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>Marsh &amp; McLennan managed to surpass the revenue expectations as well as the earnings expectations of Wall Street.</li>
<li>The company had significant growth in most of its businesses, market sectors, and geographical areas, with Marsh, Guy Carpenter, and Mercer all experiencing faster underlying growth than in the previous quarter.</li>
<li>Guy Carpenter's revenue was $1.1 billion, driven by solid growth in all areas and worldwide specializations, reflecting tighter reinsurance market conditions.</li>
</ul>


Marsh &amp; McLennan managed to surpass the revenue expectations as well as the earnings expectations of Wall Street.
The company had significant growth in most of its businesses, market sectors, and geographical areas, with Marsh, Guy Carpenter, and Mercer all experiencing faster underlying growth than in the previous quarter.
Guy Carpenter's revenue was $1.1 billion, driven by solid growth in all areas and worldwide specializations, reflecting tighter reinsurance market conditions.


Marsh & McLennan Companies: Expanding Their Business with Acquisitions & Other Drivers

High Quality Stock Setups, Weekly Stock Bull Finder

Weekly Stock Bull Finder

High Quality Stock Setups

Finding high potential stock setups on quality companies

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul><li>One of the lasting legacies of the COVID-19 pandemic was the acceleration of secular trends which were already in place prior to the start pandemic such as e-commerce, flexible working arrangements, streaming/entertainment at home, digital transformation, MRNA biotechnology, among others.</li><li>Many of these trends in place prior to the pandemic were turbocharged by a quick pivot and responses to adjust to the “new normal” disruption of the dealing with COVID-19 waves, lockdowns, and companies muddling through how to adapt their business model.</li><li>The aftermath of the combination of a bazooka fiscal and monetary stimulus has resulted in the Federal Reserve embarking on the most aggressive interest rate hiking campaign in decades in attempts to arrest and reverse inflation.</li></ul>

One of the lasting legacies of the COVID-19 pandemic was the acceleration of secular trends which were already in place prior to the start pandemic such as e-commerce, flexible working arrangements, streaming/entertainment at home, digital transformation, MRNA biotechnology, among others.Many of these trends in place prior to the pandemic were turbocharged by a quick pivot and responses to adjust to the “new normal” disruption of the dealing with COVID-19 waves, lockdowns, and companies muddling through how to adapt their business model.The aftermath of the combination of a bazooka fiscal and monetary stimulus has resulted in the Federal Reserve embarking on the most aggressive interest rate hiking campaign in decades in attempts to arrest and reverse inflation.

<ul><li>Earnings Season Thus Far- Meanwhile Mixed Economic Messages Earnings season picks up this week with the technology heavyweights like Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta are all set to report their results.</li><li>During the upcoming week, 180 S&amp;P 500 companies (including 14 Dow 30 components) are scheduled to report results for the first quarter.</li><li>Overall, 18% of the companies in the S&amp;P 500 have reported actual results for Q1 2023 to date.</li></ul>

Earnings Season Thus Far- Meanwhile Mixed Economic Messages Earnings season picks up this week with the technology heavyweights like Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta are all set to report their results.During the upcoming week, 180 S&amp;P 500 companies (including 14 Dow 30 components) are scheduled to report results for the first quarter.Overall, 18% of the companies in the S&amp;P 500 have reported actual results for Q1 2023 to date.

Alpha-Centric ESG Research

Kyle Rudden

Two days ago the U.K. Financial Reporting Council announced 125 successful signatories (aka "not greenwashers") to the revised U.K. Stewardship Code. Signatories are integrating stewardship and ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) factors into investment decisions, to high standards.Whilst this is ostensibly limited to U.K. pension assets, ramifications are more far-reaching than it might at first appear (one indication is the number of North American and Asia Pacific signatories, in addition to the expected European names). More specifically, the broad relevance is because it:<ul>
<li>Affects firms doing business with U.K. asset managers/owners not just the managers/owners.</li>
<li>Is a quasi-blueprint for similar anti-greenwashing initiatives taking root in the U.S. and Asia.</li>
<li>Greenwashing is having an increasing impact on stocks prices (e.g., DWS Group last month).</li>
</ul>This is one battle in an emerging global war on greenwashing. The U.S. SEC has its own agenda to fight greenwashing and Asia isn't far behind (e.g., regulators in Japan stepping up scrutiny). There is more to come, and a lot to learn from this including who is (and is not) on the signatory list.

Two days ago the U.K. Financial Reporting Council announced 125 successful signatories (aka "not greenwashers") to the revised U.K. Stewardship Code. Signatories are integrating stewardship and ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) factors into investment decisions, to high standards.Whilst this is ostensibly limited to U.K. pension assets, ramifications are more far-reaching than it might at first appear (one indication is the number of North American and Asia Pacific signatories, in addition to the expected European names). More specifically, the broad relevance is because it:
Affects firms doing business with U.K. asset managers/owners not just the managers/owners.
Is a quasi-blueprint for similar anti-greenwashing initiatives taking root in the U.S. and Asia.
Greenwashing is having an increasing impact on stocks prices (e.g., DWS Group last month).
This is one battle in an emerging global war on greenwashing. The U.S. SEC has its own agenda to fight greenwashing and Asia isn't far behind (e.g., regulators in Japan stepping up scrutiny). There is more to come, and a lot to learn from this including who is (and is not) on the signatory list.

The War on Greenwashing: UK Stewardship Code "Successful Signatories" Has Broader Implications

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events, Quiddity Advisors

David Blennerhassett

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events

Quiddity Advisors

Event-Driven

This week in StubWorld ...
<ul class="">
<li>With the sale of <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/22017" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22017:1">Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group P (JLT LN)</a> all but a done deal, how will <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/19718" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:19718:1">Jardine Matheson Hldgs (JM SP)</a> deploy the cash proceeds?</li>
<li>Time to unwind <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/11074" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:11074:1">Takara Holdings (2531 JP)</a> after a 40% gain in the past fortnight following its unexpected non-exclusion in the N225 rebalance.</li>
</ul>
This, and other relationships discussed below, trade with: 1) a minimum liquidity threshold of US$1mn on a 90-day moving average; and 2) a minimum 20% 'market capitalisation' threshold, whereby the value of the holding/Opco held must be at least 20% of the parent's market cap.
My comments on Jardine, Takara and other Holdcos follow my weekly setup/unwind tables.
<div class="content-caption">(Market cap and liquidity noted below are in US$. Liquidity is assessed on a 3-month average)</div>

This week in StubWorld ...

With the sale of Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group P (JLT LN) all but a done deal, how will Jardine Matheson Hldgs (JM SP) deploy the cash proceeds?
Time to unwind Takara Holdings (2531 JP) after a 40% gain in the past fortnight following its unexpected non-exclusion in the N225 rebalance.

This, and other relationships discussed below, trade with: 1) a minimum liquidity threshold of US$1mn on a 90-day moving average; and 2) a minimum 20% 'market capitalisation' threshold, whereby the value of the holding/Opco held must be at least 20% of the parent's market cap.
My comments on Jardine, Takara and other Holdcos follow my weekly setup/unwind tables.
(Market cap and liquidity noted below are in US$. Liquidity is assessed on a 3-month average)

StubWorld: Matheson Unloads JLT, Unwind Takara

United States

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. is a professional services firm providing advice and solutions in the areas of risk, strategy, and human capital. Marsh & McLennan offers analysis, advice, and transactional capabilities to clients worldwide.

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Marsh & Mclennan (MMC US)

Marsh & McLennan Companies: Expanding Their Business with Acquisitions & Other Drivers

Marsh & McLennan managed to surpass the revenue expectations as well as the earnings expectations of Wall Street. The company had significant...

Baptista Research

Weekly Stock Bullfinder - Week of 5/15

One of the lasting legacies of the COVID-19 pandemic was the acceleration of secular trends which were already in place prior to the start pandemic...

Weekly Stock Bull Finder

Weekly Stock Bullfinder - Week of 4/24

During the upcoming week, 180 S&P 500 companies (including 14 Dow 30 components) are scheduled to report results for the first quarter.

Weekly Stock Bull Finder

The War on Greenwashing: UK Stewardship Code "Successful Signatories" Has Broader Implications

Telegraph from European front in global war on greenwashing. U.K. names stewardship victors ("not greenwashers"). Many notable casualties. Anti...

Kyle Rudden

StubWorld: Matheson Unloads JLT, Unwind Takara

This week in StubWorld ... With the sale of Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group P (JLT LN) all but a done deal, how will Jardine Matheson Hldgs (JM...

David Blennerhassett

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