 72% of equity, ELE may be thought of as relatively highly levered. This isn’t surprising for large-caps, as equity can often be more expensive to issue than debt, plus interest payments are tax deductible. Since large-caps are seen as safer than their smaller constituents, they tend to enjoy lower cost of capital. The sustainability of ELE’s debt levels can be assessed by comparing the company’s interest payments to earnings. Ideally, earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) should cover net interest by at least three times. In ELE's case, the ratio of 17.59x suggests that interest is comfortably covered. It is considered a responsible and reassuring practice to maintain high interest coverage, which makes ELE and other large-cap investments thought to be safe. Although ELE’s debt level is towards the higher end of the spectrum, its cash flow coverage seems adequate to meet debt obligations which means its debt is being efficiently utilised. But, its lack of liquidity raises questions over current asset management practices for the large-cap. Keep in mind I haven't considered other factors such as how ELE has been performing in the past. I suggest you continue to research Endesa to get a more holistic view of the stock by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for ELE’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor ELE’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is ELE worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether ELE is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Donald Trump 'approved strikes on Iran over downing of drone before aborting plan' Donald Trump reportedly approved but then aborted strikes against Iranian targets on Thursday, after Iran shot down a US drone in what the president labelled a "big mistake." The US was planning to hit "a handful of Iranian targets, like radar and missile batteries" on Thursday evening, the New York Times said, citing senior administration officials, but the plan was suddenly called off in its early stages. White House and Pentagon officials declined to comment, the newspaper said, and it was unclear whether there were plans for such strikes to go forward in the future. The report will fuel fears of a looming conflict in the region, where US airlines have been banned from flying through parts of Tehran-controlled airspace. The United States confirmed that an RQ-4a surveillance drone had been shot down over the Gulf of Hormuz, but said it was over international waters when it was hit. "Iranian reports that the aircraft was over Iran are false," the Pentagon said in a statement. "This was an unprovoked attack on a US surveillance asset in international airspace." Mr Trump earlier declined to say how the United States would respond, telling reporters in Washington: "You will find out." But he also played down Iranian government responsibility for the incident, saying he had a "big, big feeling" that the shoot down was a "mistake". Speaking outside the White House, he said: "We didn't have a man or woman in the drone. It would have made a big, big difference." He added that it was probably someone "loose and stupid who did it." With tensions rising, the US Federal Aviation Administration issued an emergency order prohibiting US operators from flying in an overwater area of Tehran-controlled airspace over the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman. In a separate advisory to operators, FAA said according to flight tracking applications, the nearest civil aircraft was operating within around 45 nautical miles of the drone when it was shot down. Story continues "There were numerous civil aviation aircraft operating in the area at the time of the intercept," FAA said. Iran claims to have shot down a RQ-4 Global Hawk Credit: EPA The agency said it remained concerned about the escalation of tension and military activity within close proximity to high volume civil aircraft routes as well as Iran's willingness to use long-range missiles in international airspace with little or no warning. United Airlines had already decided to suspend flights between New Jersey's Newark airport and the Indian financial capital of Mumbai following a safety review. Earlier General Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, said the shoot down was intended as "a clear message" his country will defend itself. Iran will "respond to all foreign aggression and our reaction is, and will be, categorical and absolute" he told the Tasnim news agency, which is controlled by the IRGC. "We declare that we are not looking for war but we are ready to respond to any declaration of war," he added. An oil tanker is seen after it was attacked at the Gulf of Oman Credit: Reuters Last week two oil tankers were struck by mysterious explosions in the Gulf of Oman. The United States accused Iran of using limpet mines to attack the ships on June 13. Iran has denied involvement, suggesting instead that regional rivals Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates carried out the attack to lure Donald Trump into a war with Iran. Adel al-Jubeir, the foreign minister of Saudi Arabia, called the accusation "absurd" and warned that America's Gulf allies were "determined to push back against Iran's aggressive behaviour." "The idea of closing the Strait of Hormuz would generate a very strong reaction," he told journalists in London. It was the second attack on tankers in the area in a month. In May four vessels suffered mysterious "sabotage" attacks that left them holed at the waterline. The United States has also blamed Iranian -backed groups for a string of mortar and rocket attacks on US assets in Iraq. Saudi Arabia said Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen had fired a missile into the Kingdom overnight but caused no damage. The United States military claims this Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy cutter was seen removing an unexploded limpet mine from one of the tankers Credit: US DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/REX Military tensions have risen amid a diplomatic stand-off over the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran, Britain, China, France, Germany, the United States, and the European Union, which saw Iran curtail its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. Mr Trump pulled the United States out of the deal in 2018, saying it did not adequately restrict Iran's nuclear activities and failed to address concerns about its ballistic missile program and backing of proxy militias in Iraq, Yemen, and Lebanon. In the year since, his administration has pursued a strategy of "maximum pressure" on the Iranian economy, including by trying to prevent third countries from buying Iranian oil. Iran has said it will violate the agreement by producing more enriched uranium than the deal allows if the European signatories do not find a way for it to access oil revenues by June 27. Iran's ambassador to London on Thursday said the Islamic Republic has so far seen "no concrete action" from European powers to meet that deadline. Hamid Baeidinejad said Iran will not accept US demands to re-write the nuclear deal does not believe an offer by Donald Trump for direct talks is "sincere."
Did You Miss DWS Group GmbH KGaA's (ETR:DWS) 10% Share Price Gain? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! If you want to compound wealth in the stock market, you can do so by buying an index fund. But you can significantly boost your returns by picking above-average stocks. To wit, theDWS Group GmbH & Co. KGaA(ETR:DWS) share price is 10% higher than it was a year ago, much better than the market return of around -6.8% (not including dividends) in the same period. So that should have shareholders smiling. DWS Group GmbH KGaA hasn't been listed for long, so it's still not clear if it is a long term winner. View our latest analysis for DWS Group GmbH KGaA To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time. During the last year, DWS Group GmbH KGaA actually saw its earnings per share drop 30%. This means it's unlikely the market is judging the company based on earnings growth. Indeed, when EPS is declining but the share price is up, it often means the market is considering other factors. Absent any improvement, we don't think a thirst for dividends is pushing up the DWS Group GmbH KGaA's share price. It saw it's revenue decline by 9.5% over twelve months. It's fair to say we're a little surprised to see the share price up, and that makes us cautious. The chart below shows how revenue and earnings have changed with time, (if you click on the chart you can see the actual values). DWS Group GmbH KGaA is a well known stock, with plenty of analyst coverage, suggesting some visibility into future growth. So we recommend checking out thisfreereport showing consensus forecasts It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. We note that for DWS Group GmbH KGaA the TSR over the last year was 15%, which is better than the share price return mentioned above. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted thetotalshareholder return. DWS Group GmbH KGaA boasts a total shareholder return of 15% for the last year(that includes the dividends). We regret to report that the share price is down 0.2% over ninety days. It may simply be that the share price got ahead of itself, although there may have been fundamental developments that are weighing on it. Before forming an opinion on DWS Group GmbH KGaA you might want to consider the cold hard cash it pays as a dividend. Thisfreechart tracks its dividend over time. Of courseDWS Group GmbH KGaA may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see thisfreecollection of growth stocks. Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on DE exchanges. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Calculating The Fair Value Of Sciuker Frames S.p.A. (BIT:SCK) Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Does the June share price for Sciuker Frames S.p.A. (BIT:SCK) reflect what it's really worth? Today, we will estimate the stock's intrinsic value by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to their present value. I will be using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. It may sound complicated, but actually it is quite simple! We generally believe that a company's value is the present value of all of the cash it will generate in the future. However, a DCF is just one valuation metric among many, and it is not without flaws. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of theSimply Wall St analysis model. See our latest analysis for Sciuker Frames We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. In the first stage we need to estimate the cash flows to the business over the next ten years. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years. Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, so we need to discount the sum of these future cash flows to arrive at a present value estimate: [{"": "Levered FCF (\u20ac, Millions)", "2019": "\u20ac2.91", "2020": "\u20ac0.93", "2021": "\u20ac1.47", "2022": "\u20ac1.04", "2023": "\u20ac1.31", "2024": "\u20ac1.38", "2025": "\u20ac1.44", "2026": "\u20ac1.50", "2027": "\u20ac1.55", "2028": "\u20ac1.61"}, {"": "Growth Rate Estimate Source", "2019": "Analyst x1", "2020": "Analyst x1", "2021": "Analyst x1", "2022": "Analyst x1", "2023": "Analyst x1", "2024": "Est @ 5.06%", "2025": "Est @ 4.42%", "2026": "Est @ 3.98%", "2027": "Est @ 3.66%", "2028": "Est @ 3.44%"}, {"": "Present Value (\u20ac, Millions) Discounted @ 16.97%", "2019": "\u20ac2.49", "2020": "\u20ac0.68", "2021": "\u20ac0.92", "2022": "\u20ac0.55", "2023": "\u20ac0.60", "2024": "\u20ac0.54", "2025": "\u20ac0.48", "2026": "\u20ac0.43", "2027": "\u20ac0.38", "2028": "\u20ac0.33"}] Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF)= €7.40m "Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St We now need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all the future cash flows after this ten year period. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 10-year government bond rate of 2.9%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 17%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF2029× (1 + g) ÷ (r – g) = €1.6m × (1 + 2.9%) ÷ (17% – 2.9%) = €12m Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= €€12m ÷ ( 1 + 17%)10= €2.46m The total value is the sum of cash flows for the next ten years plus the discounted terminal value, which results in the Total Equity Value, which in this case is €9.86m. In the final step we divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding.This results in an intrinsic value estimate of €0.90. Relative to the current share price of €0.72, the company appears about fair value at a 20% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind. The calculation above is very dependent on two assumptions. The first is the discount rate and the other is the cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Sciuker Frames as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 17%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.557. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business. Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it shouldn’t be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. For Sciuker Frames, I've compiled three essential factors you should further examine: 1. Financial Health: Does SCK have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Future Earnings: How does SCK's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with ourfree analyst growth expectation chart. 3. Other High Quality Alternatives: Are there other high quality stocks you could be holding instead of SCK? Exploreour interactive list of high quality stocksto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the BIT every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks justsearch here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Millions of pigs culled as swine fever spreads through Asia HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Millions of pigs have been culled in China and Vietnam as a U.N. food agency urges Asian governments to make containing virulent African swine fever their top priority. With an announcement by the U.N. Food and Agricultural Organization that infections have spread to Laos, some experts are saying it is the largest animal disease outbreak in history. The FAO said in a report late Thursday that more than 3.7 million pigs in the region had been culled since the outbreak began in China last August. Vietnam has been the hardest hit, culling at least 2.6 million pigs followed by China, which reported more than 1.1 million. All the figures were provided to the FAO by governments of countries affected by the epidemic. Smaller outbreaks have been reported in Hong Kong, Taiwan, North Korea, Cambodia and Mongolia after cases were first reported in China's northeast in August. African swine fever is harmless to people but fatal and highly contagious for pigs, with no known cure. With pork supplies dwindling as leading producer China and hard-hit Vietnam destroy huge numbers of hogs and tighten controls on shipments, prices have soared by up to 40% globally and caused shortages in other markets. "This is the largest animal disease outbreak in history," said Dirk Pfieffer, a veterinary epidemiologist at the City University of Hong Kong. "We've never had anything like it." In South Korea, where diets rely heavily on pork, there is concern an outbreak could hurt an industry with 6,300 farms raising more than 11 million pigs. "Animal disease containment in its broadest sense should be prioritized within the highest levels of governments," the FAO said, warning, "Outbreak control strategies must be in place." China has reported 139 outbreaks in all but two of its 34 provinces. The U.S. Department of Agriculture forecasts its total hog herd will shrink by 18% this year to 350 million animals, the lowest since the 1980s. This year's Chinese pork output might fall by up to 35%, according to Rabobank, a Dutch bank. Story continues Vietnam reported in mid-May that 1.2 million pigs, or about 5% of its total 30 million, an industry worth $18 billion, had died or been destroyed. FAO said Thursday that number had more than doubled to 2.6 million. Military and police were mobilized to help contain the outbreak, officials said. Rabobank expects Vietnamese pork production to fall 10% this year from 2018. The mass culling in Vietnam could sink many farmers deeper into poverty, said Wantanee Kalpravidh, a regional coordinator of the FAO's Emergency Center for Transboundary Animal Disease. Last month, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc urged authorities to prevent the disease, found in 58 of 63 provinces, from escalating into an epidemic. In My Duc, a suburb of Hanoi, disinfecting lime powder has been scattered around empty pig farms and checkpoints were set up to control shipments. "We have to prevent and fight this disease like fighting an enemy," Phuc told Cabinet officials. Farmer Nguyen Van Hoa lamented that only three pigs had died from the fever but authorities culled 40 of his pigs. They were among 14,000 hogs buried in My Duc district in the past month. About 2.4 million Vietnamese households engage in small-scale pig farming. In Cambodia, more than 2,400 pigs have died or were culled since April in an eastern province bordering Vietnam, the FAO said. Sem Oun, a 58-year-old farmer and father of two in Ta Prum, a village near the capital Phnom Penh, frets that the illness could spread from Vietnam. "I don't have any other job and my income that provides for my entire family relies solely on these pigs. If they die because of swine flu then everybody in the family will die too," he told The Associated Press. Hong Kong authorities have killed 10,700 pigs in two outbreaks, including one triggered by an animal imported from the mainland that was found to be infected. Two dead pigs infected with a virus similar to those in mainland Chinese were found in Taiwan, the FAO says. Epidemic fighting efforts have gotten entangled in regional geopolitics. North Korea scaled back cooperation with South Korea after the collapse of a February summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and President Donald Trump, hampering joint work on stemming the spread of the disease following an outbreak near North Korea's border with China. South Korea's agricultural ministry said that blood tests of pigs from some 340 farms near the border with the North were negative. Fences and traps have been installed near farms to protect hogs from being infected by wild boars that roam the inter-Korean border. The North's official Rodong Sinmun newspaper said quarantine efforts were focused on disinfecting farms and transport vehicles, restricting visitors, and banning the distribution of food products containing pork. Its references to nationwide quarantine efforts suggest the disease may have spread beyond regions near China. Thailand and other countries still free of infections have taken strong preventive actions, including banning importation of pork, sausages, ham, or bacon. Sorawit Taneeto, director-general of Thailand's Department of Livestock Development, urged people to cooperate with soldiers at checkpoints in border provinces and quarantine areas. Airports are using more dogs like beagles to help in luggage inspections. ___ McNeil reported from Beijing. Sopheng Cheang in Phnom Penh, Johnson Lai in Taipei, Taiwan, and Pitcha Dangprasith and Jim Gomez in Bangkok contributed to this report.
What Investors Should Know About Delignit AG's (FRA:DLX) Financial Strength Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! While small-cap stocks, such as Delignit AG (FRA:DLX) with its market cap of €59m, are popular for their explosive growth, investors should also be aware of their balance sheet to judge whether the company can survive a downturn. Understanding the company's financial health becomes vital, since poor capital management may bring about bankruptcies, which occur at a higher rate for small-caps. Let's work through some financial health checks you may wish to consider if you're interested in this stock. However, potential investors would need to take a closer look, and I’d encourage you todig deeper yourself into DLX here. DLX has built up its total debt levels in the last twelve months, from €5.3m to €8.4m – this includes long-term debt. With this growth in debt, the current cash and short-term investment levels stands at €298k , ready to be used for running the business. Moving on, operating cash flow was negative over the last twelve months. As the purpose of this article is a high-level overview, I won’t be looking at this today, but you can assess some of DLX’soperating efficiency ratios such as ROA here. With current liabilities at €14m, it seems that the business has been able to meet these obligations given the level of current assets of €20m, with a current ratio of 1.41x. The current ratio is calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities. Usually, for Forestry companies, this is a suitable ratio since there's a sufficient cash cushion without leaving too much capital idle or in low-earning investments. DLX is a relatively highly levered company with a debt-to-equity of 45%. This is somewhat unusual for small-caps companies, since lenders are often hesitant to provide attractive interest rates to less-established businesses. We can test if DLX’s debt levels are sustainable by measuring interest payments against earnings of a company. Ideally, earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) should cover net interest by at least three times. For DLX, the ratio of 21.47x suggests that interest is comfortably covered, which means that lenders may be inclined to lend more money to the company, as it is seen as safe in terms of payback. Although DLX’s debt level is towards the higher end of the spectrum, its cash flow coverage seems adequate to meet obligations which means its debt is being efficiently utilised. This may mean this is an optimal capital structure for the business, given that it is also meeting its short-term commitment. This is only a rough assessment of financial health, and I'm sure DLX has company-specific issues impacting its capital structure decisions. I recommend you continue to research Delignit to get a better picture of the small-cap by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for DLX’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor DLX’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is DLX worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether DLX is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
What Are Analysts Saying About Severfield plc's (LON:SFR) Growth? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! On 31 March 2019, Severfield plc (LON:SFR) announced its earnings update. Overall, analysts seem cautiously bearish, as a 7.6% rise in profits is expected in the upcoming year, compared with the higher past 5-year average growth rate of 49%. With trailing-twelve-month net income at current levels of UK£20m, we should see this rise to UK£22m in 2020. In this article, I've outline a few earnings growth rates to give you a sense of the market sentiment for Severfield in the longer term. For those interested in more of an analysis of the company, you canresearch its fundamentals here. See our latest analysis for Severfield The longer term view from the 3 analysts covering SFR is one of positive sentiment. Generally, broker analysts tend to make predictions for up to three years given the lack of visibility beyond this point. I've plotted out each year's earnings expectations and inserted a line of best fit to calculate an annual growth rate from the slope in order to understand the overall trajectory of SFR's earnings growth over these next few years. This results in an annual growth rate of 4.8% based on the most recent earnings level of UK£20m to the final forecast of UK£23m by 2022. This leads to an EPS of £0.077 in the final year of projections relative to the current EPS of £0.067. Margins are currently sitting at 7.3%, which is expected to expand to 7.5% by 2022. Future outlook is only one aspect when you're building an investment case for a stock. For Severfield, there are three key factors you should look at: 1. Financial Health: Does it have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Valuation: What is Severfield worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether Severfield is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Growth Alternatives: Are there other high-growth stocks you could be holding instead of Severfield? Exploreour interactive list of stocks with large growth potentialto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
THIN FILM - CANCELLATION OF PRIVATE PLACEMENT NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN OR THE UNITED STATES OR ANYOTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH THE RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER OF ANY OF THE SECURITIES DESCRIBED HEREIN. Reference is made to the stock exchange release by Thin Film Electronics ASA ("Thin Film" or the "Company") on 17 June 2019 regarding a contemplated private placement targeting to raise up to the NOK equivalent of USD 16 million by issuing new shares in the Company. Based on dialogues with existing and potential new shareholders, the Company has decided not to proceed with the private placement. The Company has decided to pursue other funding options for the Company and its new business strategy. The Company will update shareholders and the market in due course. Contacts: Kevin Barber - Chief Executive Officer (Investors)E-mail:kevin.barber@ThinFilmnfc.comTel: +1 408 503 7306Ole R. Thorsens - Chief Financial Officer (Investors)E-mail:ort@ThinFilmnfc.comTel: +47 918 66 697 This information is subject of the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act. This announcement is distributed by West Corporation on behalf of West Corporation clients.The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.Source: Thin Film Electronics ASA via GlobeNewswireHUG#2246328
Is There An Opportunity With BAE Systems plc's (LON:BA.) 45% Undervaluation? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Does the June share price for BAE Systems plc (LON:BA.) reflect what it's really worth? Today, we will estimate the stock's intrinsic value by taking the foreast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. This is done using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward. Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company's value, and a DCF is just one method. If you want to learn more about discounted cash flow, the rationale behind this calculation can be read in detail in theSimply Wall St analysis model. Check out our latest analysis for BAE Systems We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. To begin with, we have to get estimates of the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years. A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, so we need to discount the sum of these future cash flows to arrive at a present value estimate: [{"": "Levered FCF (\u00a3, Millions)", "2019": "\u00a3913.81", "2020": "\u00a31.14k", "2021": "\u00a31.35k", "2022": "\u00a31.52k", "2023": "\u00a31.83k", "2024": "\u00a32.03k", "2025": "\u00a32.20k", "2026": "\u00a32.34k", "2027": "\u00a32.44k", "2028": "\u00a32.53k"}, {"": "Growth Rate Estimate Source", "2019": "Analyst x8", "2020": "Analyst x12", "2021": "Analyst x6", "2022": "Analyst x4", "2023": "Analyst x2", "2024": "Est @ 11.19%", "2025": "Est @ 8.2%", "2026": "Est @ 6.11%", "2027": "Est @ 4.64%", "2028": "Est @ 3.62%"}, {"": "Present Value (\u00a3, Millions) Discounted @ 8.21%", "2019": "\u00a3844.44", "2020": "\u00a3970.21", "2021": "\u00a31.06k", "2022": "\u00a31.11k", "2023": "\u00a31.23k", "2024": "\u00a31.27k", "2025": "\u00a31.27k", "2026": "\u00a31.24k", "2027": "\u00a31.20k", "2028": "\u00a31.15k"}] Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF)= £11.35b "Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St After calculating the present value of future cash flows in the intial 10-year period, we need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all future cash flows beyond the first stage. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a country's GDP growth. In this case we have used the 10-year government bond rate (1.2%) to estimate future growth. In the same way as with the 10-year 'growth' period, we discount future cash flows to today's value, using a cost of equity of 8.2%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF2029× (1 + g) ÷ (r – g) = UK£2.5b × (1 + 1.2%) ÷ (8.2% – 1.2%) = UK£37b Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= £UK£37b ÷ ( 1 + 8.2%)10= £16.66b The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is £28.01b. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding.This results in an intrinsic value estimate of £8.75. Compared to the current share price of £4.84, the company appears quite good value at a 45% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind. We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at BAE Systems as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 8.2%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.051. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business. Although the valuation of a company is important, it shouldn’t be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. What is the reason for the share price to differ from the intrinsic value? For BAE Systems, I've compiled three additional aspects you should further examine: 1. Financial Health: Does BA. have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Future Earnings: How does BA.'s growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with ourfree analyst growth expectation chart. 3. Other High Quality Alternatives: Are there other high quality stocks you could be holding instead of BA.? Exploreour interactive list of high quality stocksto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every GB stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock justsearch here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Could The Kingfisher plc (LON:KGF) Ownership Structure Tell Us Something Useful? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! If you want to know who really controls Kingfisher plc (LON:KGF), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. Institutions will often hold stock in bigger companies, and we expect to see insiders owning a noticeable percentage of the smaller ones. Companies that used to be publicly owned tend to have lower insider ownership. With a market capitalization of UK£4.4b, Kingfisher is rather large. We'd expect to see institutional investors on the register. Companies of this size are usually well known to retail investors, too. Our analysis of the ownership of the company, below, shows that institutions own shares in the company. We can zoom in on the different ownership groups, to learn more about KGF. See our latest analysis for Kingfisher Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index. Kingfisher already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own 86% of the company. This can indicate that the company has a certain degree of credibility in the investment community. However, it is best to be wary of relying on the supposed validation that comes with institutional investors. They too, get it wrong sometimes. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Kingfisher's earnings history, below. Of course, the future is what really matters. Institutional investors own over 50% of the company, so together than can probably strongly influence board decisions. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Kingfisher. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily. While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it. I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions. Our information suggests that Kingfisher plc insiders own under 1% of the company. It's a big company, so even a small proportional interest can create alignment between the board and shareholders. In this case insiders own UK£1.9m worth of shares. It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checkingif those insiders have been buying. The general public holds a 13% stake in KGF. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders. I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. I always like to check for ahistory of revenue growth. You can too, by accessing this free chart ofhistoric revenue and earnings in thisdetailed graph. If you would prefer discover what analysts are predicting in terms of future growth, do not miss thisfreereport on analyst forecasts. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Asian shares retreat after S&P 500 hits fresh record close BANGKOK (AP) — Shares retreated in Asia on Friday after a broad rally for stocks drove the S&P 500 index to an all-time high as weak manufacturing data from Japan helped dampen investor sentiment. Japan's Nikkei 225 index lost 0.8% to 21,286.49 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong dropped 0.3% to 28,476.75. South Korea's Kospi declined 0.3% to 2,124.73 and in Australia, the S&P ASX 200 declined 0.7% to 6,641.40. India's Sensex lost 0.5%. Shares edged higher in Taiwan and Thailand but fell in Singapore. The Shanghai Composite index added 0.6% to 3,005.36. A preliminary survey of Japanese manufacturers, the IHS Markit flash purchasing managers index showed indicators dropping, with new orders at the lowest level in three years. "A soft patch for automotive demand and subdued client confidence in the wake of U.S.-China trade frictions were often cited by survey respondents," the report said. Wall Street capped a broad rally for stocks Thursday by driving the S&P 500 index to a fresh record, up 0.9% to 2,954.18, a record high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also rose 0.9%, to 26,753.17. The Nasdaq gained 0.8% to 8,051.34 and the Russell 2000 index of smaller companies picked up 0.5% to 1,563.49. Thursday's rally came as investors balanced optimism over the possibility that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in response to a slowing global economy with jitters about the prospects of dimmer corporate profits should a severe slowdown take hold. Those worries prompted traders to shift money into safe-haven assets this week, such as gold and U.S. government bonds. The yield on the 10-year Treasury briefly slid Thursday as low as 1.97% after falling a day earlier to 2.02%. The yield, which is used to set interest rates on mortgages and other loans, is the lowest it's been since November 2016. The price of gold, meanwhile, jumped 3.6%. "If the Fed is going to cut rates it means that the economic environment is slowing down," said Lindsey Bell, investment strategist at CFRA. "You have investors looking to bonds to hide out in. You're also seeing a big move up in gold on the back of the Fed's decision as well." The price of U.S. crude oil fell back early Friday after jumping 5.4% overnight on fears that escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran could cause oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz to be compromised. Iran's Revolutionary Guard said it shot down a U.S. drone over Iranian airspace. U.S. officials said the drone had not violated Iranian airspace. The drone shooting follows an attack last week on two oil tankers near the Gulf of Oman. Crude prices had been in a bear market just weeks ago, what Wall Street calls a drop of 20% or more. Benchmark U.S. crude oil lost 24 cents to $56.85 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, up from its close Thursday of $57.07. Brent crude oil, the international standard, gave up 12 cents to $64.33 per barrel. It rose 4.3% Thursday to close at $64.45 a barrel. The dollar fell to 107.08 Japanese yen from 107.28 yen on Thursday. The euro rose to $1.1296 from $1.1295. ___ AP Business writers Alex Veiga and Damian J. Troise contributed to this report.
Does Coro Energy plc (LON:CORO) Have A High Beta? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! If you're interested in Coro Energy plc (LON:CORO), then you might want to consider its beta (a measure of share price volatility) in order to understand how the stock could impact your portfolio. Modern finance theory considers volatility to be a measure of risk, and there are two main types of price volatility. The first type is company specific volatility. Investors use diversification across uncorrelated stocks to reduce this kind of price volatility across the portfolio. The other type, which cannot be diversified away, is the volatility of the entire market. Every stock in the market is exposed to this volatility, which is linked to the fact that stocks prices are correlated in an efficient market. Some stocks mimic the volatility of the market quite closely, while others demonstrate muted, exagerrated or uncorrelated price movements. Some investors use beta as a measure of how much a certain stock is impacted by market risk (volatility). While we should keep in mind that Warren Buffett has cautioned that 'Volatility is far from synonymous with risk', beta is still a useful factor to consider. To make good use of it you must first know that the beta of the overall market is one. A stock with a beta below one is either less volatile than the market, or more volatile but not corellated with the overall market. In comparison a stock with a beta of over one tends to be move in a similar direction to the market in the long term, but with greater changes in price. View our latest analysis for Coro Energy With a beta of 0.98, (which is quite close to 1) the share price of Coro Energy has historically been about as voltile as the broader market. While history does not always repeat, this may indicate that the stock price will continue to be exposed to market risk, albeit not overly so. Share price volatility is well worth considering, but most long term investors consider the history of revenue and earnings growth to be more important. Take a look at how Coro Energy fares in that regard, below. With a market capitalisation of UK£17m, Coro Energy is a very small company by global standards. It is quite likely to be unknown to most investors. Companies this small are usually more volatile than the market, whether or not that volatility is correlated. Therefore, it's a bit surprising to see that this stock has a beta value so close to the overall market. Coro Energy has a beta value quite close to that of the overall market. That doesn't tell us much on its own, so it is probably worth considering whether the company is growing, if you're looking for stocks that will go up more than the overall market. In order to fully understand whether CORO is a good investment for you, we also need to consider important company-specific fundamentals such as Coro Energy’s financial health and performance track record. I urge you to continue your research by taking a look at the following: 1. Financial Health: Are CORO’s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why we’ve done it for you. Check out ourfinancial health checks here. 2. Past Track Record: Has CORO been consistently performing well irrespective of the ups and downs in the market? Go into more detail in the past performance analysis and take a look atthe free visual representations of CORO's historicalsfor more clarity. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
What You Must Know About Audioboom Group plc's (LON:BOOM) Financial Health Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Small-cap and large-cap companies receive a lot of attention from investors, but mid-cap stocks like Audioboom Group plc (LON:BOOM), with a market cap of UK£2.8b, are often out of the spotlight. However, history shows that overlooked mid-cap companies have performed better on a risk-adjusted manner than the smaller and larger segment of the market. Let’s take a look at BOOM’s debt concentration and assess their financial liquidity to get an idea of their ability to fund strategic acquisitions and grow through cyclical pressures. Remember this is a very top-level look that focuses exclusively on financial health, so I recommend a deeper analysisinto BOOM here. See our latest analysis for Audioboom Group Debt-to-equity ratio standards differ between industries, as some are more capital-intensive than others, meaning they need more capital to carry out core operations. As a rule of thumb, a financially healthy mid-cap should have a ratio less than 40%. For BOOM, the debt-to-equity ratio is zero, meaning that the company has no debt. This means it has been running its business utilising funding from only its equity capital, which is rather impressive. Investors' risk associated with debt is virtually non-existent with BOOM, and the company has plenty of headroom and ability to raise debt should it need to in the future. Since Audioboom Group doesn’t have any debt on its balance sheet, it doesn’t have any solvency issues, which is a term used to describe the company’s ability to meet its long-term obligations. But another important aspect of financial health is liquidity: the company’s ability to meet short-term obligations, including payments to suppliers and employees. Looking at BOOM’s US$4.3m in current liabilities, it appears that the company has been able to meet these commitments with a current assets level of US$5.8m, leading to a 1.34x current account ratio. The current ratio is calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities. Usually, for Interactive Media and Services companies, this is a suitable ratio since there is a bit of a cash buffer without leaving too much capital in a low-return environment. BOOM has no debt in addition to ample cash to cover its near-term liabilities. Its safe operations reduces risk for the company and its investors, but some degree of debt could also boost earnings growth and operational efficiency. I admit this is a fairly basic analysis for BOOM's financial health. Other important fundamentals need to be considered alongside. I suggest you continue to research Audioboom Group to get a better picture of the stock by looking at: 1. Historical Performance: What has BOOM's returns been like over the past? Go into more detail in the past track record analysis and take a look atthe free visual representations of our analysisfor more clarity. 2. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Restaurants could be 1st to get genetically modified salmon NEW YORK (AP) — Inside an Indiana aquafarming complex, thousands of salmon eggs genetically modified to grow faster than normal are hatching into tiny fish. After growing to roughly 10 pounds (4.5 kilograms) in indoor tanks, they could be served in restaurants by late next year. The salmon produced by AquaBounty are the first genetically modified animals approved for human consumption in the U.S. They represent one way companies are pushing to transform the plants and animals we eat, even as consumer advocacy groups call for greater caution. AquaBounty hasn't sold any fish in the U.S. yet, but it says its salmon may first turn up in places like restaurants or university cafeterias, which would decide whether to tell diners that the fish are genetically modified. "It's their customer, not ours," said Sylvia Wulf, AquaBounty's CEO. To produce its fish, Aquabounty injected Atlantic salmon with DNA from other fish species that make them grow to full size in about 18 months, which could be about twice as fast as regular salmon. The company says that's more efficient since less feed is required. The eggs were shipped to the U.S. from the company's Canadian location last month after clearing final regulatory hurdles. As AquaBounty worked through years of government approvals, several grocers including Kroger and Whole Foods responded to a campaign by consumer groups with a vow to not sell the fish. Already, most corn and soy in the U.S. is genetically modified to be more resistant to pests and herbicides. But as genetically modified salmon make their way to dinner plates, the pace of change to the food supply could accelerate. This month, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to simplify regulations for genetically engineered plants and animals. The move comes as companies are turning to a newer gene-editing technology that makes it easier to tinker with plant and animal DNA. That's blurring the lines around what should be considered a genetically modified organism, and how such foods are perceived. In 2015, an Associated Press-GfK poll found two-thirds of Americans supported labeling of genetically modified ingredients on food packages. The following year, Congress directed regulators to establish national standards for disclosing the presence of bioengineered foods. But foods made with the newer gene-editing technique wouldn't necessarily be subject to the regulation, since companies say the resulting plants and animals could theoretically be produced with conventional breeding. And while AquaBounty's salmon was produced with an older technique, it may not always be obvious when people are buying the fish either. Story continues The disclosure regulation will start being implemented next year, but mandatory compliance doesn't start until 2022. And under the rules , companies can provide the disclosures through codes people scan with their phones. The disclosure also would note that products have "bioengineered" ingredients, which advocacy groups say could be confusing. "Nobody uses that term," said Amy van Saun of the Center for Food Safety, who noted "genetically engineered" or "genetically modified" are more common. The center is suing over the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's approval of AquaBounty's salmon, and it is among the groups that asked grocers to pledge they wouldn't sell the fish. The disclosure rules also do not apply to restaurants and similar food service establishments. Greg Jaffe of the Center for Science in the Public Interest noted that AquaBounty's fish will represent a tiny fraction of the U.S. salmon supply, and that many people may not care whether they're eating genetically modified food. Still, he said restaurants could make the information available to customers who ask about it. "The information should not be hidden," Jaffe said. AquaBounty's Wulf noted its salmon has already been sold in Canada, where disclosure is not required. She said the company believes in transparency but questioned why people would want to know whether the fish are genetically modified. "It's identical to Atlantic salmon, with the exception of one gene," she said. ____ Follow Candice Choi at http://www.twitter.com/candicechoi ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. View comments
Intertek Group plc (LON:ITRK): What Can We Expect From This High Growth Stock? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Intertek Group plc's (LON:ITRK) latest earnings update in March 2019 indicated that the business faced a minor headwind with earnings declining from UK£287m to UK£284m, a change of -1.0%. Today I want to provide a brief commentary on how market analysts perceive Intertek Group's earnings growth trajectory over the next couple of years and whether the future looks brighter. Note that I will be looking at net income excluding extraordinary items to get a better understanding of the underlying drivers of earnings. See our latest analysis for Intertek Group Market analysts' prospects for the coming year seems optimistic, with earnings expanding by a robust 12%. This growth seems to continue into the following year with rates reaching double digit 20% compared to today’s earnings, and finally hitting UK£368m by 2022. While it’s helpful to understand the rate of growth each year relative to today’s level, it may be more beneficial to gauge the rate at which the company is growing every year, on average. The pro of this method is that it ignores near term flucuations and accounts for the overarching direction of Intertek Group's earnings trajectory over time, which may be more relevant for long term investors. To compute this rate, I've inserted a line of best fit through the forecasted earnings by market analysts. The slope of this line is the rate of earnings growth, which in this case is 8.4%. This means, we can assume Intertek Group will grow its earnings by 8.4% every year for the next few years. For Intertek Group, I've put together three essential factors you should further research: 1. Financial Health: Does it have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Valuation: What is ITRK worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether ITRK is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Growth Alternatives: Are there other high-growth stocks you could be holding instead of ITRK? Exploreour interactive list of stocks with large growth potentialto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Plot that wounded Ortiz unraveled because of many mistakes SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) Alberto Rodríguez Mota had one job: taking a photo of the man that his crew of hired killers was supposed to fatally shoot at an outdoor cafe, according to Dominican authorities. But the lighting was bad. And the target, an auto-shop owner, was sitting behind a white beverage cooler. In the photo sent to the hit man, he looked like a dark, blurry figure in white pants, the Dominican police chief and attorney-general said. Hours later, on the evening of June 9, the hitman approached a hulking figure in a dark top and white pants and fired a single shot into his back. Instead of killing his intended target, he had wounded David Ortiz, the baseball superstar almost universally adored in his native Dominican Republic and much of the sports-loving world. As the former Red Sox slugger lay on the floor of the Dial Bar and Lounge, the hitman's motorcycle driver skidded in a panic and was grabbed by enraged fans, who beat him bloody before handing him over to police. Within an hour of being put into motion, the plot began to unravel. A series of amateurish mistakes soon led to at least 11 arrests. The hired killers seemed to be incapable of doing anything right, from targeting their victim to covering their tracks. As Ortiz recovers in a Boston hospital, officials say he was the victim not of a bizarre plot against a beloved sports figure but a string of incompetent criminal mishaps that included misidentifying the most famous Dominican in the world, an instantly recognizable 6-foot-3 inch, 250-pound international celebrity. "It's like they left this in the hands of boys," said Daniel Pou, an independent consultant on public security. "Without a doubt, it was amateurish." According to the official account, Mota sat down by himself at the bar in Santo Domingo, ordered a beer and waited. When night fell, he got up, phone in hand, and moved out of view in a video that authorities shared with reporters. That's when officials say he took the blurry picture of Sixto David Fernández, who arrived about two hours before the shooting and requested a table so he could accommodate friends that would soon join him, including Ortiz. As Fernández waited, Rodríguez sat back down and sent the picture to a low-level drug dealer nicknamed Chuky sitting in an overcrowded prison more than 60 miles away. Once Chuky real name José Eduardo Ciprián received the picture on a phone smuggled into prison, he shared it with his top outside contact: Gabriel Pérez Vizcaíno, aka Bone, who then showed it to a small group of mostly young, skinny, tattooed alleged hit men just minutes before the shooting, authorities said. Story continues The picture of Fernández shows him in a black T-shirt sitting at a table with the white cooler blocking the view of his legs. Authorities say the suspects mistakenly assumed he was wearing white pants as they gathered at a nearby gas station. By that time, Ortiz had arrived and taken a seat with his back to the street. He was wearing a black T-shirt, white pants and thick gold jewelry. Shortly afterward, authorities said, the suspected hit man, Rolfy Ferreyra, approached Ortiz from behind, fired and then fled on a motorcycle allegedly driven by Eddy Feliz García. Minutes later, the driver skidded and fell off his bike and was accosted by fans, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press. In the hours that followed, the suspects' demands for payment were refused because they shot the wrong person, according to national police director, Maj. Gen. Ney Aldrin Bautista Almonte. "No, you guys made a mess out of this," he said the suspects were told. In response, the suspects kidnapped Pérez, Chuky's contact outside of prison. They did not release him until Chuky gave them 50,000 Dominican pesos, roughly $1,000. Officials did not say when Pérez was kidnapped, but they noted in documents obtained by the AP that a day after the shooting, he tried to get rid of evidence by selling the iPhone 6 used in the attack. Authorities also recovered the gun, which had been buried in the garden of one of the suspect's home. His mother turned it in, according to court documents. Within three days of the shooting, authorities had detained 10 suspects, all of whom have been ordered to spend one year in preventive prison as the investigation continues. "They made a lot of mistakes," Francisco Domínguez Brito, a former attorney general, said. "This was basically improvised." The arrests have helped authorities in the United States file charges in unrelated cases. On Thursday, the suspected shooter, Ferreyra, was indicted on cocaine and heroin possession charges and also a charge of conspiracy to distribute drugs in New Jersey. He also faces state charges in two armed robberies in 2017. Meanwhile, federal authorities are still looking for the suspected mastermind of the shooting: Victor Hugo Gómez, an associate of Mexico's Gulf Cartel who is wanted on federal charges, including heroin and cocaine possession in an unrelated case in Texas. Dominican officials said he ordered the shooting of his cousin, Fernández, because he believed he ratted on him to local authorities in a 2011 drug case that led to his imprisonment, where he met a friend of Chuky who also is charged in the Ortiz case. Fernández, whom authorities say does not have a criminal background, could not be reached for comment. A person who answered Fernández's phone Thursday said he was not available. View comments
Introducing i-nexus Global (LON:INX), The Stock That Slid 63% In The Last Year Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Even the best stock pickers will make plenty of bad investments. And unfortunately fori-nexus Global plc(LON:INX) shareholders, the stock is a lot lower today than it was a year ago. In that relatively short period, the share price has plunged 63%. We wouldn't rush to judgement on i-nexus Global because we don't have a long term history to look at. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 12% in the last 90 days. We note that the company has reported results fairly recently; and the market is hardly delighted. You can check out the latest numbers inour company report. See our latest analysis for i-nexus Global i-nexus Global isn't a profitable company, so it is unlikely we'll see a strong correlation between its share price and its earnings per share (EPS). Arguably revenue is our next best option. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. That's because it's hard to be confident a company will be sustainable if revenue growth is negligible, and it never makes a profit. In the last year i-nexus Global saw its revenue grow by 8.2%. While that may seem decent it isn't great considering the company is still making a loss. It's likely this muted growth has contributed to the share price decline of 63% in the last year. Like many holders, we really want to see better revenue growth in companies that lose money. When a stock falls hard like this, it can signal an over-reaction. Our preference is to wait for a fundamental improvements before buying, but now could be a good time for some research. You can see how revenue and earnings have changed over time in the image below, (click on the chart to see cashflow). You can see how its balance sheet has strengthened (or weakened) over time in thisfreeinteractive graphic. While i-nexus Global shareholders are down 63% for the year, the market itself is up 2.2%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. The share price decline has continued throughout the most recent three months, down 12%, suggesting an absence of enthusiasm from investors. Basically, most investors should be wary of buying into a poor-performing stock, unless the business itself has clearly improved. Before spending more time on i-nexus Globalit might be wise to click here to see if insiders have been buying or selling shares. If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love thisfreelist of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them). Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on GB exchanges. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
What Type Of Shareholder Owns LXI REIT plc's (LON:LXI)? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! If you want to know who really controls LXI REIT plc (LON:LXI), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. Institutions often own shares in more established companies, while it's not unusual to see insiders own a fair bit of smaller companies. Companies that used to be publicly owned tend to have lower insider ownership. With a market capitalization of UK£656m, LXI REIT is a decent size, so it is probably on the radar of institutional investors. In the chart below below, we can see that institutional investors have bought into the company. Let's delve deeper into each type of owner, to discover more about LXI. Check out our latest analysis for LXI REIT Many institutions measure their performance against an index that approximates the local market. So they usually pay more attention to companies that are included in major indices. As you can see, institutional investors own 63% of LXI REIT. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone, since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. When multiple institutions own a stock, there's always a risk that they are in a 'crowded trade'. When such a trade goes wrong, multiple parties may compete to sell stock fast. This risk is higher in a company without a history of growth. You can see LXI REIT's historic earnings and revenue, below, but keep in mind there's always more to the story. Institutional investors own over 50% of the company, so together than can probably strongly influence board decisions. Hedge funds don't have many shares in LXI REIT. Our information suggests that there isn't any analyst coverage of the stock, so it is probably little known. While the precise definition of an insider can be subjective, almost everyone considers board members to be insiders. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO. Most consider insider ownership a positive because it can indicate the board is well aligned with other shareholders. However, on some occasions too much power is concentrated within this group. Our data suggests that insiders own under 1% of LXI REIT plc in their own names. We do note, however, it is possible insiders have an indirect interest through a private company or other corporate structure. It has a market capitalization of just UK£656m, and the board has only UK£495k worth of shares in their own names. I generally like to see a board more invested. However it might be worth checkingif those insiders have been buying. With a 34% ownership, the general public have some degree of sway over LXI. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run. Our data indicates that Private Companies hold 3.2%, of the company's shares. Private companies may be related parties. Sometimes insiders have an interest in a public company through a holding in a private company, rather than in their own capacity as an individual. While it's hard to draw any broad stroke conclusions, it is worth noting as an area for further research. It's always worth thinking about the different groups who own shares in a company. But to understand LXI REIT better, we need to consider many other factors. Many find it usefulto take an in depth look at how a company has performed in the past. You can accessthisdetailed graphof past earnings, revenue and cash flow. If you would prefer check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss thisfreelist of interesting companies, backed by strong financial data. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Facebook’s Libra may not be available for purchase in India Facebook’s upcoming cryptocurrency Libra may not be available for purchase in India, according to areportfrom The Economic Times (ET) on Thursday. “A person directly in the know,” told the news source that Libra and digital wallet Calibra wouldn’t be available in markets where “cryptocurrencies are banned or Facebook is restricted from operating in.” Last year, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the country’s central bank,bannedany regulated financial entities from dealing with cryptocurrencies. A second person aware of the matter told ET that Facebook “has not filed any application with RBI for its cryptocurrency in India.” India has reportedly alsoproposeda draft bill recently, banning cryptocurrency trading in the country as well as suggesting a 10-year jail sentence for those breaking rules. Facebookunveileda plan for its “low-volatility” cryptocurrency Libra on Tuesday, which is expected to go live sometime next year. Calibra aims to help people send money to each other as easily as they send “a message or a photo” using its messaging apps Whatsapp and Facebook Messenger, and a government-issued ID. Update:Following the publication of this article, a Facebook representative told The Block in a message that "Calibra will be available in all places where FB is available and crypto is legal." As such, Egypt, China, and Cuba, which have banned Facebook, are among some of the nations in which Calibra will not operate.
Why Ibstock plc (LON:IBST) Could Have A Place In Your Portfolio Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Attractive stocks have exceptional fundamentals. In the case of Ibstock plc (LON:IBST), there's is a company with great financial health as well as a a strong track record of performance. Below is a brief commentary on these key aspects. For those interested in digger a bit deeper into my commentary, take a look at thereport on Ibstock here. IBST's strong financial health means that all of its upcoming liability payments are able to be met by its current cash and short-term investment holdings. This implies that IBST manages its cash and cost levels well, which is an important determinant of the company’s health. IBST seems to have put its debt to good use, generating operating cash levels of 0.95x total debt in the most recent year. This is also a good indication as to whether debt is properly covered by the company’s cash flows. For Ibstock, there are three essential factors you should look at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for IBST’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor IBST’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is IBST worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether IBST is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other Attractive Alternatives: Are there other well-rounded stocks you could be holding instead of IBST? Exploreour interactive list of stocks with large potentialto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Why I think Facebook and Libra may be a good thing So now the old guard of the big tech companies have announced their intention to join the new world of blockchain and cryptocurrency. It was only ever a matter of time. But what does this mean for Bitcoin, and the wider blockchain space? There is a huge amount to unpack from the white paper, so I’m not able to breakdown the whole lot, but my view today is that through Libra and Facebook, the words “blockchain” and “cryptocurrency” will start to become more trusted and a more comfortable lexicon for those not currently anywhere near this space – this is a good thing overall for the industry… First let’s get clear on the distinctions between Libra and Bitcoin; Bitcoin is generally viewed as a future store of value, as today it is not a cheap, fast or effective way to send small amounts of money (until a solid layer 2 solution can be implemented at scale), but with a finite supply and a pre-programmed flow of new coins, it’s a deflationary currency – something we’ve not had for a long time. So potentially Bitcoin is good as an investment asset/product, but not really as a medium of exchange or a unit of account. Libra, on the other hand, will be pegged to a basket of government-issued currencies (and bonds?) and will be relatively stable in value, by comparison, meaning that it is still impacted by inflationary pressures inherent to those currencies. Hyperinflation Although purists won’t view Libra as either blockchain or a real cryptocurrency, it definitely has aspects of both. Libra should be viewed as digital money, easily purchased and transacted with, but not a very good store of value (SoV) unless you are in a country suffering from hyperinflation. Libra will benefit from being accessible through Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp and their two billion daily active users. Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp will drive consumer adoption of Libra and when enough consumers have Libra, merchants will follow. Facebook will create both sides of the ecosystem through its sheer size. With a large base of consumers and merchants as its engine, Libra can deliver frictionless payments to friends, family and businesses across (almost) all borders at speed with no transaction costs. Story continues Facebook has managed to bring in some of the biggest brands and companies into the Libra foundation including Visa, Mastercard, Uber and PayPal as well as some big players in the venture capital space. Each member of the foundation pays $10million. The money is used to support the underlying basis for the Libra coin value. Additionally, members of the foundation run the computers (nodes) of the Libra blockchain creating the basis for distributed ledger and decentralised control. This raises questions – and eyebrows – about what those companies might then do with the sensitive financial data they may now be privy to? Facebook has already had to weather the storm of negative press and congressional hearings around how they use data, and whether the public will trust them not to utilise that data for ad targeting – they’ve said they won’t, but the key word is “trust”. Regulators No doubt, Libra’s biggest obstacle to success will be governments around the world, their central banks, and the regulators who want to ensure consumers are protected, and no unfair advantages are given to any entities. It was only a few weeks ago that we saw the SEC move on Kik and their token Kin. Kik promotes the Kin token as a utility, whilst the SEC put forward their interpretation that the Kin token is a security. They believe the Kin token was purchased with a view that investors could hold and make a profit. Unsurprisingly, Kik have come out fighting (they didn’t have much choice though really). If the value of the Libra coin is to be based on the value of a basket of currencies, bonds and other assets, then its value will not be pegged to any single currency. This makes Libra a new unit of account when adoption and utility reach a critical mass. I really can’t see the Federal Reserve rolling over and allowing a new sovereign currency to suck value away from the dollar – effectively the global reserve currency. Suddenly, many of the cypherpunks and crypto-anarchists will be rooting for a multi-billion dollar corporate behemoth and its corporate buddies. As the saying goes, “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” – right? It definitely looks that way today. Positive Libra will have a net positive effect on Bitcoin and the wider Blockchain space, just through the massive PR machine that is Facebook. Facebook has not snatched at this play. They’ve put smart people on it, taken their time, and really considered how best to execute. Facebook knows how to execute, and they’ve seemingly done it every time (from newsfeed updates to smart acquisitions), and the one thing you know they’ll get right is a smooth user experience that your grandma can use – do not underestimate just how important this is. Libra can only be a good thing for awareness. With Libra, Joe Public can start learning “what’s this Bitcoin thing is all about?”. Libra will also make corporates start to consider the role of consortia and decentralisation through utilising blockchain, and what issues that may solve for their respective industries. Ultimately, only time will tell as to how successful Libra coin will be for all parties involved, but right now, I wouldn’t bet against Libra’s success. And I hope that in turn, this will drive greater understanding of Bitcoin, and society’s need for sound money. Jon Walsh Associate Partner Blockchain Rookies Twitter: @walshjonwalsh HOW WE BROKE THE NEWS OF FACEBOOK’S LIBRA PROJECT: https://coinrivet.com/breaking-news-facebook-announces-crypto-launch/ The post Why I think Facebook and Libra may be a good thing appeared first on Coin Rivet .
India likely to let budget deficit rise as tax receipts fall short By Manoj Kumar and Aftab Ahmed NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's government is likely to overshoot the budget deficit target previously set for the current fiscal year, three officials have warned, as a slowing economy creates a big shortfall in tax collections and prompts new stimulus plans. New Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presents her first budget on July 5, for the fiscal year ending March 2020. It is also the first budget of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's second term after his government was returned in a landslide election win last month. Since becoming prime minister in 2014, Modi succeeded in improving public finances, trimming the fiscal deficit to 3.4% of gross domestic product (GDP) from 4.5% in 2013/14, mostly through subsidies cuts and fuel taxes. He is now, however, under pressure to loosen the purse strings to follow through on election promises such as increased spending on roads and housing and tax cuts for companies and individuals. "There is no other option but to defer the fiscal consolidation target as boosting economic growth and reviving private investment is our top priority," a senior finance ministry official involved in the budget discussions, told Reuters. Such a decision would ultimately be made by the prime minister's office after consultation with advisers, he said. That may well mean raising the fiscal deficit target to as much as 3.6% of GDP from an already upwardly revised target of 3.4%, set in February's interim budget, he said. The original goal, set in February 2018, had been 3.3%. India's benchmark 10-year bond yield pushed up by another 3 basis points to 6.87% following the Reuters story, traders said. Yields had closed at 6.79% on Thursday and had been up due to gains in global crude prices. Slipping fiscal discipline would hurt the "credibility" of the budget and in turn hit investment, the bond market and the rupee, analysts say. "If the (fiscal) target does slip by 10 or 20 bps it will be seen as a setback," said A. Prasanna, chief economist at ICICI Securities Primary Dealership in Mumbai. He said bond markets are particularly vulnerable given they still assume the government will maintain the deficit target from February's interim budget due to a higher expected dividend from the central bank's capital reserves. Graphic: India trying hard to curb fiscal deficit interactive https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/editorcharts/INDIA-BUDGET-SPENDING-TAX/0H001PGF26WY/index.html DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES Officials said the main factor behind the expected slippage is a big shortfall in net tax collections that could exceed 1 trillion rupees ($14.36 billion) or about 6% of the initial target set in February's interim budget. That puts the government in a particularly difficult place given recent signs of economic weakness, which has put political pressure on Modi to inject rapid fiscal stimulus. Such measures would include increased infrastructure spending and tax incentives to corporate and individual taxpayers to boost private investments and consumer demand, the officials said. Last Saturday, Modi met state chief ministers and advisers to discuss possible stimulus and ways to grow GDP to $5 trillion by 2024, from about $2.7 trillion in the March quarter.A 3.6% deficit target would free up about 420 billion rupees ($6.03 billion) to cut tax rates or offer new investment sweeteners, another official said. A finance ministry spokesman declined to comment for this story. In pre-budget consultations, economists, government advisers, think-tanks and officials have suggested "sector specific-packages" for small businesses, food processing, electric vehicles, exporters, the tourism industry, farmers and the rural sector, rather than general tax cuts, the first official said. In the last fiscal year, tax revenue slumped more than 11%, forcing the government to cut spending by more than 1.45 trillion rupees in the current fiscal year to meet the 3.4% of GDP deficit target, said an official in the budget division. Graphic: India may miss fiscal deficit target yet again interactive https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/editorcharts/INDIA-BUDGET-FISCAL%20DEFICIT/0H001PGF46X4/index.html Providing a possible boost to overall revenues in the current fiscal year is an increase in the central bank dividend to 1 trillion rupees from 690 billion rupees while the 900 billion rupee in privatisation receipts could be revised upwards slightly, one of the officials said. However, the bigger risk now is that a prolonged slowdown in private investment and consumer demand, as seen in a 20% fall in May auto sales, could erode tax collections even further. These problems could be compounded if a weak monsoon season, with rainfall already well behind schedule, adds to household sector pain. LIMITED SCOPE FOR STIMULUS Business groups have urged the government to consider cutting the corporate tax rate and introducing incentives to boost new investments. They also complain banks have only cut lending rates 10-15 basis points despite the central bank reducing its benchmark rate by 75 basis points this year. Given these constraints, there may be focus on measures that help free up financing to parts of the economy that need it most, particularly small businesses, which account for one-third of GDP. Bank credit to small businesses grew less than 3% in the year to March compared with over 8% for big firms and 17.8% for services like transport and trade. One of the government advisers said there are plans for an additional 300 billion rupees in capital injections to help state banks clean up an estimated $150 billion in bad loans, which would in turn help banks more easily lend. "We believe the fiscal channel in India is more direct and quicker and the Indian financial system is in need of some serious repair," Soumya Kanti Ghosh, chief economist at country's largest bank, State Bank of India said in a note last week. (Additional reporting by Swati Bhat in MUMBAI;Editing by Martin Howell and Sam Holmes)
North Korea has more than sanctions to overcome for foreign investment - report By Josh Smith SEOUL, June 21 (Reuters) - A historic visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping this week may have bolstered Kim Jong Un's hopes that economic relief may be coming soon, but a new report reveals North Korea's road to international investment may be blocked by more than sanctions. While there are no signs that international sanctions imposed on North Korea over its nuclear weapons will be officially lifted soon, researchers at a U.S.-based think tank say North Korea has more fundamental problems to overcome if it wants access to foreign finance. "Although an easing of sanctions imposed on the North because of its nuclear weapons program is necessary, it is not sufficient for the North to gain full access to the global capital market," said a yet-to-be published report by The Korea Society seen by Reuters. "Concentric layers of U.S. and international financial prohibitions, including concerns over money laundering and the integrity of North Korea’s regulatory system, would have to be peeled away," the report said. U.S. President Donald Trump has held out massive economic stimulus as an incentive for North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons. North Korea has rejected the idea of trading its arsenal for money, but leader Kim has embarked on a campaign to jumpstart the country's economy. Xi's visit to Pyongyang on Thursday and Friday raised the prospect of additional economic ties between North Korea and China, but many roadblocks remain. Even if sanctions are eventually eased, North Korea's government still keeps a tight hold on much of the economy. Transparency International ranks North Korea as one of the most corrupt countries in the world, and there are few signs that Kim is moving to substantively loosen Pyongyang's control. "The lack of willingness to reform systemically is a constraint more fundamental than roadblocks posed by U.N. Security Council and U.S. sanctions," the Korea Society report said. Among the necessary steps North Korea must take are to restructure external debt, normalise relations with creditors, engage the International Monetary Fund, join the World Bank and regional development banks, seek technical assistance for capacity building, improve transparency, obtain an international credit rating, and strengthen economic institutions. "Pyongyang’s 'marketisation from below' and ring-fenced infrastructure projects will not be enough," said co-authors Jonathan Corrado and Thomas Byrne, referring to the growth of private markets and North Korea's development in tightly controlled special economic zones. "North Korea will require substantial and sustained amounts of external financing, hence the need for it to establish creditworthiness," they said in an email to Reuters. North Korea may be able to take some tips from Vietnam and Cuba, as well as China and Russia. "In the case of China, within two years of embarking on reform and opening, it had joined the IMF and within ten years, it had gained an international credit rating," the report said. In theory North Korea could make itself more attractive to international lenders and developers, but the process is likely to be "rather convoluted and take some time," said Peter Ward, a Seoul-based analyst who researchers North Korea's economy. "North Korea could, in a hypothetical future in which sanctions are relaxed, become a significant destination for foreign investment," he told Reuters. "To do so, however the government would need to gain the trust of international investors." (Reporting by Josh Smith. Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
With EPS Growth And More, Sulzer (VTX:SUN) Is Interesting Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! It's only natural that many investors, especially those who are new to the game, prefer to buy shares in 'sexy' stocks with a good story, even if those businesses lose money. And in their study titledWho Falls Prey to the Wolf of Wall Street?'Leuz et. al. found that it is 'quite common' for investors to lose money by buying into 'pump and dump' schemes. In contrast to all that, I prefer to spend time on companies likeSulzer(VTX:SUN), which has not only revenues, but also profits. While that doesn't make the shares worth buying at any price, you can't deny that successful capitalism requires profit, eventually. In comparison, loss making companies act like a sponge for capital - but unlike such a sponge they do not always produce something when squeezed. View our latest analysis for Sulzer The market is a voting machine in the short term, but a weighing machine in the long term, so share price follows earnings per share (EPS) eventually. It's no surprise, then, that I like to invest in companies with EPS growth. Impressively, Sulzer has grown EPS by 18% per year, compound, in the last three years. If the company can sustain that sort of growth, we'd expect shareholders to come away winners. Careful consideration of revenue growth and earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margins can help inform a view on the sustainability of the recent profit growth. While we note Sulzer's EBIT margins were flat over the last year, revenue grew by a solid 10% to CHF3.4b. That's a real positive. In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings, and revenue, over time. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart. In investing, as in life, the future matters more than the past. So why not check out thisfreeinteractive visualization of Sulzer'sforecastprofits? I like company leaders to have some skin in the game, so to speak, because it increases alignment of incentives between the people running the business, and its true owners. As a result, I'm encouraged by the fact that insiders own Sulzer shares worth a considerable sum. To be specific, they have CHF12m worth of shares. That's a lot of money, and no small incentive to work hard. Despite being just 0.3% of the company, the value of that investment is enough to show insiders have plenty riding on the venture. For growth investors like me, Sulzer's raw rate of earnings growth is a beacon in the night. Further, the high level of insider buying impresses me, and suggests that I'm not the only one who appreciates the EPS growth. So this is very likely the kind of business that I like to spend time researching, with a view to discerning its true value. Of course, identifying quality businesses is only half the battle; investors need to know whether the stock is undervalued. So you might want to consider thisfreediscounted cashflow valuationof Sulzer. Although Sulzer certainly looks good to me, I would like it more if insiders were buying up shares. If you like to see insider buying, too, then thisfreelist of growing companies that insiders are buying, could be exactly what you're looking for. Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Boasting A 27% Return On Equity, Is Diversified Gas & Oil PLC (LON:DGOC) A Top Quality Stock? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! One of the best investments we can make is in our own knowledge and skill set. With that in mind, this article will work through how we can use Return On Equity (ROE) to better understand a business. To keep the lesson grounded in practicality, we'll use ROE to better understand Diversified Gas & Oil PLC (LON:DGOC). Diversified Gas & Oil has a ROE of 27%, based on the last twelve months. Another way to think of that is that for every £1 worth of equity in the company, it was able to earn £0.27. Check out our latest analysis for Diversified Gas & Oil Theformula for return on equityis: Return on Equity = Net Profit ÷ Shareholders' Equity Or for Diversified Gas & Oil: 27% = US$201m ÷ US$749m (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2018.) Most readers would understand what net profit is, but it’s worth explaining the concept of shareholders’ equity. It is all earnings retained by the company, plus any capital paid in by shareholders. The easiest way to calculate shareholders' equity is to subtract the company's total liabilities from the total assets. Return on Equity measures a company's profitability against the profit it has kept for the business (plus any capital injections). The 'return' is the yearly profit. The higher the ROE, the more profit the company is making. So, all else being equal,a high ROE is better than a low one. Clearly, then, one can use ROE to compare different companies. By comparing a company's ROE with its industry average, we can get a quick measure of how good it is. The limitation of this approach is that some companies are quite different from others, even within the same industry classification. As is clear from the image below, Diversified Gas & Oil has a better ROE than the average (13%) in the Oil and Gas industry. That is a good sign. We think a high ROE, alone, is usually enough to justify further research into a company. For example,I often check if insiders have been buying shares. Most companies need money -- from somewhere -- to grow their profits. That cash can come from issuing shares, retained earnings, or debt. In the case of the first and second options, the ROE will reflect this use of cash, for growth. In the latter case, the debt used for growth will improve returns, but won't affect the total equity. That will make the ROE look better than if no debt was used. Diversified Gas & Oil has a debt to equity ratio of 0.65, which is far from excessive. The combination of modest debt and a very impressive ROE does suggest that the business is high quality. Careful use of debt to boost returns is often very good for shareholders. However, it could reduce the company's ability to take advantage of future opportunities. Return on equity is useful for comparing the quality of different businesses. In my book the highest quality companies have high return on equity, despite low debt. If two companies have around the same level of debt to equity, and one has a higher ROE, I'd generally prefer the one with higher ROE. But when a business is high quality, the market often bids it up to a price that reflects this. The rate at which profits are likely to grow, relative to the expectations of profit growth reflected in the current price, must be considered, too. So I think it may be worth checking thisfreereport on analyst forecasts for the company. But note:Diversified Gas & Oil may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at thisfreelist of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Volatility 101: Should Tekmar Group (LON:TGP) Shares Have Dropped 13%? Want to participate in a short research study ? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! While it may not be enough for some shareholders, we think it is good to see the Tekmar Group plc ( LON:TGP ) share price up 27% in a single quarter. But that doesn't change the fact that the returns over the last year have been less than pleasing. The cold reality is that the stock has dropped 13% in one year, under-performing the market. View our latest analysis for Tekmar Group Because Tekmar Group is loss-making, we think the market is probably more focussed on revenue and revenue growth, at least for now. Shareholders of unprofitable companies usually expect strong revenue growth. That's because fast revenue growth can be easily extrapolated to forecast profits, often of considerable size. In just one year Tekmar Group saw its revenue fall by 15%. That's not what investors generally want to see. Shareholders have seen the share price drop 13% in that time. What would you expect when revenue is falling, and it doesn't make a profit? We think most holders must believe revenue growth will improve, or else costs will decline. Depicted in the graphic below, you'll see revenue and earnings over time. If you want more detail, you can click on the chart itself. AIM:TGP Income Statement, June 21st 2019 Take a more thorough look at Tekmar Group's financial health with this free report on its balance sheet . A Different Perspective While Tekmar Group shareholders are down 13% for the year, the market itself is up 2.2%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. It's great to see a nice little 27% rebound in the last three months. Let's just hope this isn't the widely-feared 'dead cat bounce' (which would indicate further declines to come). You could get a better understanding of Tekmar Group's growth by checking out this more detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow. Story continues We will like Tekmar Group better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying. Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on GB exchanges. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com . This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian stocks slip amid persisting trade angst, political tensions * Asian stock markets: https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4 * Focus shifts to trade, Middle East tensions after Fed euphoria * European stock futures decline in early trade * Gold advances to 6-year high, crude dips after big surge * Dollar struggles, government bonds buoyant post-Fed By Shinichi Saoshiro TOKYO, June 21 (Reuters) - Asian stocks slipped on Friday, as U.S.-Iran tensions and anxieties over Sino-U.S. trade talks left markets in the region struggling to match the euphoria on Wall Street over a possible U.S. interest rate cut next month. Fears of a military confrontation in the Middle East Gulf were raised after Iran shot down a U.S. military drone. The New York Times reported that U.S. President Donald Trump had approved military strikes on Friday against Iran in retaliation, but pulled back from launching the attacks. In early European trade, the pan-region Euro Stoxx 50 futures were down 0.37%, German DAX futures lost 0.46% and Britain's FTSE futures slipped 0.36%. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.15%. The index was still up nearly 4% on the week, during which it brushed its highest level since May 8. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.5%, Australian stocks declined 0.6% and Japan's Nikkei shed 0.8%. Safe haven gold advanced to a six-year high of $1,410.78 an ounce as geo-political tensions and the prospect of lower U.S. interest rates helped boost the precious metal. Gold has soared nearly 5% this week. "Gold has benefited from its safe haven status amid deteriorating macroeconomic outlook," wrote commodity strategist at ANZ. "We believe it will remain a highly relevant portfolio diversifier, as investors seek protection from growing uncertainties around global economic growth and rising geopolitical risks." The S&P 500 hit a record high on Thursday after this week's Federal Reserve meeting boosted expectations that the central bank will cut interest rates as soon as next month to keep the U.S.-China trade war from stalling economic growth. The Fed signalled easing after the conclusion of its policy setting meeting on Wednesday, saying it was ready to battle growing global and domestic economic risks. "There is no doubt that this week's FOMC meeting outcome is positive for the financial markets including those in Asia," said Kota Hirayama, senior emerging market economist at SMBC Nikko Securities in Tokyo. "That said, the FOMC alone won't be able to sustain Asian equities indefinitely until some kind of solution can be worked out for the U.S.-China trade war at the G20, since the region is particularly vulnerable to the conflict." Investors have pinned hopes on some sort of compromise emerging when U.S. President Donald Trump meets China's President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Japan on June 28-29. In currency markets, the prospect of U.S. interest rates being lowered put the dollar squarely on the defensive. The dollar index against a basket of six major currencies fell to a two-week low of 96.495. The index has shed roughly 1% this week. The greenback has fallen 1.35% versus the yen this week and slid to a six-month low of 107.045 yen on Friday. The euro was a touch higher at $1.1297 after popping up to an eight-day high of $1.1317 in the previous session. The single currency was headed for a weekly gain of 0.8%. With the Fed expected to ease policy soon, and with other central banks such as the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan seen following in their wake, government bonds were on a bullish footing. The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield surged in price and its yield fell below 2% for the first time in 2-1/2 years on Thursday. It last stood at 2.004%. The German 10-year bund yield touched a record low of minus 0.329% this week while Japan's 10-year yield fell to a near three-year trough of minus 0.195%. In oil markets, crude prices dipped following the previous day's big rally. U.S. crude oil futures were down 0.35% at $56.87 per barrel after surging more than 5% the previous day after Iran shot down the U.S. military drone, raising fears of supply constraints. (Editing by Sam Holmes & Simon Cameron-Moore)
Why Snapchat doesn’t see Chinese apps like TikTok as real competition in India Snap Inc , which owns the popular multimedia messaging app Snapchat, hired its first Indian employee, Durgesh Kaushik , in April this year . The former Facebook executive’s hiring, as head of market development in the country, is part of the US firm’s plan to expand its reach in the country. In October 2018, Evan Spiegel, the CEO of Snap had said that the company would now want to grow in markets like India and Brazil, following a significant drop in US users. Plant-based meats sound healthy, but they’re still processed foods At 11.15 million, Snapchat’s current Indian user base is far behind rivals like Facebook (300 million) and even recent entrants like the Chinese app TikTok ( 120 million ). To attract more users, Snapchat launched in Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, and Punjabi in April. “Snapchat launched ‘Discover’ (a feature to provide local content across genres including news, cultural and current affairs) last year and is now localising to engage and excite Snapchatters to share content in their own language,” the company had said . Snapchat is also constantly launching filters (tools that can transform users’ selfies with special effects) and music discovery features for its Indian audience. Facebook’s Libra is spurring central banks’ interest in issuing cryptocurrency “We have collaborated with brands like JioSaavn. They can discover new music through their followers,” Kaushik told Quartz. “The app will use Snap’s Creative Kit, which allows developers to build custom stickers, filters, and other links. These can be shared from within the JioSaavn app to the Snap camera.” However, its journey to the top in the country, will not be an easy one given the popularity of TikTok, and Facebook-owned Instagram. Below are edited excerpts from Quartz’s conversation with Kaushik: What is your vision for India? One of the key focus of Snap Inc. will be to build a strong community by engaging with a target audience of high school and college students. Secondly, we will focus on strategic partnerships for localised content. We already have 20 partners who are producing content for us and we are looking to expand these partnerships. At present, the focus is on an India-centric product, for which, Snapchat has launched four different Indian languages on its platform. Story continues Social media companies like Facebook and Twitter have been supporting content in several Indian languages, don’t you think Snapchat is a little late? No. We are not in the content (consumption) game like others. We don’t consider ourselves a social media platform, but a communication platform. We are a camera company focused on visual communication between two people. We are not in the content game like others. A lot has happened in the last few years in the digital space with the focus shifting to providing content and creating large friend networks. We intentionally stayed away from that because we are not a content consumption feed but an interactive platform. Do you consider Chinese apps like TikTok pose serious competition in the Indian market? They are not our competition as these apps have a different purpose. And as mentioned earlier, they serve the need for content consumption. Snapchat, on the other hand, lets you connect with your close friends or a group of selected users. We don’t want to encourage people to connect with billions of people like others do. These networks basically rank and organise content based on the interest of people whom a user is connected with. We stay away from that. For instance, we don’t have a trend of likes and share, our content automatically vanishes after 24 hours. And we intend to continue with this business model. Instagram recently launched a feature where users can share certain updates with just a few close friends. Is Snapchat planning any such features? No, we don’t feel the need for it as we have features like “friendship profile.” To access the same, users can tap on their friend’s Snapchat account, and then they can see all the snaps and messages they have saved for them within the app. Plus, on Snapchat, you can’t connect with a person, unless you have his or her unique user ID. In fact, when a user is recording a snap, the app asks, before posting it, if he or she wants to share it with certain users or send it to all. So, by default, it’s a closed group of friends. Close friends are the ones who matter when it comes to social interaction. We focused on it from the beginning. When you’re sharing on Snapchat, you are just sharing with your close friends. Recently, many instances of data breaches across social media platforms have been reported. How secure is Snapchat and what steps are you taking to strengthen privacy? We are constantly investing in measures to make Snapchat secure and safe. We have an approach which is privacy by design. We don’t let anyone contact you if that person isn’t added to your list. The only way one can share anything with the public is through the “our story” feature, which is also curated and moderated. It’s worth mentioning that it isn’t just algorithms, we moderate our content manually too. Also, we don’t store unnecessary data of our users. We can provide the maximum experience to our users with less and basic data requirement. Sign up for the Quartz Daily Brief , our free daily newsletter with the world’s most important and interesting news. More stories from Quartz: Google and Facebook are circling Africa with huge undersea cables to get millions online The new White House press secretary took on North Korean security for US reporters
Calculating The Intrinsic Value Of Unieuro S.p.A. (BIT:UNIR) Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we'll do a simple run through of a valuation method used to estimate the attractiveness of Unieuro S.p.A. (BIT:UNIR) as an investment opportunity by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to today's value. I will be using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward. Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company's value, and a DCF is just one method. If you want to learn more about discounted cash flow, the rationale behind this calculation can be read in detail in theSimply Wall St analysis model. See our latest analysis for Unieuro We're using the 2-stage growth model, which simply means we take in account two stages of company's growth. In the initial period the company may have a higher growth rate and the second stage is usually assumed to have a stable growth rate. In the first stage we need to estimate the cash flows to the business over the next ten years. Seeing as no analyst estimates of free cash flow are available to us, we have extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the company's last reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years. A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, so we discount the value of these future cash flows to their estimated value in today's dollars: [{"": "Levered FCF (\u20ac, Millions)", "2019": "\u20ac39.75", "2020": "\u20ac37.44", "2021": "\u20ac36.25", "2022": "\u20ac35.77", "2023": "\u20ac35.75", "2024": "\u20ac36.05", "2025": "\u20ac36.58", "2026": "\u20ac37.27", "2027": "\u20ac38.10", "2028": "\u20ac39.02"}, {"": "Growth Rate Estimate Source", "2019": "Est @ -9.53%", "2020": "Est @ -5.79%", "2021": "Est @ -3.17%", "2022": "Est @ -1.34%", "2023": "Est @ -0.06%", "2024": "Est @ 0.84%", "2025": "Est @ 1.47%", "2026": "Est @ 1.91%", "2027": "Est @ 2.22%", "2028": "Est @ 2.43%"}, {"": "Present Value (\u20ac, Millions) Discounted @ 12.04%", "2019": "\u20ac35.47", "2020": "\u20ac29.83", "2021": "\u20ac25.78", "2022": "\u20ac22.70", "2023": "\u20ac20.24", "2024": "\u20ac18.22", "2025": "\u20ac16.50", "2026": "\u20ac15.01", "2027": "\u20ac13.69", "2028": "\u20ac12.52"}] Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF)= €209.95m "Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St The second stage is also known as Terminal Value, this is the business's cash flow after the first stage. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a country's GDP growth. In this case we have used the 10-year government bond rate (2.9%) to estimate future growth. In the same way as with the 10-year 'growth' period, we discount future cash flows to today's value, using a cost of equity of 12%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF2029× (1 + g) ÷ (r – g) = €39m × (1 + 2.9%) ÷ (12% – 2.9%) = €441m Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= €€441m ÷ ( 1 + 12%)10= €141.43m The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is €351.37m. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding.This results in an intrinsic value estimate of €17.57. Compared to the current share price of €14.42, the company appears about fair value at a 18% discount to where the stock price trades currently. The assumptions in any calculation have a big impact on the valuation, so it is better to view this as a rough estimate, not precise down to the last cent. The calculation above is very dependent on two assumptions. The first is the discount rate and the other is the cash flows. You don't have to agree with these inputs, I recommend redoing the calculations yourself and playing with them. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Unieuro as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 12%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.01. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business. Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it shouldn’t be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. For Unieuro, I've put together three pertinent factors you should further research: 1. Financial Health: Does UNIR have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Future Earnings: How does UNIR's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with ourfree analyst growth expectation chart. 3. Other High Quality Alternatives: Are there other high quality stocks you could be holding instead of UNIR? Exploreour interactive list of high quality stocksto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the BIT every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks justsearch here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Are Atos SE's (EPA:ATO) Interest Costs Too High? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Small and large cap stocks are widely popular for a variety of reasons, however, mid-cap companies such as Atos SE (EPA:ATO), with a market cap of €7.8b, often get neglected by retail investors. Despite this, commonly overlooked mid-caps have historically produced better risk-adjusted returns than their small and large-cap counterparts. This article will examine ATO’s financial liquidity and debt levels to get an idea of whether the company can deal with cyclical downturns and maintain funds to accommodate strategic spending for future growth. Note that this information is centred entirely on financial health and is a top-level understanding, so I encourage you to look furtherinto ATO here. Check out our latest analysis for Atos ATO's debt levels surged from €2.0b to €5.4b over the last 12 months , which includes long-term debt. With this growth in debt, ATO's cash and short-term investments stands at €2.5b , ready to be used for running the business. Additionally, ATO has generated €1.1b in operating cash flow during the same period of time, leading to an operating cash to total debt ratio of 21%, indicating that ATO’s current level of operating cash is high enough to cover debt. At the current liabilities level of €7.2b, the company has been able to meet these obligations given the level of current assets of €8.4b, with a current ratio of 1.17x. The current ratio is calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities. Generally, for IT companies, this is a reasonable ratio as there's enough of a cash buffer without holding too much capital in low return investments. With a debt-to-equity ratio of 67%, ATO can be considered as an above-average leveraged company. This is not uncommon for a mid-cap company given that debt tends to be lower-cost and at times, more accessible. We can test if ATO’s debt levels are sustainable by measuring interest payments against earnings of a company. Ideally, earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) should cover net interest by at least three times. For ATO, the ratio of 33.78x suggests that interest is comfortably covered, which means that debtors may be willing to loan the company more money, giving ATO ample headroom to grow its debt facilities. ATO’s high cash coverage means that, although its debt levels are high, the company is able to utilise its borrowings efficiently in order to generate cash flow. Since there is also no concerns around ATO's liquidity needs, this may be its optimal capital structure for the time being. Keep in mind I haven't considered other factors such as how ATO has been performing in the past. I suggest you continue to research Atos to get a better picture of the mid-cap by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for ATO’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor ATO’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is ATO worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether ATO is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
iPhone Maker Hon Hai Names New Chairman to Replace Terry Gou (Bloomberg) -- Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., the largest assembler of Apple Inc.’s iPhones, has named Young Liu its new chairman to replace billionaire founder Terry Gou. Hon Hai said the semiconductor division chief’s appointment takes effect July 1, taking up a post vacated by Gou. The Taiwanese billionaire, who built the company from a maker of TV knobs into a global consumer electronics powerhouse, is stepping down to focus on winning a party nomination to compete in the 2020 Taiwanese presidential elections. Hon Hai’s shares slid more than 1%. Liu takes the helm at a precarious time for the world’s largest contract manufacturer, known also as Foxconn. Escalating U.S.-Chinese tensions are hurting consumer sentiment and raising fears about the impact on Foxconn’s plants, most of which are located in the world’s No. 2 economy. Washington is threatening to hit Beijing with new tariffs on about $300 billion worth of Chinese goods including phones and laptops -- directly affecting Hon Hai’s business with Apple and the world’s biggest electronics brands. And Beijing has shown a growing willingness to retaliate against American names. Gou had long been expected to step back from Foxconn’s day-to-day operations to focus on his political endeavors. He remains a board member and largest shareholder, but formally handed the baton over on Friday during the company’s annual general meeting in Taipei. “I have very complicated feelings,” Liu told reporters after the meeting wrapped. “I will work to maximize the shareholders’ interest.” Read a live blog of Hon Hai’s Friday AGM here (Updates with effective date from the second paragraph.) To contact the reporter on this story: Debby Wu in Taipei at dwu278@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Peter Elstrom at pelstrom@bloomberg.net, Edwin Chan, Colum Murphy For more articles like this, please visit us atbloomberg.com ©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
China-owned SEZ in Cambodia denies transhipping to evade U.S. tariffs By Prak Chan Thul PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - A China-owned special economic zone in Cambodia has denied that its firms have been fined by the United States for transhipping goods from China in a bid to dodge U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs on Chinese imports. U.S. Embassy spokesman Arend Zwartjes told Reuters in an emailed statement on Wednesday that the Department of Homeland Security had inspected and fined a number of companies inside the Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone (SSEZ) for transhipping goods through it to avoid the tariffs. The spokesman did not identify any companies or say how many had been fined for avoiding the tariffs, how large the fines were, or what goods the companies had been exporting. The SSEZ, in a statement posted on its website late on Thursday, denied the allegations and said that an internal investigation had revealed that none of the companies operating in the zone have been fined by the United States. "The results show that 29 enterprises at present in SSEZ with products exporting to the USA have not been investigated or punished by the U.S. customs recently," the SSEZ said. "We deeply regret the damage to the reputation of SSEZ caused by the above false reports," it said. "We have always insisted on the establishment and the administration of parks according to laws and regulations and resolutely oppose any illegal activities". The U.S. embassy spokesman declined to comment on the statement. This month, Vietnam's customs department said it had also found scores of cases of exporters illegally relabeling Chinese goods "Made in Vietnam" in order to avoid tariffs imposed as a result of the U.S.-China trade dispute. China is Cambodia's biggest aid donor and investor, pouring in billions of dollars in development assistance and loans through the Belt and Road initiative, which aims to bolster land and sea links with Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa. (Reporting by Prak Chan Thul; Editing by James Pearson)
Nifty, Sensex post third weekly fall; auto, financials drag BENGALURU (Reuters) - Indian shares settled lower on Friday, marking their third weekly decline, as uncertainty over the U.S.-China trade negotiations and rising oil prices outpaced investor euphoria around the Federal Reserve's rate-cut signals. The broader NSE Nifty closed down 0.91% at 11,724.10, while the benchmark BSE Sensex ended 1.03% lower at 39,194.49. For the week, the Nifty and Sensex closed down 0.78% and 0.68%, respectively. The Nifty auto index was down 1.22% at the closing bell, as the sector battles production cuts and lean demand for passenger vehicles. Sector heavyweights Maruti Suzuki and Hero Motocorp ended 3% and 2.24% weaker, respectively. Earlier in the session, Maruti's shares were among Nifty's top losers after it warned of price increases on one of its top-selling cars, as it copes with new emission norms. Mortgage lender HDFC closed 2.66% down, denting the financial sector, whose index ended 0.85% weaker. Among gainers, ICICI Bank closed 3.1% firmer. (Reporting by Derek Francis in Bengaluru, Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
How Financially Strong Is WPP plc (LON:WPP)? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Investors seeking to preserve capital in a volatile environment might consider large-cap stocks such as WPP plc (LON:WPP) a safer option. Risk-averse investors who are attracted to diversified streams of revenue and strong capital returns tend to seek out these large companies. But, the health of the financials determines whether the company continues to succeed. I will provide an overview of WPP’s financial liquidity and leverage to give you an idea of WPP’s position to take advantage of potential acquisitions or comfortably endure future downturns. Remember this is a very top-level look that focuses exclusively on financial health, so I recommend a deeper analysisinto WPP here. See our latest analysis for WPP Over the past year, WPP has maintained its debt levels at around UK£6.7b including long-term debt. At this stable level of debt, the current cash and short-term investment levels stands at UK£2.6b to keep the business going. On top of this, WPP has generated UK£1.7b in operating cash flow over the same time period, resulting in an operating cash to total debt ratio of 25%, indicating that WPP’s operating cash is sufficient to cover its debt. Looking at WPP’s UK£17b in current liabilities, it appears that the company arguably has a rather low level of current assets relative its obligations, with the current ratio last standing at 0.96x. The current ratio is the number you get when you divide current assets by current liabilities. With a debt-to-equity ratio of 68%, WPP can be considered as an above-average leveraged company. This isn’t uncommon for large companies because interest payments on debt are tax deductible, meaning debt can be a cheaper source of capital than equity. Since large-caps are seen as safer than their smaller constituents, they tend to enjoy lower cost of capital. We can test if WPP’s debt levels are sustainable by measuring interest payments against earnings of a company. Preferably, earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) should be at least three times as large as net interest. For WPP, the ratio of 8.08x suggests that interest is appropriately covered. Large-cap investments like WPP are often believed to be a safe investment due to their ability to pump out ample earnings multiple times its interest payments. Although WPP’s debt level is towards the higher end of the spectrum, its cash flow coverage seems adequate to meet debt obligations which means its debt is being efficiently utilised. Though its low liquidity raises concerns over whether current asset management practices are properly implemented for the large-cap. This is only a rough assessment of financial health, and I'm sure WPP has company-specific issues impacting its capital structure decisions. You should continue to research WPP to get a more holistic view of the stock by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for WPP’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor WPP’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is WPP worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether WPP is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Our Take On Esker SA's (EPA:ALESK) CEO Salary Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! The CEO of Esker SA (EPA:ALESK) is Jean-Michel Bérard. First, this article will compare CEO compensation with compensation at similar sized companies. Then we'll look at a snap shot of the business growth. Third, we'll reflect on the total return to shareholders over three years, as a second measure of business performance. The aim of all this is to consider the appropriateness of CEO pay levels. See our latest analysis for Esker At the time of writing our data says that Esker SA has a market cap of €451m, and is paying total annual CEO compensation of €387k. (This number is for the twelve months until December 2018). That'slessthan last year. While we always look at total compensation first, we note that the salary component is less, at €202k. As part of our analysis we looked at companies in the same jurisdiction, with market capitalizations of €177m to €710m. The median total CEO compensation was €374k. That means Jean-Michel Bérard receives fairly typical remuneration for the CEO of a company that size. While this data point isn't particularly informative alone, it gains more meaning when considered with business performance. You can see a visual representation of the CEO compensation at Esker, below. On average over the last three years, Esker SA has grown earnings per share (EPS) by 4.6% each year (using a line of best fit). It achieved revenue growth of 14% over the last year. I would argue that the modest growth in revenue is a notable positive. And, while modest, the earnings per share growth is noticeable. So while we'd stop just short of calling this a top performer, but we think it is well worth watching. Shareholders might be interested inthisfreevisualization of analyst forecasts. Most shareholders would probably be pleased with Esker SA for providing a total return of 153% over three years. As a result, some may believe the CEO should be paid more than is normal for companies of similar size. Jean-Michel Bérard is paid around the same as most CEOs of similar size companies. While we would like to see improved growth metrics, there is no doubt that the total returns have been great, over the last three years. So we can conclude that on this analysis the CEO compensation seems pretty sound. Whatever your view on compensation, you might want tocheck if insiders are buying or selling Esker shares (free trial). Arguably, business quality is much more important than CEO compensation levels. So check out thisfreelist of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Top 5 Things to Know in the Market on Friday Investing.com - Here are the top five things you need to know in financial markets on Friday, June 21: 1. Stocks pause as U.S.-Iran tensions rise The stock rally that followed the Federal Reserve’s signal of interest rate cuts this year faded on Friday as escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iranhit risk appetite. U.S. President DonaldTrump had approved military strikes against Iranon Friday in retaliation for the downing of a U.S. surveillance drone, but called off the attacks at the last minute, according to a New York Times report. U.S. futures pointed to a lower open after the S&P 500 closed at a record high on Thursday. Dow futures fell 28 points, or 0.1%, by 5:42 AM ET (9:42 GMT), S&P 500 futures dropped 5 points, or 0.2%, while Nasdaq 100 futures traded down 20 points, or 0.3%. Read more:Low Rates And More Risk-Taking May Send The S&P 500 To 3,200- Michael Kramer European stocks also paused for breathwith the pan-European Stoxx 600 slightly lower, pulling back from a weekly gain of nearly 5%. Asian shares were also mostly lower at the close, though China’s Shanghai Composite bucked the general trend, ending 0.5% higher after signs of more liquidity support from the People's Bank of China. 2. Gold pops above $1,400 to 6-year high and runs out of steam Spot gold surged past $1,400 overnight to its highest level since September 2013, reaching a weekly gain of nearly 5% before the rally began to fade in early morning trade on Friday. Gold futures saw a similar price move past the $1,400 level to reach prices not seen July 2014. The yellow metal has primarily benefitted this week from the Fed’s shift to a more dovish outlook which has led to expectations of up to three rate cuts this year and driven the dollar nearly 1% lower. Signs that central banks from Europe, Japan and Australia are also willing to ease policy to support a slowing economic outlook, geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and Iran and the unresolved Sino-U.S. trade dispute have increased the appetite for the safe haven metal. 3. Oil on track for 9% weekly surge U.S. crude oil futures extended gains on Friday, bringing its weekly jump close to 9%, amid escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran that could further tighten supply even as OPEC and its allies plan to extend their production cut agreement at the beginning of July. Signs that central banks are leaning towards policies that will support economic expansion along with hopes that the U.S. and China will move closer towards a trade agreement when the two leaders meet next week at the G20 summit have helped relieve concerns that a global slowdown could negatively impact demand for oil. U.S. crude oil futures gained 12 cents, or 0.2%, to $57.19 by 5:43 AM ET (9:43 GMT), while Brent oil traded up 33 cents, or 0.5%, to $64.78. 4. Global manufacturing strength shows mixed signs ahead of U.S. data Global readings of manufacturing activity showed mixed signs in data released Friday as investors waited for the latest readings from the U.S. Manufacturing activityin Japan underwent a third straight month of contraction. Despite a continuing downturn in the euro zone’smanufacturing sector, the overall reading ofbusiness activity managed to reach a seven-month high. Still, the IHS Markit research showed that companies remained at their least optimistic levels in nearly five years due concerns over slowing global growth and the impact of trade conflicts. Markets will have preliminary readings for June on both the U.S.manufacturingandservices sectorswhen IHS Markit releases its data Friday at 9:45 AM ET (13:45 GMT). The more widely followedmanufacturing reportfrom the Institute of Supply Management will be released on Monday. 5. Exxonand UnitedHealthcapture headlines Exxon (NYSE:XOM) and UnitedHealth (NYSE:UNH) will be on watch during Friday’s session after the Dow components were named in financial news reports. The oil giant’s $53 billion project to boost Iraq’s oil output as part of its expansion in the country has reportedlyhit snags. A combination of contractual wrangling and security concerns, heightened by escalating tensions between Iraq's bigger neighbor Iran and the U.S., has conspired to hold back a deal, Iraqi government officials told Reuters. Separately, the parent of the largest U.S. health insurer, UnitedHealthcare, has agreed to buy health-care payments firm Equian for $3.2 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal. The deal would be the latest in a flurry of mergers and acquisitions in the sector this year that now tops $260 billion in deals, according to Dealogic. -- Reuters contributed to this report. Related Articles Japan ready to pursue flexible fiscal policy to offset economic risks Equity funds suck in biggest inflow in 15 months at $14.4 billion: BAML UK budget deficit widens, underscoring Brexit constraints on next finance minister
Should You Invest In Asturias Retail and Leisure SOCIMI, S.A. (BME:YAST)? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Asturias Retail and Leisure SOCIMI, S.A. is a €168m small-cap, real estate investment trust (REIT) based in Madrid, Spain. REITs are basically a portfolio of income-producing real estate investments, which are owned and operated by management of that trust company. They have to meet certain requirements in order to become a REIT, meaning they should be analyzed a different way. In this commentary, I'll take you through some of the things I look at when assessing YAST. See our latest analysis for Asturias Retail and Leisure SOCIMI A common financial term REIT investors should know is Funds from Operations, or FFO for short, which is a REIT's main source of income from its portfolio of property, such as rent. FFO is a cleaner and more representative figure of how much YAST actually makes from its day-to-day operations, compared to net income, which can be affected by one-off activities or non-cash items such as depreciation. For YAST, its FFO of €11m makes up 71% of its gross profit, which means the majority of its earnings are high-quality and recurring. YAST's financial stability can be gauged by seeing how much its FFO generated each year can cover its total amount of debt. The higher the coverage, the less risky YAST is, broadly speaking, to have debt on its books. The metric I'll be using, FFO-to-debt, also estimates the time it will take for the company to repay its debt with its FFO. With a ratio of 7.4%, the credit rating agency Standard & Poor would consider this as aggressive risk. This would take YAST 13 years to pay off using just operating income, which is a long time, and risk increases with time. But realistically, companies have many levers to pull in order to pay back their debt, beyond operating income alone. Next, interest coverage ratio shows how many times YAST’s earnings can cover its annual interest payments. Usually the ratio is calculated using EBIT, but for REITs, it’s better to use FFO divided by net interest. This is similar to the above concept, but looks at the nearer-term obligations. With an interest coverage ratio of 1.45x, YAST is not generating an appropriate amount of cash from its borrowings. Typically, a ratio of greater than 3x is seen as safe. I also use FFO to look at YAST's valuation relative to other REITs in Spain by using the price-to-FFO metric. This is conceptually the same as the price-to-earnings (PE) ratio, but as previously mentioned, FFO is more suitable. YAST's price-to-FFO is 15.45x, compared to the long-term industry average of 16.5x, meaning that it is fairly valued. Asturias Retail and Leisure SOCIMI can bring diversification into your portfolio due to its unique REIT characteristics. Before you make a decision on the stock today, keep in mind I've only covered one metric in this article, the FFO, which is by no means comprehensive. I'd strongly recommend continuing your research on the following areas I believe are key fundamentals for YAST: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for YAST’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor YAST’s outlook. 2. Valuation: What is YAST worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether YAST is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
BoE's Carney dismisses Johnson trade claim on no-deal Brexit LONDON (Reuters) - Bank of England Governor Mark Carney has dismissed a claim by Boris Johnson, the frontrunner in the race to become prime minister, that Britain can avoid the hit of European Union trade tariffs in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Carney told the BBC that leaving the EU without a transition deal should be a choice taken with "absolute clarity" about what it would mean for Britain's economy, which would sustain both short- and long-term damage. Many companies were not fully ready for such an abrupt shift, he said. Johnson has said that world trade rules include a provision, known as Article 24 of the GATT, that permits trade to continue unchanged between two parties if they so decide. But Carney said such an arrangement applied only when a trade deal was in place or about to be in place. "So... we should be clear that not having an agreement with the European Union would mean that there are tariffs, automatically, because the Europeans have to apply the same rules to us as they apply to everyone else," he said. Carney has previously warned about the economic impact of a no-deal Brexit, prompting anger among Brexit supporters. Johnson and foreign minister Jeremy Hunt, the other contender to replace Theresa May as prime minister, have said they are prepared to take the country out of the EU without a transition deal if necessary. Some 150,000 export businesses had failed so far to complete the paperwork needed to continue to sell to the EU after a no-deal Brexit, and even those businesses that had prepared were not fully ready, Carney told the BBC. Even firms that had built up stocks of imported supplies would run out within weeks in case of major disruption, with particular challenges in sectors such as the car industry. "Business will be reliant on what governments are able to do to keep the ports open, trade flowing," Carney said (Writing by William Schomberg; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and John Stonestreet)
Should We Be Delighted With ISC Fresh Water Investment SOCIMI, S.A.'s (BME:YISC) ROE Of 41%? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! One of the best investments we can make is in our own knowledge and skill set. With that in mind, this article will work through how we can use Return On Equity (ROE) to better understand a business. By way of learning-by-doing, we'll look at ROE to gain a better understanding of ISC Fresh Water Investment SOCIMI, S.A. (BME:YISC). Over the last twelve monthsISC Fresh Water Investment SOCIMI has recorded a ROE of 41%. Another way to think of that is that for every €1 worth of equity in the company, it was able to earn €0.41. View our latest analysis for ISC Fresh Water Investment SOCIMI Theformula for ROEis: Return on Equity = Net Profit ÷ Shareholders' Equity Or for ISC Fresh Water Investment SOCIMI: 41% = €8.9m ÷ €22m (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2018.) It's easy to understand the 'net profit' part of that equation, but 'shareholders' equity' requires further explanation. It is all the money paid into the company from shareholders, plus any earnings retained. Shareholders' equity can be calculated by subtracting the total liabilities of the company from the total assets of the company. Return on Equity measures a company's profitability against the profit it has kept for the business (plus any capital injections). The 'return' is the amount earned after tax over the last twelve months. A higher profit will lead to a higher ROE. So, all else being equal,a high ROE is better than a low one. That means ROE can be used to compare two businesses. One simple way to determine if a company has a good return on equity is to compare it to the average for its industry. Importantly, this is far from a perfect measure, because companies differ significantly within the same industry classification. As is clear from the image below, ISC Fresh Water Investment SOCIMI has a better ROE than the average (5.9%) in the Real Estate industry. That's what I like to see. I usually take a closer look when a company has a better ROE than industry peers. For example,I often check if insiders have been buying shares. Virtually all companies need money to invest in the business, to grow profits. That cash can come from issuing shares, retained earnings, or debt. In the case of the first and second options, the ROE will reflect this use of cash, for growth. In the latter case, the debt used for growth will improve returns, but won't affect the total equity. Thus the use of debt can improve ROE, albeit along with extra risk in the case of stormy weather, metaphorically speaking. It appears that ISC Fresh Water Investment SOCIMI makes extensive use of debt to improve its returns, because it has a relatively high debt to equity ratio of 9.07. So although the company has an impressive ROE, that figure would be a lot lower without the use of debt. Return on equity is a useful indicator of the ability of a business to generate profits and return them to shareholders. In my book the highest quality companies have high return on equity, despite low debt. If two companies have around the same level of debt to equity, and one has a higher ROE, I'd generally prefer the one with higher ROE. But when a business is high quality, the market often bids it up to a price that reflects this. The rate at which profits are likely to grow, relative to the expectations of profit growth reflected in the current price, must be considered, too. Check the past profit growth by ISC Fresh Water Investment SOCIMI by looking at thisvisualization of past earnings, revenue and cash flow. If you would prefer check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss thisfreelist of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
How Does adesso AG (FRA:ADN1) Fare As A Dividend Stock? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we'll take a closer look at adesso AG (FRA:ADN1) from a dividend investor's perspective. Owning a strong business and reinvesting the dividends is widely seen as an attractive way of growing your wealth. If you are hoping to live on your dividends, it's important to be more stringent with your investments than the average punter. Regular readers know we like to apply the same approach to each dividend stock, and we hope you'll find our analysis useful. Investors might not know much about adesso's dividend prospects, even though it has been paying dividends for the last nine years and offers a 0.9% yield. A 0.9% yield is not inspiring, but the longer payment history has some appeal. Some simple analysis can reduce the risk of holding adesso for its dividend, and we'll focus on the most important aspects below. Explore this interactive chart for our latest analysis on adesso! Dividends are typically paid from company earnings. If a company pays more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. As a result, we should always investigate whether a company can afford its dividend, measured as a percentage of a company's net income after tax. In the last year, adesso paid out 21% of its profit as dividends. Given the low payout ratio, it is hard to envision the dividend coming under threat, barring a catastrophe. In addition to comparing dividends against profits, we should inspect whether the company generated enough cash to pay its dividend. adesso paid out a conservative 27% of its free cash flow as dividends last year. It's positive to see that adesso's dividend is covered by both profits and cash flow, since this is generally a sign that the dividend is sustainable, and a lower payout ratio usually suggests a greater margin of safety before the dividend gets cut. Consider gettingour latest analysis on adesso's financial position here. From the perspective of an income investor who wants to earn dividends for many years, there is not much point buying a stock if its dividend is regularly cut or is not reliable. The first recorded dividend for adesso, in the last decade, was nine years ago. The dividend has been quite stable over the past nine years, which is great to see - although we usually like to see the dividend maintained for a decade before giving it full marks, though. During the past nine-year period, the first annual payment was €0.15 in 2010, compared to €0.45 last year. Dividends per share have grown at approximately 13% per year over this time. The dividend has been growing pretty quickly, which could be enough to get us interested even though the dividend history is relatively short. Further research may be warranted. Examining whether the dividend is affordable and stable is important. However, it's also important to assess if earnings per share (EPS) are growing. Over the long term, dividends need to grow at or above the rate of inflation, in order to maintain the recipient's purchasing power. It's good to see adesso has been growing its earnings per share at 35% a year over the past 5 years. Earnings per share have grown rapidly, and the company is retaining a majority of its earnings. We think this is ideal from an investment perspective, if the company is able to reinvest these earnings effectively. To summarise, shareholders should always check that adesso's dividends are affordable, that its dividend payments are relatively stable, and that it has decent prospects for growing its earnings and dividend. It's great to see that adesso is paying out a low percentage of its earnings and cash flow. We were also glad to see it growing earnings, although its dividend history is not as long as we'd like. adesso performs highly under this analysis, although it falls slightly short of our exacting standards. At the right valuation, it could be a solid dividend prospect. Are management backing themselves to deliver performance? Check their shareholdings in adesso inour latest insider ownership analysis. If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at ourcurated list of dividend stocks yielding above 3%. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Los Andes Copper Ltd. Announces Restructuring of Management Team Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 21, 2019) - Los Andes Copper Ltd. (TSXV: LA) ("Los Andes", or the "Company") is pleased to announce the reinforced management team which will be responsible for leading the development phase of the Vizcachitas Project (the "Project"). The Company's Executive Chairman, Mr. Fernando Porcile, has assembled a highly experienced team to successfully deliver the future milestones required to progress the Project towards construction and, subsequently, production. The senior management team consists of: Fernando Porcile - Executive Chairman Manuel Matta - Director of the Vizcachitas Project Antony Amberg - Chief Geologist Jose Tomas Letelier - Director of Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Mr. Antony Amberg will continue to perform functions as CEO. Fernando Porcile, Executive Chairman, commented: "With the successful delivery of the updated Preliminary Economic Assessment that has further validated the scale and value of the Project, the management team is focused on progressing Vizcachitas to a PFS level and preparing the permitting packages for the Project. We believe the team that we have in place holds all the aspects required, and the track record, to achieve our goals of advancing the Project into production. "The extensive knowledge of the industry that Manuel brings, as well as his experience in all phases of design, development, construction and commissioning of large scale mining projects, will be invaluable as we complete the PFS and progress towards construction. "Jose's experience in corporate, government and community affairs, will prove key to Los Andes, especially as we bring together the social and environmental aspects of the Project with the technical and economic considerations for successful development. Jose has a track record in securing the social license for other mining operations throughout the region. "Antony's years as an accomplished geologist, especially his comprehensive knowledge of Andean porphyry formations will be important throughout the PFS stage as well as in proving up the remainder of the district controlled by Los Andes. "I look forward to working closely with this highly proficient team and delivering the successful progression of the Vizcachitas Project." Mr. Manuel Matta Mr. Matta is a Mining Engineer from the University of Chile, with over 30 years of varied mining industry experience, in operations, planning and projects. Mr. Matta joined Rio Algom in the mid 1990s, where he worked with Fernando Porcile through all the development phases of the Spence copper project; from exploration to conceptual engineering, pre-feasibility and feasibility. During this period, he also assisted Mr. Porcile's team in optimizing the throughput of the recently commissioned Cerro Colorado copper mine. Later on, during Fernando Porcile's tenure as President of the Falconbridge Copper Business Unit, Mr. Matta joined Falconbridge as Vice President of Projects and Copper Development, responsible for advancing the company's portfolio of projects, optimizing operations and supporting the project acquisition teams. In this position, Mr. Matta was responsible for the conceptual design and pre-feasibility of the expansion of the Lomas Bayas copper mine (also known as Lomas II or Fortuna de Cobre). He was also responsible for the Pre-Feasibility and early development work of the El Morro copper-gold project. He was then appointed General Manager at Altonorte, the smelter owned by Falconbridge in Chile. Here he directed the capacity optimization (stretch) of the smelter to become the fifth largest in the world (at the time). He also led the construction of a molybdenum trioxide roaster, and an upgrade of the environmental restoration program. From Altonorte, he transferred to the Collahuasi copper mine as COO, during the commissioning of the Rosario deposit (first expansion deposit). He was later responsible for the increase in processing throughput from 95,000 ktpd to 130,000 ktpd. Subsequently he led the development work for the third stage in Collahuasi's expansion. From Collahuasi, Mr. Matta was retained by Las Cenizas, a mid-tier copper producer, where he restructured the company's operations, acquiring new assets, building an SX-EW plant and developing a new mine pit and a paste tailings deposit. After completing the restructuring of Las Cenizas, Mr. Matta worked for Barrick Gold for a year as Vice President of Project Construction. Before joining Los Andes, he had been working in management consultancy, focusing on M&A, asset optimisation, due diligence for major projects worldwide and the development of concentrate treatment technology. Mr. Antony Amberg Mr. Amberg joined Los Andes Copper in 2012 as Chief Geologist and in May 2015 he was appointed as President and CEO. Mr. Amberg is a Qualified Person under NI 43-101. Mr. Amberg is a geologist graduate from the Royal School of Mines, London with an MSc. from University College London and is also a Chartered Geologist with the Geological Society of London. He has over 30 years of diverse experience having worked in Asia, Africa and South America for both multinational and junior companies. Mr. Amberg began his career working with Anglo American in South Africa before moving on to an exploration position with Severin-Southern Sphere. Mr. Amberg then moved to Chile where he first worked with Bema Gold on the Refugio project before taking up a position in with Rio Tinto. At Rio Tinto he was involved in exploration programmes in the Atacama and Magallanes Regions and managed the Barreal Seco (now part of Las Cenizas) exploration programme. In 1996 Mr. Amberg joined Kazakhstan Minerals Corporation in Kazakhstan, setting up and managing offices for the drilling and resource estimation for JORC compliant feasibility studies on three large projects that are now operating mines. He became General Director for two joint ventures in KazMinCo where he managed all technical and local issues. In 2001 he returned to Chile where he started a geological consulting firm specialising in project evaluation and NI 43-101 technical reports. Mr. Amberg's clients included Rio Tinto, Barrick, Codelco, Anglo American, Pan Pacific Copper and various junior mining companies. Mr. Jose Tomas Letelier Mr. Letelier has almost 20 years of experience in the mining industry, primarily working in corporate affairs, sustainability and community relations focused on Latin America. Mr. Letelier was Vice President of External Affairs for South America for Kinross Gold from 2008 to 2018, Vice President of Government Affairs for South America for Barrick from 2006 to 2008 and Vice President of Corporate Affairs and Sustainability for the Americas for Placer Dome from 2002 to 2006. In these roles, Mr. Letelier had responsibilities in countries including Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Peru and USA. During his tenure at Placer Dome and then Barrick, Mr. Letelier negotiated the agreements with the Government of the Dominican Republic for the Pueblo Viejo gold project. These agreements were later approved by vast majority by the country's Congress. On the community side, he led a programme to gain the community's approval, facing several challenges including the relocation of local population from the project site. At Kinross, Mr. Letelier led the social aspects of the permitting process for the Phase Seven expansion of the La Coipa gold mine in Chile. This process included negotiations with several indigenous communities where a voluntary participation process was conducted ahead of the filing of the permit applications. This process resulted in formal agreements with each of the seven indigenous communities involved, paving the road for an expeditious approval of the environmental permits. Earlier in his career, Mr. Letelier worked at the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs for almost 30 years, where he served postings in a number of countries around the world. His last diplomatic posting was as Ambassador of Chile to Canada (1997-2000). Mr. Letelier also worked in the Santiago Head Office of the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs where he worked with various ministers. He represented Chile in several matters including, APEC, the America's Business Forum, negotiations of the area of free trade of the Americas and Binational Commissions. Mr. Letelier graduated from Law School, University of Chile and has a Masters in International Public Policy from the School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University, Washington DC. For more information please contact: Antony J. Amberg, CEO - Chief GeologistTel: +56 2 2954-0450 Aurora Davidson, CFOTel: 604-697-6207 E-Mail:info@losandescopper.comor visit our website at:www.losandescopper.com Los Andes Copper Ltd. is a Canadian company focused on the development of the Vizcachitas Project in Chile. Vizcachitas is one of the largest, advanced copper projects in the Americas held by a major mining company. Los Andes Copper Ltd. is listed on the TSX-V under the ticker: LA. Certain of the information and statements contained herein that are not historical facts, constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of the Securities Act (British Columbia), Securities Act (Ontario) and the Securities Act (Alberta) ("Forward-Looking Information"). Forward-Looking Information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect" and "intend"; statements that an event or result is "due" on or "may", "will", "should", "could", or might" occur or be achieved; and, other similar expressions. More specifically, Forward-Looking Information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such Forward-Looking Information; including, without limitation, the achievement and maintenance of planned production rates, the evolving legal and political policies of Chile, the volatility in the Chilean economy, military unrest or terrorist actions, metal and energy price fluctuations, favourable governmental relations, the availability of financing for activities when required and on acceptable terms, the estimation of mineral resources and reserves, current and future environmental and regulatory requirements, the availability and timely receipt of permits, approvals and licenses, industrial or environmental accidents, equipment breakdowns, availability of and competition for future acquisition opportunities, availability and cost of insurance, labour disputes, land claims, the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates, currency fluctuations, expectations and beliefs of management and other risks and uncertainties, including those described in Management's Discussion and Analysis in the Company's financial statements. Such Forward-Looking Information is based upon the Company's assumptions regarding global and Chilean economic, political and market conditions and the price of metals and energy, and the Company's production. Among the factors that have a direct bearing on the Company's future results of operations and financial conditions are changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, a change in government policies, competition, currency fluctuations and restrictions and technological changes, among other things. Should one or more of any of the aforementioned risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from any conclusions, forecasts or projections described in the Forward-Looking Information. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on Forward-Looking Information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise Forward-Looking Information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. To view the source version of this press release, please visithttps://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/45782
SolGold PLC Announces Constitutional Court Update BISHOPSGATE, LONDON / ACCESSWIRE / June 21, 2019 /Further to the announcements on 30 May and 06 June 2019, SolGold confirms the Ecuadorean Constitutional Court has unanimously and definitively rejected the petition heard on 5 June 2019. With this decision the petition has been closed and the case closed. The Court rejected the petition on the basis of technicalities. The Court did not discuss, or rule on, the merits of the case. The formal resolution of the Court with further detail in to its rejection of the petition is yet to be published. SolGold will provide a further update in due course. As advised in the Company's earlier announcements, Constitutional submissions for a public hearing were received and heard in the Ecuadorean Constitutional Court on 5 June 2019 regarding the validity of the question proposed for a potential referendum regarding mining in the provinces in which SolGold's 85% owned Cascabel project and other wholly owned exploration projects are located. Representatives from a large number of Ecuadorean government bodies, employees, regional community representatives, pro-mining groups, international mining groups as well as members of the community from Cascabel attended the hearing to demonstrate their strong opposition to the proposal. The Court heard arguments from many interested parties with the great majority opposing the proposed question. The Cascabel project is a key project in Ecuador's developing mining industry and a critical driver for the future of Ecuador's economy in the view of the government. SolGold continues to receive full and objective support from the Ecuadorean government, who, most recently, publicly stated that Cascabel has the potential to become one of the world's largest copper, silver and gold mines on 12 June 2019. SolGold is committed to building an integrated explorer, appraiser and miner in the copper industry in Ecuador, and enjoys the support of its major shareholders, including Newcrest and BHP. SolGold is committed to the country's economic development, provides employment and conducts responsible mining in line with local and international laws and standards. SolGold recently announced findings from its Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) for the Alpala deposit at the Cascabel project in Northern Ecuador. The project indicated approximately US$17bn (at US$3.30/lb copper price and US$1,300oz gold price) in taxes, royalties and profit shares to the government and peoples of Ecuador. The Company currently employs approximately 500 Ecuadoreans, and its staff is 97% Ecuadorean. The project will provide substantial and ongoing support for local, and a variety of, Ecuadorean industries and companies, and provide a platform for growth in the GDP of Ecuador. SolGold aims to replicate this project on other locations throughout the country as part of its plan to create a multigenerational company in Ecuador. References to figures and tables relate to the version visible in PDF format by clicking the link below: http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/0060D_1-2019-6-21.pdf CONTACTS [{"Nicholas MatherSolGold Plc (Chief Executive Officer)nmather@solgold.com.au": "Karl SchlobohmSolGold Plc (Company Secretary)kschlobohm@solgold.com.au", "Tel: +61 (0) 7 3303 0665+61 (0) 417 880 448": "Tel: +61 (0) 7 3303 0661"}, {"Nicholas MatherSolGold Plc (Chief Executive Officer)nmather@solgold.com.au": "Anna LeggeSolGold Plc (Corporate Communications)alegge@solgold.com.au", "Tel: +61 (0) 7 3303 0665+61 (0) 417 880 448": "Tel: +44 (0) 20 3823 2131"}, {"Nicholas MatherSolGold Plc (Chief Executive Officer)nmather@solgold.com.au": "Gordon Poole / Nick HennisCamarco (Financial PR / IR)solgold@camarco.co.uk", "Tel: +61 (0) 7 3303 0665+61 (0) 417 880 448": "Tel: +44 (0) 20 3757 4997"}, {"Nicholas MatherSolGold Plc (Chief Executive Officer)nmather@solgold.com.au": "Andrew Chubb / Ingo HofmaierHannam & Partners (Joint Broker and Financial Advisor)solgold@hannam.partners", "Tel: +61 (0) 7 3303 0665+61 (0) 417 880 448": "Tel: +44 (0) 20 7907 8500"}, {"Nicholas MatherSolGold Plc (Chief Executive Officer)nmather@solgold.com.au": "Ross Allister / David McKeownPeel Hunt (Joint Broker and Financial Advisor)solgold@peelhunt.com", "Tel: +61 (0) 7 3303 0665+61 (0) 417 880 448": "Tel: +44 (0)20 7418 8900"}, {"Nicholas MatherSolGold Plc (Chief Executive Officer)nmather@solgold.com.au": "James Kofman / Darren WallaceCormark Securities Inc. (Financial Advisor)dwallace@cormark.com", "Tel: +61 (0) 7 3303 0665+61 (0) 417 880 448": "Tel: +1 416 943 6411"}] Follow us on twitter@SolGold_plc CAUTIONARY NOTICE News releases, presentations and public commentary made by SolGold plc (the "Company") and its Officers may contain certain statements and expressions of belief, expectation or opinion which are forward looking statements, and which relate, inter alia, to interpretations of exploration results to date and the Company's proposed strategy, plans and objectives or to the expectations or intentions of the Company's Directors. Such forward-looking and interpretative statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors beyond the control of the Company that could cause the actual performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from such interpretations and forward-looking statements. Accordingly, the reader should not rely on any interpretations or forward-looking statements; and save as required by the exchange rules of the TSX and LSE or by applicable laws, the Company does not accept any obligation to disseminate any updates or revisions to such interpretations or forward-looking statements. The Company may reinterpret results to date as the status of its assets and projects changes with time expenditure, metals prices and other affecting circumstances. This release may contain "forward‑looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward‑looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements regarding the Company's plans for developing its properties. Generally, forward‑looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Forward‑looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward‑looking information, including but not limited to: transaction risks; general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; future prices of mineral prices; accidents, labour disputes and shortages and other risks of the mining industry. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward‑looking information. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. The Company and its officers do not endorse, or reject or otherwise comment on the conclusions, interpretations or views expressed in press articles or third-party analysis, and where possible aims to circulate all available material on its website. The Company recognises that the term "World Class" is subjective and for the purpose of the Company's projects the Company considers the drilling results at the growing Alpala Porphyry Copper Gold Deposit at its Cascabel Project to represent intersections of a "World Class" deposit. The Company considers that "World Class" deposits are rare, very large, long life, low cost, and are responsible for approximately half of total global metals production. "World Class" deposits are generally accepted as deposits of a size and quality that create multiple expansion opportunities, and have or are likely to demonstrate robust economics that ensure development irrespective of position within the global commodity cycles, or whether or not the deposit has been fully drilled out, or a feasibility study completed. Standards drawn from industry experts (1) Singer and Menzie, 2010; (2) Schodde, 2006; (3) Schodde and Hronsky, 2006; (4) Singer, 1995; (5) Laznicka, 2010) have characterised "World Class" deposits at prevailing commodity prices. The relevant criteria for "World Class" deposits, adjusted to current long run commodity prices, are considered to be those holding or likely to hold more than 5 million tonnes of copper and/or more than 6 million ounces of gold with a modelled net present value of greater than USD 1 Billion. The Company and its external consultants prepared an initial mineral resource estimate at the Cascabel Project in December 2017. Results are summarised inTable Battached. The Mineral Resource Estimate was completed from 53,616m of drilling, approximately 84% of 63,500m metres drilled as of mid-December 2017, the cut-off date for the maiden resource calculation. There remains strong potential for further growth from more recent drilling results, and continue rapid growth of the deposit. Any development or mining potential for the project remains speculative. Drill hole intercepts have been updated to reflect current commodity prices, using a data aggregation method, defined by copper equivalent cut-off grades and reported with up to 10m internal dilution, excluding bridging to a single sample. Copper equivalent grades are calculated using a gold conversion factor of 0.63, determined using an updated copper price of USD3.00/pound and an updated gold price of USD1300/ounce. True widths of down hole intersections are estimated to be approximately 25-70%. On the basis of the drilling results to date and the results of the Alpala Maiden Mineral Resource Estimate, the reference to the Cascabel Project as "World Class" (or "Tier 1") is considered to be appropriate. Examples of global copper and gold discoveries since 2006 that are generally considered to be "World Class" are summarised inTableA. References cited in the text: [{"1.": "2.", "Singer, D.A. and Menzie, W.D., 2010.Quantitative Mineral Resource Assessments: An Integrated Approach. Oxford University Press Inc.": "Schodde, R., 2006.What do we mean by a world class deposit? And why are they special. Presentation. AMEC Conference, Perth."}, {"1.": "3.", "Singer, D.A. and Menzie, W.D., 2010.Quantitative Mineral Resource Assessments: An Integrated Approach. Oxford University Press Inc.": "Schodde, R and Hronsky, J.M.A, 2006.The Role of World-Class Mines in Wealth Creation.Special Publications of the Society of Economic Geologists Volume 12."}, {"1.": "4.", "Singer, D.A. and Menzie, W.D., 2010.Quantitative Mineral Resource Assessments: An Integrated Approach. Oxford University Press Inc.": "Singer, D.A., 1995,World-class base and precious metal deposits-a quantitative analysis: Economic Geology, v. 90, no.1, p. 88-104."}, {"1.": "5.", "Singer, D.A. and Menzie, W.D., 2010.Quantitative Mineral Resource Assessments: An Integrated Approach. Oxford University Press Inc.": "Laznicka, P., 2010.Giant Metallic Deposits: Future Sources of Industrial Metal, Second Edition. Springer-Verlag Heidelberg."}] [{"Deposit Name": "LA COLOSA", "Discovery Year": "2006", "Major Metals": "Au, Cu", "Country": "Colombia", "Current Status": "Feasibility - New Project", "Mining Style": "Open Pit", "Inventory": "1469Mt @ 0.95g/t Au; 14.3Moz Au"}, {"Deposit Name": "LOS SULFATOS", "Discovery Year": "2007", "Major Metals": "Cu, Mo", "Country": "Chile", "Current Status": "Advanced Exploration", "Mining Style": "Underground", "Inventory": "21.2Bt @1.46% Cu & 0.02% Mo; 17.5Mt Cu"}, {"Deposit Name": "BRUCEJACK", "Discovery Year": "2008", "Major Metals": "Au", "Country": "Canada", "Current Status": "Development/Construction", "Mining Style": "Open Pit", "Inventory": "315.6Mt @ 16.1 g/t Au; 8.1Moz Au"}, {"Deposit Name": "KAMOA-KAKULA", "Discovery Year": "2008", "Major Metals": "Cu, Co, Zn", "Country": "Congo (DRC)", "Current Status": "Feasibility - New Project", "Mining Style": "Open Pit & Underground", "Inventory": "41.3Bt @ 2.72% Cu; 36.5 Mt Cu"}, {"Deposit Name": "GOLPU", "Discovery Year": "2009", "Major Metals": "Cu, Au", "Country": "PNG", "Current Status": "Feasibility - New Project", "Mining Style": "Underground", "Inventory": "5820Mt @ 1.0% Cu, 0.70g/t Au; 8.2Mt Cu, 18.5Moz Au"}, {"Deposit Name": "COTE", "Discovery Year": "2010", "Major Metals": "Au, Cu", "Country": "Canada", "Current Status": "Feasibility Study", "Mining Style": "Open Pit", "Inventory": "6289Mt @ 0.90 g/t Au; 8.4Moz Au"}, {"Deposit Name": "HAIYU", "Discovery Year": "2011", "Major Metals": "Au", "Country": "China", "Current Status": "Development/Construction", "Mining Style": "Underground", "Inventory": "715Moz Au"}, {"Deposit Name": "RED HILL-GOLD RUSH", "Discovery Year": "2011", "Major Metals": "Au", "Country": "United States", "Current Status": "Feasibility Study", "Mining Style": "Open Pit & Underground", "Inventory": "847.6Mt @ 4.56 g/t Au; 7.0Moz Au"}, {"Deposit Name": "XILING", "Discovery Year": "2016", "Major Metals": "Au", "Country": "China", "Current Status": "Advanced Exploration", "Mining Style": "Underground", "Inventory": "9383Mt @ 4.52g/t Au; 55.7Moz Au"}, ["Source: after MinEx Consulting, May 20171Source: http://www.mining\u2010technology.com/projects/la\u2010colosa2Source: http://www.angloamerican.com/media/press\u2010releases/20093Source: http://www.pretivm.com/projects/brucejack/overview/4Source: https://www.ivanhoemines.com/projects/kamoa\u2010kakula\u2010project/5Source:http://www.newcrest.com.au/media/resource_reserves/2016/December_2016_Resources_and_Reserves_Statement.pdf6Source: http://www.canadianminingjournal.com/news/gold\u2010iamgold\u2010files\u2010cote\u2010project\u2010pea/7Source: http://www.zhaojin.com.cn/upload/2015\u201005\u201031/580601981.pdf8Source: https://mrdata.usgs.gov/sedau/show\u2010sedau.php?rec_id=1039Source: http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/business/2017\u201003/29/content_28719822.htm"]] Table A: Tier 1 global copper and gold discoveries since 2006. This table does not purport to be exhaustive exclusive or definitive. [["Cu (%)", "Au (g/t)", "CuEq (%)", "Cu (Mt)", "Au (Moz)", "CuEq (Mt)"], ["Total >0.2% CuEq", "Indicated", "2,050", "0.41", "0.29", "0.60", "8.4", "19.4", "12.2"], ["Inferred", "900", "0.27", "0.13", "0.35", "2.5", "3.8", "3.2"]] Table B:Alpala Mineral Resource Estimate updated effective 16 November 2018. Notes: [{"\u2022": "\u2022", "Mr. Martin Pittuck, MSc, CEng, MIMMM, is responsible for this Mineral Resource estimate and is an \"independent qualified person\" as such term is defined in NI 43-101.": "The Mineral Resource is reported using a cut-off grade of 0.3% copper equivalent calculated using [copper grade (%)] + [gold grade (g/t) x 0.6] based on a copper price of US$2.8/lb and gold price of US$1,160/oz."}, {"\u2022": "\u2022", "Mr. Martin Pittuck, MSc, CEng, MIMMM, is responsible for this Mineral Resource estimate and is an \"independent qualified person\" as such term is defined in NI 43-101.": "The Mineral Resource is considered to have reasonable potential for eventual economic extraction by underground mass mining such as block caving."}, {"\u2022": "\u2022", "Mr. Martin Pittuck, MSc, CEng, MIMMM, is responsible for this Mineral Resource estimate and is an \"independent qualified person\" as such term is defined in NI 43-101.": "Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability."}, {"\u2022": "\u2022", "Mr. Martin Pittuck, MSc, CEng, MIMMM, is responsible for this Mineral Resource estimate and is an \"independent qualified person\" as such term is defined in NI 43-101.": "The statement uses the terminology, definitions and guidelines given in the CIM Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (May 2014)."}, {"\u2022": "\u2022", "Mr. Martin Pittuck, MSc, CEng, MIMMM, is responsible for this Mineral Resource estimate and is an \"independent qualified person\" as such term is defined in NI 43-101.": "The MRE is reported on 100 percent basis."}, {"\u2022": "\u2022", "Mr. Martin Pittuck, MSc, CEng, MIMMM, is responsible for this Mineral Resource estimate and is an \"independent qualified person\" as such term is defined in NI 43-101.": "Values given in the table have been rounded, apparent calculation errors resulting from this are not considered to be material."}, {"\u2022": "\u2022", "Mr. Martin Pittuck, MSc, CEng, MIMMM, is responsible for this Mineral Resource estimate and is an \"independent qualified person\" as such term is defined in NI 43-101.": "The effective date for the Mineral Resource statement is 16 November 2018."}] This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contactrns@lseg.comor visitwww.rns.com. SOURCE:SolGold PLC View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/549434/SolGold-PLC-Announces-Constitutional-Court-Update
Addtech AB (publ.) (STO:ADDT B): Poised For Long-Term Success? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Addtech AB (publ.)'s (STO:ADDT B) announced its latest earnings update in May 2019, which suggested that the business experienced a robust tailwind, eventuating to a double-digit earnings growth of 28%. Below, I've laid out key growth figures on how market analysts perceive Addtech AB (publ.)'s earnings growth trajectory over the next couple of years and whether the future looks even brighter than the past. Note that I will be looking at net income excluding extraordinary items to get a better understanding of the underlying drivers of earnings. View our latest analysis for Addtech AB (publ.) Analysts' outlook for the coming year seems positive, with earnings rising by a robust 16%. This growth seems to continue into the following year with rates arriving at double digit 25% compared to today’s earnings, and finally hitting kr903m by 2022. Even though it is helpful to understand the growth rate year by year relative to today’s level, it may be more beneficial to estimate the rate at which the earnings are moving on average every year. The advantage of this approach is that it ignores near term flucuations and accounts for the overarching direction of Addtech AB (publ.)'s earnings trajectory over time, which may be more relevant for long term investors. To calculate this rate, I've appended a line of best fit through analyst consensus of forecasted earnings. The slope of this line is the rate of earnings growth, which in this case is 10%. This means that, we can assume Addtech AB (publ.) will grow its earnings by 10% every year for the next couple of years. For Addtech AB (publ.), I've compiled three relevant aspects you should further research: 1. Financial Health: Does it have a healthy balance sheet? Take a look at ourfree balance sheet analysis with six simple checkson key factors like leverage and risk. 2. Valuation: What is ADDT B worth today? Is the stock undervalued, even when its growth outlook is factored into its intrinsic value? Theintrinsic value infographic in our free research reporthelps visualize whether ADDT B is currently mispriced by the market. 3. Other High-Growth Alternatives: Are there other high-growth stocks you could be holding instead of ADDT B? Exploreour interactive list of stocks with large growth potentialto get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Exclusive: Exxon's $53 billion Iraq deal hit by contract snags, Iran tensions - sources By Aref Mohammed and Ahmed Rasheed BASRA, Iraq/BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Just weeks ago, U.S. energy giant ExxonMobil looked poised to move ahead with a $53 billion project to boost Iraq's oil output at its southern fields, a milestone in the company's ambitions to expand in the country. But now a combination of contractual wrangling and security concerns, heightened by escalating tensions between Iraq's bigger neighbour Iran and the United States, has conspired to hold back a deal, according to Iraqi government officials. The negotiations have been stymied by terms of the contract that Baghdad objects to, said four Iraqi officials involved in the discussions who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter. The main sticking point, they said, was the means by which Exxon proposed to recoup its development costs, with the company aiming to share the oil produced by two fields - something Iraq opposes, saying it encroaches on state ownership of production. One of the Iraqi negotiators said Baghdad would not sign anything with the current terms proposed by Exxon. ExxonMobil declined to comment on the terms of the contract or the negotiations, with a spokeswoman in Texas saying: "As a matter of practice, we don't comment on commercial discussions." The deputy oil minister for upstream affairs, Fayadh Nema, said on Wednesday that talks were ongoing and he expected a deal soon. The negotiations have also been held up by two separate evacuations of Exxon staff from Iraq, a result of escalating regional tension between the United States and Iran. The first was in May after hundreds of U.S. embassy staff were sent home over unspecified security threats from Iran, which backs a number of Shi'ite armed groups in Iraq. The second was this week following a rocket attack thought to have targeted the company which local officials blamed on Iran-backed militias. Tehran has not commented on the attacks, but the evacuations highlighted the persistent instability in Iraq that is hindering business, fuelled by the U.S.-Iran tensions. Iraq is one of the only nations in the world to have friendly relations with both Washington and Tehran; the arch-enemies are its two biggest allies and Baghdad is caught in the middle as they vie for influence in the country. Many Iraqi officials say the stalling of talks with Exxon and disruptions to its staffing point to the limits of American power in Iran's smaller neighbour, and that U.S.-Iran tensions have led to a series of security incidents including unclaimed attacks on oil tankers in the Gulf. "Exxon pulled its staff from Iraq in response to regional unrest. The question is how they will run a $53 billion project with constant regional instability," said an Iraqi oil official who oversees foreign companies' operations in the south. "They might abandon work again and that will hurt our energy sector." CONTRACT WRANGLES Iraq is the second-largest oil exporter in OPEC and has long-term aims to boost output curtailed by decades of war and sanctions. Such projects are among the most valuable prizes in the world for international oil companies. An initial agreement would be a boost for Exxon's plans to expand in Iraq. Under the deal, it would build a water treatment facility and pipelines needed to boost oil output capacity. It would also get the rights to develop at least two southern oilfields - Nahr Bin Umar and Artawi. In May, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo discussed the deal with Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi twice in three days, during a telephone call and a surprise visit to Baghdad, a separate Iraqi government official told Reuters. Mahdi said last month that Iraq was close to signing the $53 billion, 30-year energy agreement with project leader Exxon and its partner for the deal, PetroChina. But the officials who shared details with Reuters over the proposals from the American oil major said there were differences between the two parties that could prevent even a preliminary agreement anytime soon. Exxon has proposed a production-sharing agreement whereby it recoups its development costs by sharing the output of the Nahr Bin Umar and Artawi fields with the government. However Iraq has largely opposed such contracts and over the past decade has favoured so-called service contracts where companies are paid at a fixed dollar-per-barrel rate. "We told them that we totally reject any production-sharing mechanism as it contradicts government energy policy," said an official who is part of the negotiating team. The official added it was too early to say what kind of contract Iraq would favour. The country has also in the past struck infrastructure deals with investment contracts where companies take a slice of profits. Another official involved in the talks said Exxon's production-sharing model included a proposal to sell some Iraqi crude itself, rather then through the state oil marketer SOMO, a plan the government strongly rejected. POLARISING OIL DEAL Relations between Washington and Tehran have deteriorated since U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew last year from a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers agreed by his predecessor Barack Obama, and reimposed and extended sanctions. The complications facing the Exxon deal have come against the backdrop of a rapid escalation in recent weeks, with Tehran rejecting accusations by Washington it was behind attacks on oil tankers and facilities in the Gulf. Tensions reached further heights this week when Iran shot down a U.S. military drone that it said was on a spy mission over its territory, an incident that fanned fears of wider military conflict in the Middle East. Trump said on Thursday that Iran had made "a very big mistake". In a sign of the frustrations felt by Baghdad, Iraqi Oil Minister Thamer Ghadhban said in May that Exxon's decision to evacuate all its foreign staff from the country then was "unacceptable and unjustified". He said it was a political move rather than a genuine security precaution, without elaborating, and that it had hampered the dealmaking. "Now they are out of the country, why should I run after them?" he said at the time. Exxon did not comment on Ghadhban's characterisation of its temporary evacuation of Basra staff as "political". The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether U.S. Iran policy might have affected the deal. The tussle for influence in Iraq between Washington and Tehran is reflected in Iraqi politics, with the proposed $53 billion deal a polarising issue. Basma Baseem, an Iraqi lawmaker and a member of the parliament energy committee said Iraq should push forward with the deal with Exxon to help Iraq develop its energy sector. "It's a major company with billions of dollar of assets and investments across the world and a cutting-edge expertise in the oil industry," she added. "Iraq can benefit significantly from this large deal." However politicians from Iran-aligned Shi'ite Muslim parties portray the deal as extortion, calling it "a new occupation" by the United States. "The government is under a lot of pressure from the Americans to sign long-term energy and power deals," said lawmaker Kareem Alewi of the Iranian-backed Badr Organization, one of the Iraqi parliament's two biggest groupings. "This is a trick to control our economy." (Reporting by Aref Mohammed and Ahmed Rasheed; Additional reporting by Gary McWilliams in Houston and Timothy Gardner in Washington; Editing by John Davison and Pravin Char)
What Kind Of Shareholder Owns Most Pixium Vision SA (EPA:PIX) Stock? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! A look at the shareholders of Pixium Vision SA (EPA:PIX) can tell us which group is most powerful. Institutions will often hold stock in bigger companies, and we expect to see insiders owning a noticeable percentage of the smaller ones. Companies that used to be publicly owned tend to have lower insider ownership. Pixium Vision is not a large company by global standards. It has a market capitalization of €32m, which means it wouldn't have the attention of many institutional investors. Our analysis of the ownership of the company, below, shows that institutions are noticeable on the share registry. We can zoom in on the different ownership groups, to learn more about PIX. See our latest analysis for Pixium Vision Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index. Pixium Vision already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own 9.8% of the company. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of Pixium Vision, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Pixium Vision. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily. The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Management ultimately answers to the board. However, it is not uncommon for managers to be executive board members, especially if they are a founder or the CEO. Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances. Our data suggests that insiders own under 1% of Pixium Vision SA in their own names. It has a market capitalization of just €32m, and the board has only €205k worth of shares in their own names. I generally like to see a board more invested. However it might be worth checkingif those insiders have been buying. The general public holds a 46% stake in PIX. While this group can't necessarily call the shots, it can certainly have a real influence on how the company is run. With a stake of 43%, private equity firms could influence the PIX board. Some might like this, because private equity are sometimes activists who hold management accountable. But other times, private equity is selling out, having taking the company public. While it is well worth considering the different groups that own a company, there are other factors that are even more important. Many find it usefulto take an in depth look at how a company has performed in the past. You can accessthisdetailed graphof past earnings, revenue and cash flow. If you are like me, you may want to think about whether this company will grow or shrink. Luckily, you can checkthis free report showing analyst forecasts for its future. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Imagine Owning A.S. Création Tapeten (FRA:ACWN) While The Price Tanked 56% Want to participate in a short research study ? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! A.S. Création Tapeten AG ( FRA:ACWN ) shareholders will doubtless be very grateful to see the share price up 34% in the last quarter. But that is little comfort to those holding over the last half decade, sitting on a big loss. The share price has failed to impress anyone , down a sizable 56% during that time. Some might say the recent bounce is to be expected after such a bad drop. Of course, this could be the start of a turnaround. Check out our latest analysis for A.S. Création Tapeten Given that A.S. Création Tapeten didn't make a profit in the last twelve months, we'll focus on revenue growth to form a quick view of its business development. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. That's because it's hard to be confident a company will be sustainable if revenue growth is negligible, and it never makes a profit. Over half a decade A.S. Création Tapeten reduced its trailing twelve month revenue by 8.4% for each year. While far from catastrophic that is not good. The share price decline of 15% compound, over five years, is understandable given the company is losing money, and revenue is moving in the wrong direction. We don't think anyone is rushing to buy this stock. Ultimately, it may be worth watching - should revenue pick up, the share price might follow. You can see how revenue and earnings have changed over time in the image below, (click on the chart to see cashflow). DB:ACWN Income Statement, June 21st 2019 Take a more thorough look at A.S. Création Tapeten's financial health with this free report on its balance sheet . A Dividend Lost The share price return figures discussed above don't include the value of dividends paid previously, but the total shareholder return (TSR) does. By accounting for the value of dividends paid, the TSR can be seen as a more complete measure of the value a company brings to its shareholders. Over the last 5 years, A.S. Création Tapeten generated a TSR of -53%, which is, of course, better than the share price return. Although the company had to cut dividends, it has paid cash to shareholders in the past. Story continues A Different Perspective While the broader market lost about 3.9% in the twelve months, A.S. Création Tapeten shareholders did even worse, losing 21%. Having said that, it's inevitable that some stocks will be oversold in a falling market. The key is to keep your eyes on the fundamental developments. Unfortunately, last year's performance may indicate unresolved challenges, given that it was worse than the annualised loss of 14% over the last half decade. Generally speaking long term share price weakness can be a bad sign, though contrarian investors might want to research the stock in hope of a turnaround. You could get a better understanding of A.S. Création Tapeten's growth by checking out this more detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow. We will like A.S. Création Tapeten better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying. Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on DE exchanges. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com . This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
If You Had Bought Rosetti Marino (BIT:YRM) Stock Three Years Ago, You Could Pocket A 12% Gain Today Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! By buying an index fund, you can roughly match the market return with ease. But if you buy good businesses at attractive prices, your portfolio returns could exceed the average market return. For example,Rosetti Marino SpA(BIT:YRM) shareholders have seen the share price rise 12% over three years, well in excess of the market return (6.1%, not including dividends). On the other hand, the returns haven't been quite so good recently, with shareholders up just 5.0%, including dividends. Check out our latest analysis for Rosetti Marino To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. One imperfect but simple way to consider how the market perception of a company has shifted is to compare the change in the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price movement. Rosetti Marino became profitable within the last three years. That would generally be considered a positive, so we'd expect the share price to be up. The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers). We know that Rosetti Marino has improved its bottom line over the last three years, but what does the future have in store? It might be well worthwhile taking a look at ourfreereport on how its financial position has changed over time. It's important to keep in mind that we've been talking about the share price returns, which don't include dividends, while the total shareholder return does. Many would argue the TSR gives a more complete picture of the value a stock brings to its holders. Rosetti Marino's TSR over the last 3 years is 17%; better than its share price return. Although the company had to cut dividends, it has paid cash to shareholders in the past. It's nice to see that Rosetti Marino shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 5.0% over the last year. That gain is better than the annual TSR over five years, which is 2.6%. Therefore it seems like sentiment around the company has been positive lately. In the best case scenario, this may hint at some real business momentum, implying that now could be a great time to delve deeper. Before forming an opinion on Rosetti Marino you might want to consider these3 valuation metrics. For those who like to findwinning investmentsthisfreelist of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket. Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on IT exchanges. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Dollars in the detail: banks pan for gold in 'data lakes' By Iain Withers and Lawrence White LONDON (Reuters) - From sending special offers on restaurants to burger-loving current account holders to selling anonymized credit card records, banks are racing to monetize the huge troves of data they hold. Wall Street trails Silicon Valley in using customer information to boost revenue but with tech giants such as Amazon and Google wading onto their turf with forays into lending and payments, banks including JPMorgan, HSBC and Barclays are moving to narrow the gap. Mining mountains of trading data to predict stock moves; partnering with retailers on marketing campaigns and using artificial intelligence (AI) tools to try and speed up credit decisions are some of the areas banks are focusing on. In the digital era, knowing how much people earn, where they spend it and what they buy – information some wouldn't divulge to their closest confidants – is valuable, particularly when banks' earnings from lending and trading are under pressure from persistently low interest rates and tougher regulation. "We are now seeing some amazing uses of data in banking, and the reason is pretty simple: they know their clients better than anyone, they have a name and address, information about what you're buying and once you have those you can do so much," said Craig Macdonald, head of data monetization at Accenture. The surge in data mining is happening against a changed regulatory backdrop. New European Union (EU) rules introduced last year allow technology companies to access banks' customer data if they have customers' permission. The EU has also toughened its privacy laws. Companies now have to get permission before they can collect and use personal information gleaned online from people living in the bloc. But even with the extra protections, sensitive data is still at risk of being exploited because many people are not aware of how they can shield themselves. Less than a third of Europeans were aware of all their data rights and only 13 percent said they read privacy statements fully, according to a poll this year of 27,000 EU citizens. Banks do not disclose how much they earn from analyzing and marketing customer data or other ways in which they monetize the information they hold. But, in comparison to the billions earned from lending and trading, the amounts generated are likely to be small. "If there was a gold mine people would probably have found it by now," said Benjamin Ensor, an analyst at Forrester. "But if you can generate some marginal incremental revenue at relatively little cost why wouldn't you do that?" CUSTOMER 12345 Tie-ups with retail firms is one way banks are monetizing their data. Customers of Britain's Lloyds and Spain's Santander can get special offers from a range of retailers after the banks joined a digital loyalty scheme run by US-based data advertising firm Cardlytics. The scheme uses spending data to give customers discounts at shops they already frequent or which are in their neighborhood. So, burger-aficionados get deals at local burger restaurants and fashion fans get ads about discounts at clothing stores. The banks get a percentage of the fee charged by Cardlytics for running the campaign. Cardlytics gets insights on consumer behavior which help the retailers tailor and fund the offers and discounts. Cardlytics, Lloyds and Santander declined to comment on what percentage of the fee banks get. "We leverage transaction data that's created every time the card is tapped, every time a direct debit is made by a customer, in an anonymized way," said Campbell Shaw, London-based head of bank partnerships at Cardlytics. "We only need to know it’s customer 12345, we don't need to know the name of the customer for any reason." Bank clients have to enroll in the rewards program. A spokesman for Santander said their customer spending data was only shared with Cardlytics if customers choose to receive retail offers. The bank said the information was shared on an anonymized basis meaning the customer's name is replaced by a unique identifying number. Lloyds declined to comment on the specifics of the deal. Its privacy policy said the scheme would use customers' mobile location data only with their permission. Even with the tougher regulations around big data, privacy experts warn there is still scope for abuse, for example, if highly-indebted people are targeted with unsuitable offers for high interest loans or credit cards. "If you can use data to get a customer to buy something that they otherwise wouldn't, it's good for the bank but not necessarily for the customer and the potential for misuse is significant," said Paul Bernal, an expert in data privacy at University of East Anglia. Ashok Vaswani, global head of consumer and payments at Barclays, told attendees at AI conference CogX in London this month that the bank would crunch data in an ethical way. "We're going to do it in a transparent and understandable fashion," he said. "If I can't explain it [to a customer] I'm not going to offer it." Like many banks, Barclays markets anonymized spending data to a range of businesses including mall operators who can see from the information which retail chains attract the most customers and are therefore worth targeting as tenants. Barclays said it doesn't share personally identifiable information and it sends privacy notices to customers through a combination of email, text, post and via mobile apps. It also has a page on its website explaining its data privacy policy. DATA LAKES Using data to improve risk analysis, make faster credit decisions and anticipate customer needs is particularly appealing for banks looking to cut costs. HSBC plans to use AI tools to rake through its 10 petabytes of data – roughly equivalent to the storage capacity of 2 million DVDs – from investment banking clients in 66 countries. Europe's largest bank has struck a deal with Element AI, a Canadian company, to help it tap this so-called ‘data lake'. JPMorgan, meanwhile, is developing a raft of AI applications to better predict stock moves and to map and mine 3 billion transactions it handles annually. The bank hired Manuela Veloso, the head of the machine learning department at Carnegie Mellon University, to be its head of AI research last year. In comparison to newer, tech-focused companies, banks are often at a disadvantage when they look to extract value from their data – they lack inhouse experts and their businesses are often siloed with legacy IT systems. To speed things up, lenders are set to spend $26 billion on big data and business analytics this year, according to analysis by International Data Corporation, up from $23 billion last year and $19.7 billion in 2017. Hires for senior leaders with digital experience at financial firms have doubled year on year for the last five years, according to London-based headhunters Heidrick & Struggles. “These skills are now a necessity within senior leadership teams," says Marcus De Luca, UK financial services practice leader at the recruiter. “We are often asked if there is someone who works at Amazon, Google, Netflix, or Facebook who could be tempted to join." (This story corrects to show banks get a percentage of a fee charged not purchases made in digital marketing scheme) (Editing by Carmel Crimmins)
Is Acotel Group SpA (BIT:ACO) A Volatile Stock? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! If you own shares in Acotel Group SpA (BIT:ACO) then it's worth thinking about how it contributes to the volatility of your portfolio, overall. In finance, Beta is a measure of volatility. Volatility is considered to be a measure of risk in modern finance theory. Investors may think of volatility as falling into two main categories. The first type is company specific volatility. Investors use diversification across uncorrelated stocks to reduce this kind of price volatility across the portfolio. The second sort is caused by the natural volatility of markets, overall. For example, certain macroeconomic events will impact (virtually) all stocks on the market. Some stocks see their prices move in concert with the market. Others tend towards stronger, gentler or unrelated price movements. Some investors use beta as a measure of how much a certain stock is impacted by market risk (volatility). While we should keep in mind that Warren Buffett has cautioned that 'Volatility is far from synonymous with risk', beta is still a useful factor to consider. To make good use of it you must first know that the beta of the overall market is one. A stock with a beta greater than one is more sensitive to broader market movements than a stock with a beta of less than one. View our latest analysis for Acotel Group Zooming in on Acotel Group, we see it has a five year beta of 1.47. This is above 1, so historically its share price has been influenced by the broader volatility of the stock market. If the past is any guide, we would expect that Acotel Group shares will rise quicker than the markets in times of optimism, but fall faster in times of pessimism. Many would argue that beta is useful in position sizing, but fundamental metrics such as revenue and earnings are more important overall. You can see Acotel Group's revenue and earnings in the image below. With a market capitalisation of €14m, Acotel Group is a very small company by global standards. It is quite likely to be unknown to most investors. It has a relatively high beta, suggesting it is fairly actively traded for a company of its size. Because it takes less capital to move the share price of a small company like this, when a stock this size is actively traded it is quite often more sensitive to market volatility than similar large companies. Since Acotel Group tends to moves up when the market is going up, and down when it's going down, potential investors may wish to reflect on the overall market, when considering the stock. This article aims to educate investors about beta values, but it's well worth looking at important company-specific fundamentals such as Acotel Group’s financial health and performance track record. I urge you to continue your research by taking a look at the following: 1. Financial Health: Are ACO’s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why we’ve done it for you. Check out ourfinancial health checks here. 2. Past Track Record: Has ACO been consistently performing well irrespective of the ups and downs in the market? Go into more detail in the past performance analysis and take a look atthe free visual representations of ACO's historicalsfor more clarity. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
artec technologies AG’s (FRA:A6T) Investment Returns Are Lagging Its Industry Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! Today we'll evaluate artec technologies AG (FRA:A6T) to determine whether it could have potential as an investment idea. To be precise, we'll consider its Return On Capital Employed (ROCE), as that will inform our view of the quality of the business. Firstly, we'll go over how we calculate ROCE. Then we'll compare its ROCE to similar companies. Then we'll determine how its current liabilities are affecting its ROCE. ROCE is a metric for evaluating how much pre-tax income (in percentage terms) a company earns on the capital invested in its business. Generally speaking a higher ROCE is better. Overall, it is a valuable metric that has its flaws. Author Edwin Whitingsaysto be careful when comparing the ROCE of different businesses, since 'No two businesses are exactly alike.' Analysts use this formula to calculate return on capital employed: Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities) Or for artec technologies: 0.0082 = €33k ÷ (€4.1m - €173k) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2018.) Therefore,artec technologies has an ROCE of 0.8%. See our latest analysis for artec technologies One way to assess ROCE is to compare similar companies. Using our data, artec technologies's ROCE appears to be significantly below the 12% average in the Electronic industry. This performance is not ideal, as it suggests the company may not be deploying its capital as effectively as some competitors. Regardless of how artec technologies stacks up against its industry, its ROCE in absolute terms is quite low (especially compared to a bank account). There are potentially more appealing investments elsewhere. As we can see, artec technologies currently has an ROCE of 0.8%, less than the 21% it reported 3 years ago. This makes us wonder if the business is facing new challenges. Remember that this metric is backwards looking - it shows what has happened in the past, and does not accurately predict the future. Companies in cyclical industries can be difficult to understand using ROCE, as returns typically look high during boom times, and low during busts. This is because ROCE only looks at one year, instead of considering returns across a whole cycle. Since the future is so important for investors, you should check out ourfreereport on analyst forecasts for artec technologies. Current liabilities include invoices, such as supplier payments, short-term debt, or a tax bill, that need to be paid within 12 months. Due to the way ROCE is calculated, a high level of current liabilities makes a company look as though it has less capital employed, and thus can (sometimes unfairly) boost the ROCE. To check the impact of this, we calculate if a company has high current liabilities relative to its total assets. artec technologies has total assets of €4.1m and current liabilities of €173k. As a result, its current liabilities are equal to approximately 4.2% of its total assets. artec technologies has a low level of current liabilities, which have a negligible impact on its already low ROCE. Still, investors could probably find more attractive prospects with better performance out there. Of course,you might find a fantastic investment by looking at a few good candidates.So take a peek at thisfreelist of companies with modest (or no) debt, trading on a P/E below 20. I will like artec technologies better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out thisfreelist of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
Minister faces calls for the sack after grabbing female protester by the throat Tory minister Mark Field was suspended today amid an investigation into his manhandling of a Greenpeace protester at a formal dinner, Downing Street said. Foreign office minister Mr Field had faced calls to be sacked after footage appeared to show him pushing an activist into a pillar and holding her by the neck, after demonstrators interrupted a speech by chancellor Philip Hammond. Prime Minister Theresa May made the decision to suspend Mr Field after viewing footage of the incident, which she found “very concerning”. City of London Police said they were looking into a “small number” of third-party reports of an assault at the Thursday night event. Mark Field is seen pushing the climate protester against the pillar Mr Field appeared to hold the activist by the back of the neck after and escort her from the room after pushing her against a pillar. Protesters dressed in red had interrupted Mr Hammond’s speech at a black tie event in Mansion House, central London, wearing ‘climate emergency’ sashes. As one female activist approached Mr Field’s table, he puts out a hand to stop her, then stands up and roughly pushes her against a pillar, seemingly by her neck. He then starts to push her out of the room, again apparently holding the back of her neck with his hand. Footage of the event immediately began to appear on social media after it was shared by ITV’s political correspondent Paul Brand - his two videos of the incident have been viewed more than two millions times in just eight hours. MORE FROM YAHOO UK ********* Who is Mark Field? ********* A Downing Street spokeswoman said: “The Prime Minister has seen the footage and she found it very concerning. “The police have said they are looking into reports over this matter and Mark Field has also referred himself to both the Cabinet Office and the Conservative Party. Mark Field held the seat of Cities of London and Westminster with a majority of 3,148 in the 2017 election “He will be suspended as a minister while investigations take place.” Mrs May, who had been at a summit of European Union leaders in Brussels, is understood to have spoken to Chief Whip Julian Smith about the incident, who then informed Mr Field of her decision. Greenpeace said that the activist removed by Mr Field, who they have not identified, “had a good sleep and is doing fine”. Story continues Handout photos issued by Greenpeace of climate change activists being escorted from Mansion House in London where they interrupted a speech by Chancellor Philip Hammond at the annual Bankers and Merchants Dinner. Field said he reacted “instinctively” and had been “genuinely worried” that the protestor may be armed. He said he “grasped the intruder firmly in order to remove her from the room as swiftly as possible”, adding: “I deeply regret this episode and unreservedly apologise to the lady concerned for grabbing her but in the current climate I felt I needed to act decisively to close down the threat to the safety of those present”. Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond delivers a speech at the annual Bankers and Merchants Dinner at Mansion House in London. Field has referred himself to the Cabinet Office to “examine if there has been a breach of the ministerial code and [I] will of course cooperate fully with their investigation”. Dawn Butler, Labour’s shadow secretary for women and equalities, called for Field to be suspended at the least, writing on Twitter that: “This is horrific. Conservative Foreign Office Minister Mark Field violently grabs a woman as she protests about climate change at the bankers’ banquet. This appears to be assault. He must be immediately suspended or sacked. Due to Violence against women.” This is horrific. Conservative Foreign Office Minister Mark Field violently grabs a woman as she protests about climate change at the bankers’ banquet. This appears to be assault. He must be immediately suspended or sacked. Due to Violence against women. https://t.co/fjy6HZXyyG https://t.co/mM8hJ47ult — (((Dawn Butler MP))) (@DawnButlerBrent) June 20, 2019 Labour MP Jess Phillips said: “She posed no credible threat from what I can see. There is very little else that could justify this and anyone can see that this could have been done without physical contact. Every MP has to deal with protest and conflict, it is done with words. To watch this is so so awful.” Another Labour MP, Tonia Antoniazzi, said that “Mark Field should resign and be arrested. I don’t care in what order. No one who reacts like this to a peaceful protest should be sitting in our parliament.” Even Tory MP George Freeman tweeted that the incident looked “appallingly rough but cautioned that “before everyone rushes to instant armchair judgement can I suggest that all of us who weren’t there & don’t know what was said or done just wait a few hours to hear what those who were there say.” This looks appallingly rough handling of a woman climate protester in a dress. But before everyone rushes to instant armchair judgement can I suggest that all of us who weren’t there & don’t know what was said or done just wait a few hours to hear what those who were there say. https://t.co/tDK3RaaTCz — George Freeman MP (@GeorgeFreemanMP) June 20, 2019 Field was defended by veteran Tory MP Sir Peter Bottomley, who told the Press Association that it hadn’t been an assault by the MP for Cities of London and Westminster. “The woman clearly was trying to create a fuss. Most viewers would say it’s good that she didn’t succeed,” Sir Peter said. “He reversed her direction and she looked as though she went willingly. I think there’s no reason to criticise Mark Field… Of course it wasn’t an assault, it was a reversal of direction.” Conservative party chairman Brandon Lewis told Good Morning Britain that the party will investigate the incident. He confirmed Mr Field had referred himself to the Cabinet Office and said: “I’ve spoken to the chief whip this morning and there will be an investigation from our end.” He said it was “very hard to defend” the footage, adding: “It’s hard for anybody to look at that and not be astonished at what they have seen.” But he said the investigation would look into the “full details of what happened”. Greenpeace UK said: “We were shocked at the footage of an elected MP and government minister assaulting one of our peaceful protesters at the Mansion House tonight.”
Nikkei drops as investors turn focus to upcoming Trump-Xi meeting * Nikkei rises 0.7% this week, third straight weekly gains * Nissan rises after co says to grant Renault seats on key committees By Ayai Tomisawa TOKYO, June 21 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei dropped on Friday as investors awaited cues from U.S.-China trade talks, while oil and mining shares were in demand amid rising geopolitical risks in the Middle East. The Nikkei share average fell 1% to 21,258.64. The index rose 0.7% for the week and posted a third week of gains thanks to hopes that the U.S. central bank will cut interest rates as early as next month. Investors' focus has now shifted to a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and China's President Xi Jinping during a Group of 20 summit in Japan next week, with hopes that they can put negotiations back on track to de-escalate a trade war. Trump said that he would decide whether to carry out his threat to hit Beijing with tariffs on at least $300 billion in Chinese goods after the meeting. "If Trump decides not to carry out the threat, the market will likely rise," said Hiroyuki Ueno, a senior strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Asset Management. Meanwhile, tensions between the United States and Iran heightened after Iran shot down a U.S. military drone aircraft in the Gulf region. The resulting jump in oil prices spurred buying in mining and oil shares. Inpex Corp and Japan Petroleum Exploration Co jumped 4.4% and 3.7%, respectively while Idemitsu Kosan soared 2.4%. Financial shares lost ground after U.S. yields fell on the likelihood of an interest rate cut as early as next month following the Fed's policy meeting earlier this week. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group dropped 0.7% and MS& AD Insurance dropped 1.2%. Nissan Motor Co bucked the weakness, rising as much as 1.4% before ending up 0.6% after it said on Friday it would grant alliance member Renault's representatives seats on key committees of its board, ending a dispute between the two automakers. The broader Topix dropped 0.9% to 1,545.90. Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones 1,458 to 619. (Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
911 reveals reason for holding a concert in Malaysia after nearly 2 decades (L-R): Spike, Lee and Jimmy are holding their first 911 concert in Malaysia after almost 20 years. 21 Jun Ever since it was announced that 911 was finally coming back to Malaysia for a concert, which they've aptly named "The Reunion 2019 Live in Kuala Lumpur", fans have been eagerly waiting to see the trio live in person again after nearly 20 long years. With tickets for the concert now sold out, the '90s UK boyband are ready to give their Malaysian fans a "Night to Remember". Before the actual show this Saturday, 22 June, at Quill City Mall KL, the band first met with the local media to talk about their upcoming concert their first in the city since the year 2000. During the press conference, Spike, who was in Malaysia last year to set up the concert, revealed the reason why the country is their first pick for an Asian reunion concert. "Malaysia was the first country we had a number one in. For some reason, we remember Malaysia more than most countries. We had so much fun here," said Spike. "We've been dying to come back here." 911 was all-smiles during the press conference. While he was in Malaysia last year, Spike also expressed interest in working with a young local singer, As'ad Motawh. Spike told TheHive.Asia in an interview session later that yes, he is working with As'ad, just as he's been working with British singer-songwriter Andreah (who is their opening act for this weekend) but fans will have to wait and see what the singer will be bringing to the table. As for their own concert this weekend, Lee assured that they will be singing as many songs as they can from their various albums. They'll be hitting the nostalgic button hard as these songs will be sung as they are, no 'facelifts' with new arrangements involved here. "Fans like to hear the original, if we change the sound of it, it's not the same," said Lee, adding that if he goes to another artist's concert, he also likes to hear the original songs that he fell in love with. 911 are definitely happy to be back in Malaysia. Since this is their first time returning to Kuala Lumpur as a band after so many years, they are looking forward to exploring the city. Understandably, they haven't had the chance to do so. Jimmy reminisced of the time they used to stay at the Concorde Hotel, where they got to have "a few late-night parties at the Hard Rock Café next door". "There's a lot of high risers now that weren't there before, so it'll be nice to take a walk around," he said of the national capital. For 911 fans who won't get to see the trio live tomorrow, here's at least some good news for you they said that they are working on new songs at the moment (maybe fans can even expect a new album?), so there's that to look forward to in the near future!
UPDATE 1-IQE warns on revenue as Huawei ban hits global supply chains (Adds CEO quote, details on forecast) June 21 (Reuters) - IQE Plc warned on Friday that revenue for financial year 2019 would be lower-than-expected, as U.S. restrictions on China's Huawei caused more order delays and several of its chip customers cut forecasts. IQE, which makes semiconductor wafers for chips used in Apple Inc products among others, now expects revenue in the range of 140 million pounds to 160 million pounds for the financial year 2019, compared to consensus estimates of 175 million pounds ($221.97 million). The company said this was a larger impact than previously forecast for risks related specifically to Huawei, due to the far-reaching impact the sanctions have had on other companies and supply chains that are now becoming evident. IQE said it has "very recently" received a reduction in forecasts from a number of chip customers, in its wireless and also in photonics units, hitting anticipated revenues for the second half. "It is now clear that the impact of Huawei's addition to the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security's Entity List is having far-reaching and long-lasting impacts on global supply chains," Chief Executive Officer Drew Nelson said in a statement. Nelson said IQE was operating in "unprecedented times" for the global semiconductor industry as geo-political conditions affect interconnected global supply chains. IQE had said in May that less than 5% of its financial year 2019 revenue was exposed to risk from the Huawei issue. ($1 = 0.7884 pounds) (Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; Editing by Bernard Orr)
CORRECTED-UPDATE 1-US envoy for Iran meets Saudi deputy defence minister in Jeddah (Corrects that meeting took place in Jeddah, not Riyadh) RIYADH, June 21 (Reuters) - U.S. Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook met Saudi Arabian Deputy Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah on Friday, the minister tweeted. They discussed recent attacks in the region which the United States and Saudi Arabia blame on Iran and Iran denies being behind. Prince Khalid affirmed Saudi support for the U.S. campaign to pressure Tehran. According to the New York Times, President Donald Trump approved military strikes on Friday against Iran in retaliation for the downing of an unmanned, $130-million surveillance drone, but pulled back from launching them. The Global Hawk drone was shot down by an Iranian surface-to-air missile. The U.S. says the unarmed drone was flying over international waters in the Strait of Hormuz but Iran says it was on a spy mission over its territorial waters. The United States and Saudi Arabia are among countries that have blamed Iran for attacks on oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, a major transit route for global oil supplies. (Reporting by Stephen Kalin and Maher Chmaytelli Editing by John Stonestreet/Mark Heinrich)
Does ABB Ltd's (VTX:ABBN) Recent Track Record Look Strong? Want to participate in ashort research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card! When ABB Ltd (VTX:ABBN) released its most recent earnings update (31 March 2019), I wanted to understand how these figures stacked up against its past performance. The two benchmarks I used were ABB's average earnings over the past couple of years, and its industry performance. These are useful yardsticks to help me gauge whether or not ABBN actually performed well. Below is a quick commentary on how I see ABBN has performed. Check out our latest analysis for ABB ABBN's trailing twelve-month earnings (from 31 March 2019) of US$1.5b has jumped 41% compared to the previous year. Furthermore, this one-year growth rate has exceeded its 5-year annual growth average of -16%, indicating the rate at which ABBN is growing has accelerated. What's the driver of this growth? Let's take a look at whether it is only because of industry tailwinds, or if ABB has seen some company-specific growth. In terms of returns from investment, ABB has fallen short of achieving a 20% return on equity (ROE), recording 10% instead. Furthermore, its return on assets (ROA) of 3.5% is below the CH Electrical industry of 5.7%, indicating ABB's are utilized less efficiently. And finally, its return on capital (ROC), which also accounts for ABB’s debt level, has declined over the past 3 years from 13% to 8.4%. This correlates with an increase in debt holding, with debt-to-equity ratio rising from 46% to 56% over the past 5 years. ABB's track record can be a valuable insight into its earnings performance, but it certainly doesn't tell the whole story. Recent positive growth doesn’t necessarily mean it’s onwards and upwards for the company. You should continue to research ABB to get a more holistic view of the stock by looking at: 1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for ABBN’s future growth? Take a look at ourfree research report of analyst consensusfor ABBN’s outlook. 2. Financial Health: Are ABBN’s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why we’ve done it for you. Check out ourfinancial health checks here. 3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore ourfree list of these great stocks here. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the trailing twelve months from 31 March 2019. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor ateditorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.

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