Report
Valens Research

Valens Equity Insights and Inflections - 2018 11 07

NXPI currently trades well below corporate averages relative to Uniform Earnings, with a 10.6x Uniform P/E. At these valuations, the market is pricing in expectations for Uniform ROA to fall from current 24% levels in 2017 to just 9% in 2022, accompanied by 14% Uniform Asset growth going forward. However, analysts have far less bearish expectations, projecting Uniform ROA to compress only slightly, to 23% levels in 2019, accompanied by 4% Uniform Asset growth. In addition, analyst projections have grown consistently over the last year, indicating growing bullishness that the market has yet to factor in. This, coupled with management's confidence in their automotive and microcontroller businesses, their strong sales performance, and the potential market size for Kinetis, suggests NXPI can outperform bearish market expectations, warranting upside.

INFO Q3 2018 Embedded Expectations Analysis – Market expectations are for Uniform ROA to fade from record highs, and management has concerns about their leverage, resources segment, and software offerings

AAPL Q3 2018 Embedded Expectations Analysis – Market expectations are for material declines in Uniform ROA, but management is confident about their airpods and revenue


PAYX Q1 2019 Embedded Expectations Analysis – Market expectations are for Uniform ROA to expand to record highs, but management has concerns about their margins, product enhancements, and innovation

5108:JPN, APD, AZO, BHP:AUS, CXO, EA, ECL, FIS, FIVE, HM B:CHE, IBM, KFY, PAYX, PM, ROST, VFC, WU
Underlyings
Ampco-Pittsburgh

Ampco-Pittsburgh manufactures and sells engineered specialty metal products and customized equipment. The company's segments are: Forged and Cast Engineered Products, which includes the company's subsidiary, Union Electric Steel Corporation, that produces ingot and forged products and focuses on the production of forged hardened steel rolls used in rolling by producers of steel, aluminum and other metals; and Air and Liquid Processing, which includes the company's subsidiary, Air & Liquid Systems Corporation, that produces custom-engineered finned tube heat exchange coils and related heat transfer products for nuclear power generation, industrial process and heating, ventilation and air conditioning industries.

Apple Inc.

Apple designs, manufactures and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables and accessories, and sells a variety of related services. The company's products include: iPhone; Mac; iPad; and wearables, home and accessories, which includes AirPods?, Apple TV?, Apple Watch?, Beats? products, HomePod?, iPod touch? and other Apple-branded and third-party accessories. The company's services include: digital content stores and streaming services; AppleCare, which includes AppleCare + (AC+) and the AppleCare Protection Plan; iCloud, which is the company's cloud service; licensing; and other services, which include Apple Arcade?, Apple Card?, Apple News+, and Apple Pay, a cashless payment service.

AutoZone Inc.

AutoZone is a retailer and a distributor of automotive replacement parts and accessories. The company operates stores in the United States, including Puerto Rico and Saint Thomas, Mexico, and Brazil. Each store carries a product line for cars, sport utility vehicles, vans and light trucks, including new and remanufactured automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories and non-automotive products. In addition, the company has a commercial sales program that provides commercial credit and delivery of parts and other products to local, regional and national repair garages, dealers, service stations and public sector accounts. The company also sells the ALLDATA brand automotive diagnostic and repair software.

BHP Group Ltd

BHP Billiton is a global resources company. Co. operates under a Dual Listed Company (DLC) structure, which consists of the BHP Billiton Limited Group and the BHP Billiton Plc Group, operating as a single economic entity. As of June 30 2017, Co. operated four reportable segments: Petroleum, which is involved in the exploration, development and production of oil and gas; Copper, which is involved in the mining of copper, silver, lead, zinc, molybdenum, uranium and gold; Iron ore, which is involved in the mining of iron ore; and Coal, which is involved in the mining of metallurgical coal and thermal (energy) coal.

Bridgestone Corporation

Bridgestone and its affiliates are mainly engaged in the manufacture and sale of tires in the Americas, Europe, Asia and Japan. Co.'s principal business segments are tires and diversified products. Co. is engaged in the manufacture and sale of tires for passenger cars, trucks, buses, construction vehicles, industrial vehicles, agricultural machinery, aircraft, motorcycles, as well as tire-related products; and automotive components, industrial products, polyurethane foam products, construction materials, parts and materials for electronic equipment, bicycles and sporting goods. In addition, Co., through its subsidiaries, is engaged in the provision of financing services.

Concho Resources Inc.

Concho Resources is an independent oil and natural gas company engaged in the acquisition, development, exploration and production of oil and natural gas properties. The company's operations are primarily focused in the Permian Basin of West Texas and Southeast New Mexico.

Ecolab Inc.

Ecolab is a provider of water, hygiene and energy technologies and services. The company's segments include: Global Industrial, which provides water treatment and process applications, and cleaning and sanitizing solutions in the manufacturing, food and beverage processing, chemical, power generation, pharmaceutical and commercial laundry industries; Global Institutional, which provides cleaning and sanitizing products to the foodservice, hospitality, lodging, healthcare, government, education and retail industries; and Global Energy, which serves the process chemicals and water treatment needs of the global petroleum and petrochemical industries in both upstream and downstream applications.

Electronic Arts Inc.

Electronic Arts develops, markets, publishes and distributes games, content and services that can be played and watched on a variety of platforms, including game consoles, personal computers, and mobile phones. The company markets and sells its games and services through digital distribution channels and through retail channels. Digitally, the company's console games and services can be purchased through third-party storefronts. In its games and services, the company utilizes brands that it either wholly own or license from others. The company develops and publishes games and services across genres. Within and alongside its games, the company provides live services, including in-game purchases, downloadable content, and esports.

Fidelity National Information Services Inc.

Fidelity National Information Services is a provider of technology solutions for merchants, banks, and capital markets firms globally. The company's solutions include merchant acquiring solutions; payment solutions; global eCommerce solutions; processing and ancillary applications solutions; digital solutions; fraud, risk management and compliance solutions; electronic funds transfer and network services solutions; card and retail payment solutions; wealth and retirement solutions; item processing and output services solutions; securities processing and finance solutions; global trading solutions; asset management and insurance solutions; and corporate liquidity solutions.

Five Below Inc.

Five Below is a retailer providing a range of merchandise targeted at the tween and teen demographic. The company provides an assortment of products, all priced at $5 and below, including select brands and licensed merchandise across eight worlds: Style, Room, Sports, Tech, Create, Party, Candy and Now. The company operates in states that include Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, West Virginia, North Carolina, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Georgia, Texas, Tennessee, Maine, Alabama, Kentucky, Kansas, Florida, South Carolina, Mississippi, Louisiana, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Minnesota, California and Arkansas.

H&M Hennes & Mauritz AB Class B

H & M Hennes & Mauritz is engaged in the sale of clothing and cosmetics in Sweden and internationally. Co.'s stores offer basics, tailored classics, sportswear, and maternity clothes for women; basics, leisurewear, and seasonal fashions for men; denim and street fashions; and fashion wear for children and teenagers, as well as accessories, underwear, and shoes. Co. also provides makeup and body care products; and home fashion products, which include interior textiles for the bedroom, bathroom, living room, and kitchen. Co. has approximately 3,132 stores, including 110 franchise stores, 85 COS stores, 79 Monki stores, 21 Weekday stores, 8 & Other Stories stores and 3 Cheap Monday stores.

IHS Markit Ltd.

International Business Machines Corporation

International Business Machines provides integrated solutions and products that utilize data, information technology, capability in industries and business processes. The company has five segments: Cloud and Cognitive Software, which provides a range of software offerings; Global Business Services, which provides consulting, systems integration, application management and business process outsourcing services; Global Technology Services, which provides project services, managed and outsourcing services, cloud-delivered services, and technical and IT support services; Systems, which provides technology and service; and Global Financing, which provides client financing, among others.

Korn Ferry

Korn Ferry is an organizational consulting firm. The company is engaged in the business of giving client awareness to its range of talent management solutions. The company's segments include: Executive Search, in which the company's services are used to fill executive-level positions, such as board directors, chief executive officers, chief operating officers, chief information officers, chief human resource officers and other senior executive officers; Advisory, which helps clients design their organization and shows them the way to compensate, develop and motivate their people; and RPO and Professional Search, which combines people, process personnel and intellectual property enabled technology.

NXP Semiconductors NV

NXP Semiconductors is a holding company. Through its subsidiaries, Co. is engaged as a global semiconductor company and a long-standing supplier in the industry. Co. provides High-Performance Mixed-Signal and Standard Product solutions. Co.'s product solutions are used in automotive, identification, wireless infrastructure, lighting, industrial, mobile, consumer and computing applications. Co. engages with original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and sell products in all major geographic regions.

Paychex Inc.

Paychex is a provider of integrated human capital management (HCM) solutions for payroll, benefits, human resource (HR), and insurance services for small- to medium-sized businesses. The company's portfolio of HCM and employee benefit-related services include: payroll processing services; payroll tax administration services; employee payment services; regulatory compliance services (new-hire reporting and garnishment processing); HR Solutions Administrative Services Organization; retirement services administration; HR administration services, including time and attendance; other HR services and products; business services; Professional Employer Organization services; and insurance services.

Philip Morris International Inc.

Philip Morris International is a holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the company is a tobacco company engaged in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes, smoke-free products and associated electronic devices and accessories, and other nicotine-containing products in markets outside the United States. The company's portfolio comprises international and local brands including Marlboro, which is complemented in the premium-price category by Parliament. The company's other international cigarette brands are Bond Street, Chesterfield, L&M, Lark and Philip Morris. The company also owns various local cigarette brands, such as Dji Sam Soe, Sampoerna A and Sampoerna U in Indonesia, and Fortune and Jackpot in the Philippines.

Ross Stores Inc.

Ross Stores and its subsidiaries operate two brands of off-price retail apparel and home fashion stores, which are Ross Dress for Less? (Ross) and dd's DISCOUNTS?. Ross provides name brand and designer apparel, accessories, footwear, and home fashions for the entire family at savings of 20% to 60% off department and specialty store regular prices every day. dd's DISCOUNTS provides name brand apparel, accessories, footwear, and home fashions for the entire family at savings of 20% to 70% off moderate department and discount store regular prices every day. Both of the company's Ross and dd's DISCOUNTS brands target women and men between the ages of 18 and 54.

V.F. Corporation

VF is an apparel and footwear company. The company designs, produces, procures, markets and distributes a variety of lifestyle products, including outerwear, footwear, occupational and performance apparel, jeanswear, backpacks and luggage for consumers of all ages. Products are marketed primarily under the company-owned brand names. The company's segment comprised of: Outdoor, which includes performance-based and outdoor apparel, footwear and equipment; Active, which includes active apparel, footwear and accessories; Work, which consists of work and work-inspired lifestyle apparel and footwear and occupational apparel; and Jeans, which markets denim and related casual apparel products.

Western Union Company

Western Union is a holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the company is engaged in money movement and payment services, providing people and businesses with ways to send money and make payments around the world. The company's segments are: Consumer-to-Consumer, which is focused on individual money transfers from one consumer to another; and Business Solutions, in which the company facilitates payment and foreign exchange solutions, primarily cross-border, cross-currency transactions, for small and medium size enterprises and other organizations and individuals. The company's remaining businesses and services include its electronic-based and cash-based bill payment services.

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Valens Research
Valens Research

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  • GAAP and IFRS have failed to provide rules for reliable financial statement reporting
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