Research from Water Tower Research, Water Tower Research

Water Tower Research

Research from Water Tower Research

Water Tower Research is a leading equity research firm that provides research on micro, small and mid cap companies.

Water Tower Research was founded by Wall Street veterans after witnessing a fundamental shift in the investment research industry with the result being a declining knowledge base among investors, a lack of awareness and a shrinking pool of fundamental research being conducted on companies across the small-cap and micro-cap spectrum. The same issues are now increasingly occurring in the mid-cap space. This sea change within the investment community is impacting not only the companies themselves but also current shareholders and potential investors. With significantly less active sell-side sponsorship by Wall Street, a substantial information gap has developed between companies and various constituents in the financial community. The net result is fewer channels for insight and information to flow between companies and investors.

Equity Research Firm

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul><li>WTR-CMI keeping pace with broad markets. YTD, the S&amp;P 500 has appreciated 18%, compared with the 9.5% appreciation for the broader Russell 2000, while our WTR-CMI Index has improved 8.4%, held back primarily by lithium stocks, which are off anywhere from 37% for ALB to 68% for PLL.</li><li>Two companies in our index, RYAM and ECL, have outperformed even the tech-heavy S&amp;P 500, coming off a challenging 2023.</li><li>Unfortunately, with both lithium and ag markets still under pressure, we do not expect companies in our sector to outperform the broader markets in 2H24, although individual stock outperformance may continue.</li></ul>

WTR-CMI keeping pace with broad markets. YTD, the S&amp;P 500 has appreciated 18%, compared with the 9.5% appreciation for the broader Russell 2000, while our WTR-CMI Index has improved 8.4%, held back primarily by lithium stocks, which are off anywhere from 37% for ALB to 68% for PLL.Two companies in our index, RYAM and ECL, have outperformed even the tech-heavy S&amp;P 500, coming off a challenging 2023.Unfortunately, with both lithium and ag markets still under pressure, we do not expect companies in our sector to outperform the broader markets in 2H24, although individual stock outperformance may continue.

Mat-Chem Notes Caution - Canada Rail Strike, Weakening Ag-Chem Market, and Slower EV Adoption

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.

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul><li>FMC Corporation reported its second quarter 2024 earnings with what can be described as a mixed but cautiously optimistic outlook amidst a complex market environment.</li><li>CEO Pierre Brondeau, after reassuming his role, provided a comprehensive reassessment of the company's position and future expectations.</li><li>During the earnings call, FMC Corporation outlined both achievements and challenges, as well as strategic adjustments aimed at long-term ustainability and growth.</li></ul>

FMC Corporation reported its second quarter 2024 earnings with what can be described as a mixed but cautiously optimistic outlook amidst a complex market environment.CEO Pierre Brondeau, after reassuming his role, provided a comprehensive reassessment of the company's position and future expectations.During the earnings call, FMC Corporation outlined both achievements and challenges, as well as strategic adjustments aimed at long-term ustainability and growth.

FMC Corporation: Strengthening Market Position through Enhanced Formulations and Mixture Products! - Major Drivers

<ul><li>Heavy lithium. Halfway through the year, the S&amp;P 500 has appreciated 15.4% YTD, driven by the strong performance of the Magnificent Seven, even as the remaining 490+ companies saw their stock prices move more in line with the Russell 2000, which itself posted an 7.8% gain YTD.</li><li>Over the same timeframe, the WTR-CMI Index delivered a disappointing 4.4% gain under the weight of lithium and graphite companies losing 36-62% of their value due to collapsing lithium and synthetic graphite prices, driven by slower growth of EVs and steel production and liquidation of excess inventories by customers, built over the course of 2022-23.</li><li><p>Sticky costs remain as pricing power wanes. Over the course of 2022-23, many companies experiencing a rapid rise in raw material costs, driven by higher petrochemical prices and rising costs of transportation and logistics aggressively raised prices in an attempt to preserve profits, if not profit margins. </p></li></ul>

Heavy lithium. Halfway through the year, the S&amp;P 500 has appreciated 15.4% YTD, driven by the strong performance of the Magnificent Seven, even as the remaining 490+ companies saw their stock prices move more in line with the Russell 2000, which itself posted an 7.8% gain YTD.Over the same timeframe, the WTR-CMI Index delivered a disappointing 4.4% gain under the weight of lithium and graphite companies losing 36-62% of their value due to collapsing lithium and synthetic graphite prices, driven by slower growth of EVs and steel production and liquidation of excess inventories by customers, built over the course of 2022-23.Sticky costs remain as pricing power wanes. Over the course of 2022-23, many companies experiencing a rapid rise in raw material costs, driven by higher petrochemical prices and rising costs of transportation and logistics aggressively raised prices in an attempt to preserve profits, if not profit margins. 

Mat-Chem Notes - Between a Rock and a Hard Place - 2H24 Outlook

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events, Quiddity Advisors

Travis Lundy

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events

Quiddity Advisors

Index Rebalance

Apollo Global Management  / Index Rebalance

<ul>
<li>The S&amp;P 500 index tracks the 500 largest names listed in the US and it is one of the most highly-tracked indices in the world.</li>
<li>In this insight, we take a look at the upcoming constituent changes in the run up to the September 2024 index rebal event.</li>
<li>We expect two regular changes during September. More interestingly, a couple of SP500 members are working on spin-offs which could trigger some high-impact deletions over the next few months.</li>
</ul>


The S&amp;P 500 index tracks the 500 largest names listed in the US and it is one of the most highly-tracked indices in the world.
In this insight, we take a look at the upcoming constituent changes in the run up to the September 2024 index rebal event.
We expect two regular changes during September. More interestingly, a couple of SP500 members are working on spin-offs which could trigger some high-impact deletions over the next few months.


Sep24 S&P500 Index Rebal - Two Changes Expected; $6bn One-Way Flow and Two Spinoffs?

<ul><li>FMC Corporation delivered mixed first-quarter results for 2024, characterized by solid EBITDA that met the higher end of the company’s guidance and significant improvement in cash flow, yet facing a notable decline in revenue and volume.</li><li>During this period, revenue decreased by 32% compared to the previous year, with a 27% drop in volume primarily attributable to ongoing channel destocking and delayed purchasing behavior by growers, aligning with the trend observed over the past year.</li><li>Baptista Research looks to evaluate the different factors that could influence the company's price in the near future and attempts to carry out an independent valuation of the company using a Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) methodology.</li></ul>

FMC Corporation delivered mixed first-quarter results for 2024, characterized by solid EBITDA that met the higher end of the company’s guidance and significant improvement in cash flow, yet facing a notable decline in revenue and volume.During this period, revenue decreased by 32% compared to the previous year, with a 27% drop in volume primarily attributable to ongoing channel destocking and delayed purchasing behavior by growers, aligning with the trend observed over the past year.Baptista Research looks to evaluate the different factors that could influence the company's price in the near future and attempts to carry out an independent valuation of the company using a Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) methodology.

FMC Corporation: Enhanced Agrochemical Demand in Latin America Driving Our Optimism? - Major Drivers

United States

FMC Corp operates as a diversified research company in the chemical industry. The company offers technology solutions for agricultural, industrial, and consumer markets. FMC Corp offer an array of technologies in research and development to improve delivery of medications, enhance foods and beverages, power batteries, protect crop yields, and advance textile manufacturing.

Price Gauge
52-week Range	0.00 - 0.00
Market Cap (USDm)	0.00
P/E	0.00
Dividend (Yield)	0.00

Fmc Corp (FMC US)

Mat-Chem Notes Caution - Canada Rail Strike, Weakening Ag-Chem Market, and Slower EV Adoption

Unfortunately, with both lithium and ag markets still under pressure, we do not expect companies in our sector to outperform the broader markets in...

Water Tower Research

FMC Corporation: Strengthening Market Position through Enhanced Formulations and Mixture Products! - Major Drivers

FMC Corporation reported its second quarter 2024 earnings with what can be described as a mixed but cautiously optimistic outlook amidst a complex...

Baptista Research

Mat-Chem Notes - Between a Rock and a Hard Place - 2H24 Outlook

Over the same timeframe, the WTR-CMI Index delivered a disappointing 4.4% gain under the weight of lithium and graphite companies losing 36-62% of...

Water Tower Research

Sep24 S&P500 Index Rebal - Two Changes Expected; $6bn One-Way Flow and Two Spinoffs?

The S&P500 index rebal is coming in about 7 weeks. There are about 5 weeks of data left to tally. We expect there are two changes, but there are...

Travis Lundy

FMC Corporation: Enhanced Agrochemical Demand in Latin America Driving Our Optimism? - Major Drivers

FMC Corporation delivered mixed first-quarter results for 2024, characterized by solid EBITDA that met the higher end of the company’s guidance...

Baptista Research

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)