Hi everyone. I dabble in a bit of fundamental analysis and it seems just as daunting as tech. when starting out. I've picked a solid portfolio of growth companies that has done really well (I'm positioned for 3+ year 'buy and hold' strategy) and here are the broad criteria I use to pick stocks:
- EPS growth > 20% (and expected to remain >20%)
- EBIT margins that are increasing (good indication that management is strong)
- High EBIT margins (depends on what sectors you like, but 30%+ is good, because it means the company can easily turn sales/revenue into profits). In the company reports - I like to see NPAT and EBIT increasing faster than revenues, that way if revenues drop due to exogenous factors, your earnings can still increase.
- They have to have a growth strategy: I like growth by acquisition. But I'm also in to growth via overseas expansion (anything with the word China works) as well. Growth by product innovation/invention is good (if backed by cash flows frome xisting products). Growth by LBO ?? lol
- I like to see high gearing ratios (what ever you feel comfortable with, as if it were your own business, which really it is when you buy shares because you take ownership) - it means the company knows how to use its capital, has a growth plan and remember the risk / reward potential of gearing! It's also a good idea to research where the funds are being employed (a major acquisition or expansion ?) and also the interest cover (so you can assess whether you think the company is overstretched)
- This point is more a reflection of my personal strategy, but maybe other can relate to it. I look for higher than average PE ratios and lower div. yields when finding growth stocks. A GOOD stock with a high PE (look historial as well) you will notice has probably always traded above the market and still produced stellar returns. Some high PE stocks are priced that way because they have a history of delivering (and exceeding expectations). I remember reading some surprising statistics in a book I had about how statistically, high PE stocks perform better over the long-term and an anaylsis was done that excluded stocks with PEs over 40 (in the US) and the hypothetical portfolio severely underperformed. It's also a sign investors have confidence in the board to deliver....may be unfounded...and it may bite you later if they don't deliver....but I don't touch low PE stocks because they say don't give off confidence and the prospect of growth. But that's just my opinion. Onto div. yeilds...another one of my beliefs is that high yeild stocks say to investors "we can give you a better return by sending you a cheque than reinvesting in our business" - another negative signal in my opinion. Low div. yeild means the plough-back from earnings is high and is likely to generate future growth that will exceed the value to shareholder of a dividend today. By declaring lower dividends and increasing plough-back the board is showing confidence that even given the time value of money and investors required returns - they think you are still going to be better off by improving and growing the business internally than simply throwing money at shareholders. This is a positive signal.
This philisophy is great for l-t holds on growth companies. It's not to say I don't buy companies for short-term trades that don't meet those criteria, I've made plenty of money on stocks with high-yields/low PEs etc that were favourable placed in the market at a given time - but I wouldn't consider making a long-term committment of my hard-earned in these companies.
But fundamental analysis is a valuable tool and like others in the topic - shouldnt be used in isolation either. Market dynamics and tech. analsysis can be complimentary to fund. analsysis. Just like tech. it comes down to what you know and remember the best trading/investing systems are not always the most complex. But understanding the world of fund. analysis has inspired me to undertake a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting so I'm hoping my depth of knowledge will grow and I can make much more informed investment decisions that the few indicators I use at the moment. But I think the important thing is to make sure you really understand the fund. indicators (what drives them, compare them between firms and sectors, look at averages, what they're commonly used for, and what they can tell you about the business.... and the 'positive' and 'negative' "signals" that I like to refer to
before you start making decisions based on them.