Hong Kong police have arrested three men and seized more than half a tonne of suspected cannabis buds worth about HK$100 million (US$12.77 million), marking the third-largest seizure of the drug by city authorities since 2020. Chief Inspector Lam Pak-kiu of the narcotics bureau said on Thursday that officers conducted an ambush in the early hours on Wednesday at a beach along Tai Mong Tsai Road in...
Hong Kong police have arrested three men and seized more than half a tonne of suspected cannabis buds worth about HK$100 million (US$12.77 million), marking the third-largest seizure of the drug by city authorities since 2020. Chief Inspector Lam Pak-kiu of the narcotics bureau said on Thursday that officers conducted an ambush in the early hours on Wednesday at a beach along Tai Mong Tsai Road in Sai Kung acting on intelligence regarding a seaborne smuggling syndicate. “Detectives spotted three...
Hong Kong police have brought more defendants to court from the city’s first arrests over alleged illegal drills under its domestic national security law, charging three men with conspiracy to subvert state power. Wong Kit-lun, 20, Tang Ngai-pok, 23, and Chan Hiu-chun, 23, appeared at West Kowloon Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, each facing one count of conspiracy to subvert state power. Wong rece...
Hong Kong police have brought more defendants to court from the city’s first arrests over alleged illegal drills under its domestic national security law, charging three men with conspiracy to subvert state power. Wong Kit-lun, 20, Tang Ngai-pok, 23, and Chan Hiu-chun, 23, appeared at West Kowloon Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, each facing one count of conspiracy to subvert state power. Wong received an additional charge of possessing child pornography. A police spokesman said the three men...
Impact of disruption caused by US-Israeli war on Iran may be felt into 2027 even if strait of Hormuz reopens, says aviation body head Increases in air fares for travellers in Europe are “inevitable” over the peak summer period because of the high cost of jet fuel , according to the head of the international aviation body. While some airlines faced with weak demand have reduced their European fares...
Impact of disruption caused by US-Israeli war on Iran may be felt into 2027 even if strait of Hormuz reopens, says aviation body head Increases in air fares for travellers in Europe are “inevitable” over the peak summer period because of the high cost of jet fuel , according to the head of the international aviation body. While some airlines faced with weak demand have reduced their European fares recently, Willie Walsh, the former British Airways boss who leads the International Air Transport Association, said there was no way carriers could absorb the extra costs in the long run. Continue reading...
Chinese President Xi Jinping warned US President Donald Trump of a potential conflict if the Taiwan issue is mismanaged, in blunt remarks that punctured an otherwise cordial start to the first trip to China by a sitting US president in nearly a decade. (Source: Bloomberg)
Chinese President Xi Jinping warned US President Donald Trump of a potential conflict if the Taiwan issue is mismanaged, in blunt remarks that punctured an otherwise cordial start to the first trip to China by a sitting US president in nearly a decade. (Source: Bloomberg)
saifulasmee chede/iStock via Getty Images Healthpeak Properties ( DOC ) is a case that at a glance already seems interesting. It has a low double-digit P/FFO, is exposed to interesting sectors with potential such as senior living, and part of the life science exposure (a more delicate sector) is already showing signs of improvement. But going deeper, that’s when I can really see that the Healthpea...
saifulasmee chede/iStock via Getty Images Healthpeak Properties ( DOC ) is a case that at a glance already seems interesting. It has a low double-digit P/FFO, is exposed to interesting sectors with potential such as senior living, and part of the life science exposure (a more delicate sector) is already showing signs of improvement. But going deeper, that’s when I can really see that the Healthpeak case is solid. And a big part of this bullishness is due to recent execution. Many attractive strategies, and mainly, a lesson on how to be a good capital allocator. That’s why I’m initiating my coverage with a buy rating. Healthpeak Highlights Some interesting things about Healthpeak I already mentioned at the beginning of the article: the P/FFO is ~11x, and that allows for a decent dividend yield, a little above 6%. But also, Healthpeak’s portfolio also appeals to me. Some may dislike this REIT just from seeing DOC’s niche, since REITs with lab exposure really have not been the highlight of recent years. That’s why I think it’s good to highlight right away the division into 3 segments that the company has. Labs is one part, but a large portion of the portfolio is classified as “Outpatient Medical,” and the third division is Senior Housing, which has recently been gaining traction. Outpatient Medical is not volatile like labs; the cash flow is much more predictable, and overall they are lower-risk assets, focused on locations in large hospital complexes. Labs, as you probably already know, is a double-edged sword. There was a weak period with a lack of capital for companies in this niche (such as small-cap biotech), and consequently the sector cooled down, but at the same time it is where there is the greatest potential if this niche really returns to growth, as the first quarter is already indicating. Finally, Senior Housing is where the gains are more “obvious,” due to secular trends, great KPIs around this segment, so I see it as a middle ground, certainly not as risk...
From Tim Cook and Elon Musk to top Wall Street executives and White House officials, here are some of the biggest names spotted alongside President Donald Trump at his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. (Source: Bloomberg)
From Tim Cook and Elon Musk to top Wall Street executives and White House officials, here are some of the biggest names spotted alongside President Donald Trump at his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. (Source: Bloomberg)
Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with U.S. President Donald Trump at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Thursday morning during Trump’s state visit to China. Photo: Xinhua News Agency Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump agreed to recast the relationship between the world’s two largest powers under a new banner of “constructive strategic stability,” signalin...
Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with U.S. President Donald Trump at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Thursday morning during Trump’s state visit to China. Photo: Xinhua News Agency Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump agreed to recast the relationship between the world’s two largest powers under a new banner of “constructive strategic stability,” signaling an effort to manage fierce competition and expand economic cooperation following talks Thursday in the Chinese capital. Meeting at the Great Hall of the People, Xi told Trump that the two nations must determine whether they can avoid the Thucydides Trap — a historical tendency toward conflict between a rising power and a ruling one — and forge a new paradigm for major-power relations.
Getty Images In my last article on Costco ( COST ), I assigned a sell rating ( check it here ). As many may already imagine, the main reason is valuation. The margin of safety is too small, as the market already attributes a gigantic moat to Costco and sees it as a bond proxy, so it ends up accepting a high single-digit return. And of course, although in this article I will eventually have to touc...
Getty Images In my last article on Costco ( COST ), I assigned a sell rating ( check it here ). As many may already imagine, the main reason is valuation. The margin of safety is too small, as the market already attributes a gigantic moat to Costco and sees it as a bond proxy, so it ends up accepting a high single-digit return. And of course, although in this article I will eventually have to touch on the valuation point again, I would like to focus on another reason to avoid the COST stock: the shift (slowdown) in momentum that may eventually happen. Upside Risks: Costco Is Still A Compelling Business Before talking exactly about the risks I see for Costco's business, I need to mention the upside risks, since although I do not believe the stock is attractive, the company certainly is. It is no coincidence that the market sees Costco as a company with impenetrable moats and financials with an extremely high level of predictability; there are interesting fundamentals behind that. The track-record is really exceptional. The CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of the top line was 9% over the last 10 years, and for EBITDA the rate was almost 11%. This is very attractive compounding. Seeking Alpha Just to illustrate this, let's say Costco's EV-to-EBITDA remains the same over the next years. This means EBITDA would be a proxy for shareholder value. If the CAGR is ~11% for the next 10 years, we are talking about a company that would go from a ~$447 billion market cap now to $1.4 trillion by mid-2036. A total return of more than 200%. This is the power of compounding. And the longer the holding period, the greater this effect. If you are willing to hold Costco for 20 years, at this CAGR, the market cap in 2046 would be something close to $4 trillion. Although a CAGR of ~11% for EBITDA is really challenging to maintain over a long period, it is not exactly impossible. Costco's comp sales in Q2 were 6.7%. This is because the company had a ticket increase of ~3.5% and also a tr...