Value Investing News

Fair value is really a simple concept. Given some select information such as dividends, dividend growth, holding period, discount rate and few other inputs, one can easily calculate the fair value of a stock. As with most simple things, the devil is in the details - the inputs must be correct to calculate a reasonable fair value, otherwise, garbage in, garbage out.

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Stryker Corp. makes specialty surgical and medical products such as orthopedic implants, endoscopic items and hospital beds. Linked here is a detailed analysis and commentary.

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A diverse product portfolio, innovative pipeline, geographic diversity, high-switching costs, and an inorganic growth strategy are crucial components of a durable competitive advantage in the medical device industry.

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Everyone loves a sale! Well, maybe not everyone. When stocks go on sale it seems to depress a large number of market participants. However, for those of us that like buying stocks at a discount, the recent market pullback has finally provided a little relief.

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“I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.” - Wayne Gretzky - I know very little about hockey, but I have always loved this quote. It can be applied to so many things in life, including investing. Just as Gretzky has a vision as to where the puck is going, investors need to have a similar vision, and not get caught up on short-sighted distractions.

This describes my latest sale of Stryker Corp (SYK). As a deep-value investor, the buying price is usually easy - most of the stocks I try to buy are so cheap that a few percentage points either way won't make much of a difference. However, knowing when to sell is much harder.

Throughout history there have always been great companies that stand head-and-shoulders above their peers and the competition. They are loved by their shareholders, hated by the competition and known by all. Just as all great companies have have something in common, great dividend companies also have something in common – they consistently raise their dividends each year.

The current market is presenting some plump investing opportunities in lagging groups. Read Contrarian Investing: Two Top Stocks for Contrarian Investors to get the full scoop.