Leading Independent Investment Research, Morningstar, Inc.

Morningstar

Leading Independent Investment Research

Morningstar, Inc.

Morningstar, Inc. is a leading provider of independent investment research in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. We offer an extensive line of products and services for individual investors, financial advisors, asset managers, and retirement plan providers and sponsors. 

Morningstar provides data on more than 500,000 investment offerings, including stocks, mutual funds, and similar vehicles, along with real-time global market data on more than 16 million equities, indexes, futures, options, commodities, and precious metals, in addition to foreign exchange and Treasury markets. Morningstar also offers investment management services through its investment advisory subsidiaries, with more than $180 billion in assets under advisement or management as of June 30, 2015. We have operations in 27 countries.

Download the Morningstar Fact Sheet : http://corporate.morningstar.com/US/documents/MarketingFactSheets/AboutMorningstarFactsheet.pdf

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

Growth in the second quarter was revised up from 3.7% to 3.9%, beating the consensus estimate of 3.7% growth.It was what economists like to call a high-quality revision as the contribution from inventory expansion was now just 0.2% instead of 0.4%, meaning fewer goods were piling up on shelves.More than offsetting the downward inventory calculation was a large revision to consumer spending, primarily the services-related category.Consumer spending grew at a 3.6% rate in the second quarter, one of the best performances of this recovery and constituting almost two thirds of total GDP growth.Most of the construction-related categories were also revised higher.Analysts: Robert Johnson CFA &amp; Roland CzerniawskiFull report below the fold...&nbsp;

Growth in the second quarter was revised up from 3.7% to 3.9%, beating the consensus estimate of 3.7% growth.It was what economists like to call a high-quality revision as the contribution from inventory expansion was now just 0.2% instead of 0.4%, meaning fewer goods were piling up on shelves.More than offsetting the downward inventory calculation was a large revision to consumer spending, primarily the services-related category.Consumer spending grew at a 3.6% rate in the second quarter, one of the best performances of this recovery and constituting almost two thirds of total GDP growth.Most of the construction-related categories were also revised higher.Analysts: Robert Johnson CFA &amp; Roland CzerniawskiFull report below the fold...&nbsp;

U.S. Economy Picks up the Pace: We're bumping up our 2015 GDP forecast

The accounting research firm, GMT Research

Lisa Mangkornkarn

The accounting research firm

GMT Research

GMT Research provides independent insight into markets, sectors and companies throughout Asia. Our unique method of mining a comprehensive collection of corporate financial statements for key data allows us to evaluate the financial health of a company, sectors and the market at large. We also investigate the application of accounting standards by companies and sectors, shedding light on the quality of reported profits. Armed with this information, we help investment professionals navigate the financial landscape.

Sometimes stock markets don’t bounce back. They just hit the bottom and then crawl sideways for years. Take Greece, its stock market is still 87% below its 2007 peak. Over 20 years later and Thailand’s is still below its 1994 peak! The problem in both instances was that a major part of the economy was over-leveraged and needed to down-pay debt. This necessitated slower economic growth. In Asia back in 1997, as it is in Greece today, an over-leveraged corporate sector was a major contributing factor. And yet scant attention is paid to this part of the economy…but that’s where we come in handy.Whilst we might be best known for our accounting reports on the likes of <a href="http://www.smartkarma.com/insights/noble-group-what-new-disclosure" target="_blank">Noble Group </a>and <a href="http://www.smartkarma.com/insights/airasia-just-answer-the-questions" target="_blank">AirAsia</a>, we also conduct detailed analysis of the listed corporate sector with a focus on capex, free cash flows and leverage. This enables us to tell whether the corporate sector is in a position to support an investment up-cycle or whether a prolonged down-cycle is likely. We gather data from over 32,000 listed non-financials across 43 markets over a 20 year horizon.

Sometimes stock markets don’t bounce back. They just hit the bottom and then crawl sideways for years. Take Greece, its stock market is still 87% below its 2007 peak. Over 20 years later and Thailand’s is still below its 1994 peak! The problem in both instances was that a major part of the economy was over-leveraged and needed to down-pay debt. This necessitated slower economic growth. In Asia back in 1997, as it is in Greece today, an over-leveraged corporate sector was a major contributing factor. And yet scant attention is paid to this part of the economy…but that’s where we come in handy.Whilst we might be best known for our accounting reports on the likes of Noble Group and AirAsia, we also conduct detailed analysis of the listed corporate sector with a focus on capex, free cash flows and leverage. This enables us to tell whether the corporate sector is in a position to support an investment up-cycle or whether a prolonged down-cycle is likely. We gather data from over 32,000 listed non-financials across 43 markets over a 20 year horizon.

CORPORATE LEVERAGE: An Inconvenient Truth

Founder Evidente. Top rated quantitative analyst, Evidente

Sam Ferraro

Founder Evidente. Top rated quantitative analyst

Evidente

Evidente is an independent financial education firm that delivers innovative financial advice to wholesale investors, including active long only funds, hedge funds, pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds, in Australia and globally.  Drawing on academic research in asset pricing, behavioural finance and portfolio construction, Evidente provides wholesale investors with commercial solutions to stock selection and asset allocation decisions across equities and other asset classes.

<ul><li>Annualised volatility in the S&amp;P500 spiked to 27% in August, its highest level since November 2011. &nbsp;Nonetheless, the 6 month moving average of volatility of 14% remains broadly in line with historical trends over the sweep of the past 45 years.</li><li>The positive surprise on 2Q US real GDP concealed the five year long stall in nominal GDP growth.&nbsp; The US Federal Reserve&rsquo;s unwillingness to combat disinflation has contributed to the growth stall.&nbsp; Investors remain unnerved by the Fed&rsquo;s willingness to tighten monetary policy at a time when inflation continues to undershoot its 2% target.</li><li>I expect financial market volatility to remain high until the Fed more clearly enunciates the goals of monetary policy and why it remains indifferent to achieving its inflation target.</li><li>In Australia, the poor 2Q capex survey confirmed that the economy is on the precipice of a 20% slump in business investment in FY2015/16.&nbsp; The long and drawn out transition from mining to non-mining capex continues to weigh on growth and frustrate the RBA.&nbsp; In my view, the re-balancing of growth will need an assist from further monetary stimulus.</li></ul>

Annualised volatility in the S&amp;P500 spiked to 27% in August, its highest level since November 2011. &nbsp;Nonetheless, the 6 month moving average of volatility of 14% remains broadly in line with historical trends over the sweep of the past 45 years.The positive surprise on 2Q US real GDP concealed the five year long stall in nominal GDP growth.&nbsp; The US Federal Reserve&rsquo;s unwillingness to combat disinflation has contributed to the growth stall.&nbsp; Investors remain unnerved by the Fed&rsquo;s willingness to tighten monetary policy at a time when inflation continues to undershoot its 2% target.I expect financial market volatility to remain high until the Fed more clearly enunciates the goals of monetary policy and why it remains indifferent to achieving its inflation target.In Australia, the poor 2Q capex survey confirmed that the economy is on the precipice of a 20% slump in business investment in FY2015/16.&nbsp; The long and drawn out transition from mining to non-mining capex continues to weigh on growth and frustrate the RBA.&nbsp; In my view, the re-balancing of growth will need an assist from further monetary stimulus.

India focused: IPO, special situations, Stylus Holdings

Himanshu Dugar

India focused: IPO, special situations

Stylus Holdings

Stylus Holdings is a buy-side equity research firm. We offer bottom-up investment ideas as well as provide on demand equity research and portfolio tracking. 
At Stylus, our focus is to identify market dislocations that can generate 20+% IRR with a reasonable margin of safety. As part of our research process, we do a deep dive into the fundamentals of the company, evaluate their competitive positioning and assess their valuation.
Our investment team is led by Himanshu Dugar. Himanshu is a Chartered Accountant and a CFA charter holder. He has 10+ years of active experience in the stock market with stints at CRISIL Research, a S&P Global copmany and Miras Investments, a single family office based in Dubai.

Equity Research Firm

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>ITC's share prices collapsed on 1st-Jan following a larger-than-expected indirect tax hike on Cigarettes in India. The changes translate to a 20-50% increase in MRP, potentially aiding illicit Cigarette trade.</li>
<li>We present data on how ITC's Cigarette business has performed well despite regular tax hikes and how steep hikes followed by a stable taxation envrionment benefits in the long term.</li>
<li>At CMP, stock is attractive at 20x Cigarette profits alone (peers trade at 25x), offering FMCG and agri business (worth 40/share) + 50k crores in cash/listed investments (40/share) as buffer.</li>
</ul>


ITC's share prices collapsed on 1st-Jan following a larger-than-expected indirect tax hike on Cigarettes in India. The changes translate to a 20-50% increase in MRP, potentially aiding illicit Cigarette trade.
We present data on how ITC's Cigarette business has performed well despite regular tax hikes and how steep hikes followed by a stable taxation envrionment benefits in the long term.
At CMP, stock is attractive at 20x Cigarette profits alone (peers trade at 25x), offering FMCG and agri business (worth 40/share) + 50k crores in cash/listed investments (40/share) as buffer.


ITC - Is It Time for Contrarian Investors to Enter?

Independent research on the U.S. markets, Baptista Research

Baptista Research

Independent research on the U.S. markets

Baptista Research is an independent financial research house focused on the U.S. markets. We provide equity research as well as credit research reports on the top-listed U.S. companies with most of our focus on technology, consumer goods and services, automobiles, industrials, oil and gas, pharma, and healthcare. Our research has served more than 3000 institutional investors including mutual funds, hedge funds, banks, family offices, and various buy-side firms. We operate a research subscription service where institutions, as well as retail investors, can have priority access to all our research. We also have a wide distribution of our research reports across some of the top global financial platforms. Apart from equity research and credit research, we also provide advisory services with respect to mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity/ venture capital fundraising, valuation reports, and investment management services for corporates.
Baptista Research is owned and managed by Ishan Majumdar, an ex-Venture Capitalist/ Investment Banker, a Chartered Accountant, and a Masters’ degree holder in Management from HEC Paris. Ishan has nearly a decade of experience in Mergers and Acquisitions, Leveraged Buyouts (LBOs), Venture Capital Investing, Corporate Strategy, and Valuation in front-office roles at the likes of BNP Paribas CIB, Credit Agricole CIB, Groupe Danone, and TIW Private Equity. He has worked on and closed multiple acquisition deals, leveraged buyouts, and start-up investment transactions.

<ul><li>Altria Group's recent earnings reveals a mixed set of results that convey both the strengths and challenges faced by the company.</li><li>In the second quarter of 2025, Altria continued to benefit from its strong core businesses, particularly within the oral tobacco product segment.</li><li>On! nicotine pouches were a significant driver of this segment's growth, reporting a 26.5% increase in volume and a retail share rise to 8.7%, reflecting a 0.7 percentage point gain year-over-year.</li></ul>

Altria Group's recent earnings reveals a mixed set of results that convey both the strengths and challenges faced by the company.In the second quarter of 2025, Altria continued to benefit from its strong core businesses, particularly within the oral tobacco product segment.On! nicotine pouches were a significant driver of this segment's growth, reporting a 26.5% increase in volume and a retail share rise to 8.7%, reflecting a 0.7 percentage point gain year-over-year.

Altria Group: A Tale Of Growing Oral Tobacco Profits—Is on! the Secret Weapon for Future Growth?- Major Drivers

United States

Altria Group, Inc. is a holding company.  The Company, through subsidiaries, manufactures and sells cigarettes and other tobacco products, including cigars and pipe tobacco.  Altria holds an interest in a brewery company.

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Altria Group (MO US)

U.S. Economy Picks up the Pace: We're bumping up our 2015 GDP forecast

Growth in the second quarter was revised up from 3.7% to 3.9%, beating the consensus estimate of 3.7% growth.It was what economists like to call a...

Morningstar, Inc.

CORPORATE LEVERAGE: An Inconvenient Truth

Sometimes stock markets don’t bounce back. They just hit the bottom and then crawl sideways for years. Take Greece, its stock market is still 87%...

GMT Research

Weekly Impressions

Annualised volatility in the S&P500 spiked to 27% in August, its highest level since November 2011. Nonetheless, the 6 month moving average...

Sam Ferraro

ITC - Is It Time for Contrarian Investors to Enter?

ITC's share prices plummeted after a significant tax hike on cigarettes in Jan. Historically, business has been resilient despite hikes + we feel...

Himanshu Dugar

Altria Group: A Tale Of Growing Oral Tobacco Profits—Is on! the Secret Weapon for Future Growth?- Major Drivers

Altria Group's recent earnings reveals a mixed set of results that convey both the strengths and challenges faced by the company. In the second...

Baptista Research

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)

U.S. Economy Picks up the Pace: We're bumping up our 2015 GDP forecast

Growth in the second quarter was revised up from 3.7% to 3.9%, beating the consensus estimate of 3.7% growth.It was what economists like to call a...

Morningstar, Inc.

CORPORATE LEVERAGE: An Inconvenient Truth

Sometimes stock markets don’t bounce back. They just hit the bottom and then crawl sideways for years. Take Greece, its stock market is still 87%...

GMT Research

Weekly Impressions

Annualised volatility in the S&P500 spiked to 27% in August, its highest level since November 2011. Nonetheless, the 6 month moving average...

Sam Ferraro

ITC - Is It Time for Contrarian Investors to Enter?

​ITC's share prices plummeted after a significant tax hike on cigarettes in Jan. Historically, business has been resilient despite hikes + we feel...

Himanshu Dugar

Altria Group: A Tale Of Growing Oral Tobacco Profits—Is on! the Secret Weapon for Future Growth?- Major Drivers

Altria Group's recent earnings reveals a mixed set of results that convey both the strengths and challenges faced by the company. In the second...

Baptista Research

ITC's share prices plummeted after a significant tax hike on cigarettes in Jan. Historically, business has been resilient despite hikes + we feel...