acquisition

Value stock investing pointers: look at goodwill and investment quality, and look beyond financial indicators

A: Veeva Systems, $254.12, symbol VEEV on New York (Shares outstanding: 135.0 million; Market cap: $38.6 billion; www.veeva.com), provides Internet-based customer relationship management (CRM) software to the life sciences, cosmetics and consumer-products industries.

The San Francisco-based company has more than 850 customers, ranging from large pharmaceutical firms to biotech startups.

In September 2018, Veeva launched Veeva Vault Clinical Data Management System (CDMS)—a cloud application to help life sciences companies manage their clinical data....

A: Stamps.com Inc., $282.62, symbol STMP on Nasdaq (Shares outstanding: 17.1 million; Market cap: $4.8 billion; www.stamps.com), offers online postage and shipping solutions under several brand names: Stamps.com, Endicia, ShipStation, ShippingEasy, ShipWorks, and MetaPack.

The company lets users print official USPS stamps and shipping labels for a monthly subscription fee....

A: AirBoss of America Corp., $24.13, symbol BOS on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 23.4 million; Market cap: $564.6 million; www.airbossofamerica.com), manufactures rubber-based products used in the automotive, heavy industry, construction & infrastructure, oil & gas, and defence industries.

AirBoss is headquartered in Newmarket, Ontario, and operates manufacturing facilities in North Carolina, Quebec, and at its flagship facility in Kitchener, Ontario....

A: ChromaDex Corp., $5.05, symbol CDXC on Nasdaq (Shares outstanding: 61.5 million; Market cap: $310.6 million; www.chromadex.com), is a maker of nutraceuticals (food-based drug alternatives) that aims to improve the way people age.

As early as 1906, scientists have known about the role of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) in the body....

A: The CI First Asset Gold+ Giants Covered Call ETF, $17.20, symbol CGXF on Toronto (Units outstanding: 24.8 million; Market cap: $426.6 million; www.firstasset.com), holds an equal-weighted portfolio of the 15 largest gold and precious-metal companies as measured by market capitalization....

Before you buy an investment that is not yet making money, it’s best to look at it from a “first principals” or “financial physics” standpoint. You can start by asking yourself some simple questions, such as:

“Where’s my profit coming from?”

“What’s special about this investment that makes it capable of profiting from this opportunity?”

“How long will it take for profits to start flowing?”

When you go back and analyze investments that lost money for you, you’ll often find that you failed to ask these questions....

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORP. $125 is a buy for long-term gains. The company (New York symbol IBM; Conservative-Growth Dividend Payer Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares o/s: 887.9 million; Market cap: $111.0 billion; Divd....

QUAKER CHEMICAL CORP. $199 is still a buy. The company (New York symbol KWR; Income Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 17.8 million; Market cap: $3.5 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.7; Dividend yield: 0.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.quakerchem.com) completed its acquisition of rival specialty chemicals maker Houghton International in August 2019....

Over the past five years, our Wall Street Stock Forecaster recommendation Conagra Brands has provided an example of how hidden assets can create low-risk opportunities for high investor profits. The company has transformed itself from a lethargic conglomerate with high costs and unfocused brands into a market leader with high profit margins and timely products that appeal to consumers.

We suspect the streamlined Conagra has a high likelihood of prospering even more for its shareholders.

I asked our Successful Investor research department to draw up this Inner Circle Spotlight report on the stock....