BalkansCat/iStock Editorial via Getty Images We are not disappointed with Diageo's ( DEO ) ( DGEAF ) results, but we find it hard to justify the stock price's decline. This is the first earnings since Dave Lewis became CEO, and shares finished the day down by a double-digit percentage, erasing all the positive YTD performance. We were surprised that the CEO revealed as much so early in his tenure....
BalkansCat/iStock Editorial via Getty Images We are not disappointed with Diageo's ( DEO ) ( DGEAF ) results, but we find it hard to justify the stock price's decline. This is the first earnings since Dave Lewis became CEO, and shares finished the day down by a double-digit percentage, erasing all the positive YTD performance. We were surprised that the CEO revealed as much so early in his tenure. This is a clear sign that he is moving at a pace. In our last analysis, we reported that the new CEO has experience in turnaround and cost control. We also anticipated a soft environment in China and the US, and this is well evident in Diageo's H1 results presentation. We initiated a Strong Buy rating on Diageo in December 2023, and we are down by almost 40% since then. Diageo Results and Our Positive Take We aim to be brief in the results reporting. So, the company reported top-line sales of $10.46 billion, down 4% (Fig. 1). Diageo was also impacted by disposal, lower volume, and a negative price mix. Geographically, there is pressure in North America, but positive growth in LATAM, Africa, and Europe. Therefore, the negative price MIX is mainly explained by the adverse performance in the US spirits market. Despite negative sales, Diageo's operating profit margin increased by 85 basis points. That said, the reported EBIT declined by 1.2%, mainly due to lower gross profit. This was partially offset by lower headcount and A&P efficiencies. Additionally, regarding the evolution of EBIT margin, Diageo reported a positive impact from disposals. Lastly, cash from operating activities was $2.1 billion, down $202 million from last year. Net debt stood at $21.7 billion. There are moving parts in Diageo's disposal plan, and we will address them later. The CEO also changed the company's remuneration policy, with a minimum DPS of 50 cents per year and a 30-50% payout target. Diageo H1 results Source: Diageo Results H1 - Fig. 1 Why are we Positive? Firstly, considering the top-line evo...
News, discussion and buildup before the day’s action Premier League 10 things link | Email us here Good morning and welcome to matchday live, The Guardian’s one-stop-shop for all things weekend football buildup. As well as encouraging your emails and comments – get in touch to let us know how you’re following the football this fine February Saturday – we’ll be spinning through all the headlines an...
News, discussion and buildup before the day’s action Premier League 10 things link | Email us here Good morning and welcome to matchday live, The Guardian’s one-stop-shop for all things weekend football buildup. As well as encouraging your emails and comments – get in touch to let us know how you’re following the football this fine February Saturday – we’ll be spinning through all the headlines and previews, as well as fallout from last night’s action. There are five Premier League games today, starting with Bournemouth v Sunderland at 12.30pm (all times GMT). Those Black Cats fans will be well on their way down the country to the Vitality Stadium by now. Leeds v Manchester City at 5.30pm looks particularly appealing. And there’s a whole host of games in the EFL and further afield with plenty of promotion and relegation permutations as the season (and the weather, maybe?) begins to heat up. Continue reading...
Fluor (NYSE: FLR) is a large engineering and construction company. It has made material improvements to its business processes over the last few years. And it has made some astute investments in other companies. But you need to understand a few things before you buy this stock. It is important to give credit where credit is due. In recent years, Fluor's contracts often included a fixed price. If F...
Fluor (NYSE: FLR) is a large engineering and construction company. It has made material improvements to its business processes over the last few years. And it has made some astute investments in other companies. But you need to understand a few things before you buy this stock. It is important to give credit where credit is due. In recent years, Fluor's contracts often included a fixed price. If Fluor came in under budget, it got to keep any extra cash from the deal. However, if Fluor came in over budget, it had to eat the extra costs. The inherent risk of that approach isn't great, and too many projects going over budget became a major problem for the company. It changed gears. Image source: Getty Images. Continue reading
Tomas Ragina/iStock via Getty Images U.S. President Donald Trump said Saturday that the U.S. military has begun “major combat operations” in Iran, confirming American participation in coordinated strikes after Israel launched attacks on Iranian targets. “Our objective is to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime, a vicious group of very hard, terrible pe...
Tomas Ragina/iStock via Getty Images U.S. President Donald Trump said Saturday that the U.S. military has begun “major combat operations” in Iran, confirming American participation in coordinated strikes after Israel launched attacks on Iranian targets. “Our objective is to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime, a vicious group of very hard, terrible people,” Trump said in a video message on his Truth Social account. Airstrikes carried out by both the U.S. and Israel have targeted multiple provinces across Iran. Iranian state media reported that the Islamic Republic is preparing what it described as a “crushing response.” Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz described the attack as being done “to remove threats.” The attack followed after the third round of talks failed between the U.S. and Iran. Ahead of the discussions, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Iran’s reluctance to talk about its ballistic missile development program, alongside its nuclear program, was a “big, big problem.” Iran had said it was willing to compromise when it came to its nuclear program, but had repeatedly said Tehran’s missile program had never been part of the talks’ agenda. U.S. President Donald Trump warned earlier in February that “really bad things” would happen unless Tehran agreed to a deal over the future of its nuclear program. The attack, which comes after a significant build up of military assets in the oil-rich Middle East region. Iran, a founding member of OPEC, is a key global oil producer and controls territory along the strategically crucial Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint that handles roughly 20% of the world’s oil supply. Last June, the U.S. carried out strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities, with intelligence assessments indicating significant damage to Tehran’s nuclear program. Iran later retaliated with a strike on a U.S. air base in Qatar, reportedly causing minor damage and no casualties. Crude oil ETFs : ( USO...