Posts by: battipagliaj
We believe a link exists between a business and its stock price. This is why we spend time thinking about businesses when building portfolios. If there was not a link it would be useless to spend time doing fundamental research. Considering the past five years’ volatile market environment, we thought now would be a good time to see if fundamentals, especially relating to quality, translated into differences in stock price performance. The Test (2018-2022) We set the stage by studying businesses and price performance from 2018-2022. From the onset, we gathered fundamental data on large U.S. companies by market value.
Quality companies grow when they make investments and expand profits. Other companies get in trouble when they make unprofitable investments. The whole idea behind investing in stocks (equity) is to grow. Fixed income is generally considered suitable for stable income; hence the name “fixed.” Long-run stock investing, by contrast, requires survival and profitable growth. Even though profitability alone does not guarantee the “best” investment in each year, focusing on high profitability is a good start because such companies are more likely to grow and create value, especially as funding costs rise. The Profitability-Value Nexus We are not saying that all
Dividend Announcement Website 28 Feb 2023 I Woking, UK The board of directors of Linde plc (NYSE: LIN) has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $1.275 per common share, an increase of approximately 9% from the previous quarterly dividend of $1.17. For calendar year 2023, this marks the eleventh dividend change for the Washington Crossing Advisors Rising Dividend portfolio. All eleven changes were increases. The average dividend increase is 6.06% compared with December 31, 2022 indicated levels. For a complete list of all portfolio holdings that have, in the past 12 months, increased, decreased, or had no change in dividend, please contact your financial
21 February 2023 I Atlanta, GA The board of directors of Genuine Parts Company (NYSE: GPC) has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.95 per common share, an increase of approximately 6% from the previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. For calendar year 2023, this marks the tenth dividend change for the Washington Crossing Advisors Rising Dividend portfolio. All ten changes were increases. The average dividend increase is 5.77% compared with December 31, 2022 indicated levels. For a complete list of all portfolio holdings that have, in the past 12 months, increased, decreased, or had no change in dividend, please contact your financial advisor. From
21 February 2023 I Atlanta, GA The board of directors of The Home Depot (NYSE: HD) has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $2.09 per common share, an increase of approximately 10% from the previous quarterly dividend of $1.90. For calendar year 2023, this marks the ninth dividend change for the Washington Crossing Advisors Rising Dividend portfolio. All nine changes were increases. The average dividend increase is 5.74% compared with December 31, 2022 indicated levels. For a complete list of all portfolio holdings that have, in the past 12 months, increased, decreased, or had no change in dividend, please contact your financial advisor. From
16 February 2023 I Atlanta, GA The board of directors of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.46 per common share, an increase of approximately 4.6% from the previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. For calendar year 2023, this marks the eighth dividend change for the Washington Crossing Advisors Rising Dividend portfolio. All eight changes were increases. The average dividend increase is 5.21% compared with December 31, 2022 indicated levels. For a complete list of all portfolio holdings that have, in the past 12 months, increased, decreased, or had no change in dividend, please contact your financial advisor. From
We are starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel. The stock market is up for the year, inflation has begun to decelerate, and the labor market shows continued strength. These positive signals push back against the recession and inflation story that hung over markets for most of the past year. The improved backdrop is also reflected in our WCA Barometer (chart A, below). While the current forecast reading of 48 (the blue dotted line) is not robust, it is anticipating some stability and lift after a long downward slide. While the lift could prove fleeting, it
8 February 2023 I Brentwood, TN The board of directors of Tractor Supply Company (NASDAQ: TSCO) has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $1.03 per common share, an increase of approximately 12% from the previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. For calendar year 2023, this marks the seventh dividend change for the Washington Crossing Advisors Rising Dividend portfolio. All seven changes were increases. The average dividend increase is 5.3% compared with December 31, 2022 indicated levels. For a complete list of all portfolio holdings that have, in the past 12 months, increased, decreased, or had no change in dividend, please contact your financial advisor. From
7 February 2023 I St. Paul, MN The board of directors of 3M (NYSE: MMM) has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $1.50 per common share, an increase of approximately 0.7% from the previous quarterly dividend of $1.49. For calendar year 2023, this marks the sixth dividend change for the Washington Crossing Advisors Rising Dividend portfolio. All six changes were increases. The average dividend increase is 4.2% compared with December 31, 2022 indicated levels. For a complete list of all portfolio holdings that have, in the past 12 months, increased, decreased, or had no change in dividend, please contact your financial advisor. From the
3 February 2023 I Ewing, NJ The board of directors of Church and Dwight Co., Inc. (NYSE: CHD) has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.2725 per common share, an increase of approximately 4% from the previous quarterly dividend of $0.2625. For calendar year 2023, this marks the fifth dividend change for the Washington Crossing Advisors Rising Dividend portfolio. All five changes were increases. The average dividend increase is 4.9% compared with December 31, 2022 indicated levels. For a complete list of all portfolio holdings that have, in the past 12 months, increased, decreased, or had no change in dividend, please contact your financial
With 2022 in the rearview mirror, we have hit the ground running, eager to shake off the previous year’s dour market mood. Despite the prospects of recession, persistent (albeit declining) inflation, and restrictive central bank policies, we see pockets of momentum and optimism in 2023, particularly in foreign developed markets. For the past decade, U.S. equities dominated and were the most sought after markets for risk assets. However, this situation is changing. Rising Returns One month into the New Year, we are seeing strong gains across the board in foreign markets. The following table provides local currency and USD returns
High-quality stocks beat low-quality stocks in every problematic market for the past twenty years, but not in 2022 (table below). In each bearish phase, high quality held up better than low. However, this was not the case this year. Year-to-date, the WCA High-Quality index is down 15%, while the WCA Low-Quality index is down just 5%. While this trend is changing with recent performance once again favoring high quality (more on this below), this year’s performance of high-and-low quality needs some examination. High vs. Low-Quality Performance in Bad Markets Before doing so, we remind readers that quality is important but
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