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As business booms, RTX Corp.’s (formerly Raytheon Technologies) outlook remains strong.
Perimeter Solutions Inc. reported strong revenue and earnings as it benefits from its unique position in aerial retardants backed by a multi‑year government contract base.
T. Rowe Price Group trades cheaply despite offering a high 4.8% yield with a 40‑year dividend‑growth track record and net cash balance sheet.
Mattr Corp. (formerly ShawCor) offers upside thanks to end-market demand drivers as well as potential for further tuck-in acquisitions or internal expansion.
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VANGUARD FTSE EMERGING MARKETS ETF $35.74 (New York symbol VWO; buy or sell through brokers) aims to track the Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) Emerging Index, which is made up of common stocks of companies in developing countries. The fund’s MER is just 0.15%.
The Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF’s top holdings include Taiwan Semiconductor (Taiwan: computer chips), Tencent Holdings (China: Internet), China Mobile, China Construction Bank, Naspers Ltd. (South Africa: media), Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, Bank of China, Hon Hai Precision Industry (Taiwan: electronics), Infosys (India: information technology) and Housing Development Finance (India: banking).
The $49.7-billion fund’s breakdown by country is as follows: China, 27.2%; Taiwan, 14.4%; India, 13.3%; South Africa, 9.4%; Brazil, 7.2%; Mexico, 5.5%; Russia, 4.5%; Malaysia, 4.0%; Thailand, 2.7%; Indonesia, 2.2%; Philippines, 1.9%; Poland, 1.8%; Turkey, 1.6%; and others, 4.3%.
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The Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF’s top holdings include Taiwan Semiconductor (Taiwan: computer chips), Tencent Holdings (China: Internet), China Mobile, China Construction Bank, Naspers Ltd. (South Africa: media), Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, Bank of China, Hon Hai Precision Industry (Taiwan: electronics), Infosys (India: information technology) and Housing Development Finance (India: banking).
The $49.7-billion fund’s breakdown by country is as follows: China, 27.2%; Taiwan, 14.4%; India, 13.3%; South Africa, 9.4%; Brazil, 7.2%; Mexico, 5.5%; Russia, 4.5%; Malaysia, 4.0%; Thailand, 2.7%; Indonesia, 2.2%; Philippines, 1.9%; Poland, 1.8%; Turkey, 1.6%; and others, 4.3%.
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Over the past few decades, we’ve built a list of what we call “reasons for wariness”. No single one of these factors is a sure sign of a bad investment. But we watch out for them when analyzing investments, especially where we find more than one. When we spot reasons for wariness in a business model or a growth plan, we want to be sure the company understands the risk. One prominent factor on our list is growth by acquisition. A company can speed up its growth by buying other companies, rather than building on or duplicating its existing operations. But, while acquisitions speed growth, they also accumulate risk. After all, the seller of something always knows more about it than the buyer. When a company focuses on acquisitions for corporate growth, it assumes it can out-perform the current management of what it buys. It assumes it can raise the return by a wide enough margin to increase its earnings, over and above the acquisition’s cost....
VANGUARD GROWTH ETF $110.65 (New York symbol VUG; buy or sell through brokers) aims to track the Center for Research in Security Prices (CRSP) U.S. Large Cap Growth Index, a broadly diversified index that mainly consists of big U.S. companies. The fund’s MER is just 0.09%.
The $48.1-billion Vanguard Growth ETF’s top holdings are Apple, Alphabet, Coca-Cola, Facebook, Visa, Home Depot, Comcast, Amazon.com, Gilead Sciences and Walt Disney Co. The fund’s breakdown by industry is as follows: Technology, 23.9%; Consumer Services, 22.2%; Health Care, 13.7%; Financials, 12.5%; Industrials, 11.9%; Consumer Goods, 10.1%; Oil and Gas, 4.0%; Materials, 1.3%; and Telecom Services, 0.3%.
Vanguard Growth ETF is a buy.
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The $48.1-billion Vanguard Growth ETF’s top holdings are Apple, Alphabet, Coca-Cola, Facebook, Visa, Home Depot, Comcast, Amazon.com, Gilead Sciences and Walt Disney Co. The fund’s breakdown by industry is as follows: Technology, 23.9%; Consumer Services, 22.2%; Health Care, 13.7%; Financials, 12.5%; Industrials, 11.9%; Consumer Goods, 10.1%; Oil and Gas, 4.0%; Materials, 1.3%; and Telecom Services, 0.3%.
Vanguard Growth ETF is a buy.
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In June 1999, the Loewen Group, North America’s second-largest funeral company, filed for bankruptcy protection in the U.S. and Canada. At the time, it operated 1,116 funeral homes and 429 cemeteries in North America and 32 funeral homes in the U.K.
Loewen Group grew rapidly by acquisition, but it made other moves that greatly added to its risk.
For one, it took on a lot of debt to finance its purchases, many of which it bought at inflated prices in bidding wars with larger rival Service Corporation International.
The new operations’ profits didn’t cover the extra interest costs. Loewen eventually had to sell many of them below cost to comply with its debt obligations.
Loewen Group’s debt stood at $2.3 billion when it filed for bankruptcy in 1999. That was high even in relation to its market cap of $3.4 billion at its stock-price peak of $57 in 1996. It was insurmountable in 1998, when the company’s interest costs of $182.4 million exceeded all its earnings and cash flow. That year, Loewen had negative cash flow (more money flowed out than in) of $34.3 million.
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Loewen Group grew rapidly by acquisition, but it made other moves that greatly added to its risk.
For one, it took on a lot of debt to finance its purchases, many of which it bought at inflated prices in bidding wars with larger rival Service Corporation International.
The new operations’ profits didn’t cover the extra interest costs. Loewen eventually had to sell many of them below cost to comply with its debt obligations.
Loewen Group’s debt stood at $2.3 billion when it filed for bankruptcy in 1999. That was high even in relation to its market cap of $3.4 billion at its stock-price peak of $57 in 1996. It was insurmountable in 1998, when the company’s interest costs of $182.4 million exceeded all its earnings and cash flow. That year, Loewen had negative cash flow (more money flowed out than in) of $34.3 million.
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