Difficult markets prompt Maynard Paton to search for ‘quality’ companies at reasonable prices. Filters for robust financials and director shareholdings lead to investment platform IntegraFin. Difficult market conditions for highly-rated ‘quality’ shares have prompted further back-to-basics filtering. Hence a new screen to identify companies offering robust financials, respectable growth, useful director ownership… and a reasonable […]
Category: Maynard Paton
Small-Cap Spotlight Report: Beeks Financial Cloud (LSE : BKS)
Beeks Financial Cloud offers investors a convincing growth story backed by recurring revenue balanced by hefty expenditure and a racy valuation. Maynard Paton weighs up the pros and cons. Every share has a bull case and a bear case. Our job as investors should be to consider the arguments from both sides, and decide which […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Focusrite
From touring with Led Zeppelin to a £193 million shareholding: Phil Dudderidge has enjoyed enormous success leading music-equipment specialist Focusrite. Maynard Paton recaps the investment story. The market continues to wobble and I have therefore kept with my ‘back to basics’ filtering. Applied the other week to identify James Halstead, this screen short-lists companies that […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: James Halstead (LSE:JHD)
A wobbly market prompts Maynard Paton to search for potential ‘safe havens’. Filters for net cash, high margins and a pandemic-defiant dividend lead to vinyl flooring specialist James Halstead. Recent market wobbles have prompted some ‘back to basics’ filtering. Hence a new screen to identify companies that have strong balance sheets, robust margins and a […]
Cake Box Holdings has some accounting issues | Small-Cap Spotlight Report (LSE:CBOX)
Cake Box’s shares have tripled as its franchisees sell more egg-free cakes and open more shops. But Maynard Paton discovers the accounts contain some unusual financial disclosures and alarming remarks from the auditor. Oh dear. I had expected this article to celebrate a dynamic growth company that had commendably prospered during the pandemic. I find […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Ashmore
Terrific margins, plenty of cash, a reliable dividend and a modest rating could make Ashmore a decent QARP stock. Maynard Paton studies the fund manager and discovers how lower charges have limited past growth. Shares offering ‘Quality At a Reasonable Price’ have been hard to find during the last few years. But recent market conditions […]
Small-Cap Spotlight Report: Aquis Exchange
Aquis Exchange is taking on the London Stock Exchange by offering unlimited trading for a fixed monthly fee. MaynardPaton studies the disruptive qualities, favourable economics and profit potential of the challenger’s trading platform. Investors love ‘disruptors’. Find a pioneering upstart that is stealing market share from industry dinosaurs, and your portfolio may enjoy a huge […]
Small-Cap Spotlight Report: Goodwin
30-bagger Goodwin has pivoted towards higher-margin contracts to widen its competitive ‘moat’. Maynard Paton weighs up the engineer’s haphazard financials with the delightfully old-school management. This quote from Richard Beddard caught my eye the other week: “If something truly special is incubating, we may profit from our investment for decades.” I am always up for […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Curtis Banks
Specialist SIPP firm Curtis Banks has seen its dividend go up but shares go nowhere during the last five years. Maynard Paton now wonders whether the small-cap’s recurring income and high margins make it a ‘QARP’ stock. Shares offering ‘Quality At a Reasonable Price’ have been hard to find during the last few years. But […]
Should you buy SDI shares? | Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner
Acquiring private companies that make precision instruments has propelled SDI shares to 12-bagger status over the last five years. Maynard Paton recaps the story and prospects of the ‘buy and build’ specialist. Everybody loves a share that keeps going up. SharePad lists 168 names that have delivered 15% or more annualised turns during the last […]
Should you buy Hornby shares? | Small-Cap Spotlight Report
Events at Hornby prove how turnarounds can take years. But fresh capital, better management and a return to profit could mean the model-train specialist is over the worst and finally heading towards a proper recovery. Turnarounds can be tempting. You find a business that has hit big trouble with a stock price at rock bottom… […]
Should you buy Calnex shares? | Small-Cap Spotlight Report
Warren Buffett admitted the other year that he had not bought shares at an IPO since 1955. “They’re picking the time to sell to you; I like it when I am picking the time to buy“, the investing master warned when asked about flotations. Mind you, every great share went public at some point… and […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Impax Asset Management
Impressive profit growth, a ‘scalable’ business, hefty insider ownership and a P/E re-rating have helped Impax Asset Management become a huge share winner. Maynard Paton looks closer at the ‘green’ fund manager.
Small-Cap Spotlight Report: WANdisco
WANdisco has raised $217 million since 2012 yet has never made a profit. But could deals with Microsoft and Amazon finally trigger a sales boost? The board’s optimism is not backed by its share dealing.
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Venture Life
I like companies that boast significant net cash. I therefore apply certain filter criteria to identify some reasonable cash-flush businesses.
Small-Cap Spotlight Report: Norcros
Let me start by confessing this article covers pension deficits. What follows may not be that thrilling and does require you to concentrate. But please stick with me, especially if you have ever fallen victim to a ‘value trap’.
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Best of the Best
One of my favourite SharePad screens identifies good-quality companies that have grown without acquisition. One such is Best of the Best.
Small-Cap Spotlight Report: Argo Blockchain
Let’s start with a wealth warning: This article covers bitcoin miner Argo Blockchain; I am not a bitcoin expert; The bitcoin price is highly unpredictable; Argo’s share price is highly unpredictable, and; Argo issues frequent updates. The upshot is my logic and calculations may be completely wrong or out-of-date by the time you read what […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: IG Group
For some time now IG Group has been flashing on my SharePad filters. The three screenshots just below show IG offers: High margins; Decent returns on equity; Cash-rich accounts; Attractive five-year growth; A lack of past acquisitions, and; A modest P/E. Those characteristics are an unusual mix in a market presently bereft of obvious quality […]
Small-Cap Spotlight Report: LoopUp
Welcome to a series of occasional articles in which I shine an investigative spotlight on particular small-caps. My aim is to demonstrate how to analyse companies in SharePad and beyond to help you become a more informed investor. I start today with LoopUp (LOOP), a £44 million developer of software for remote meetings and conference […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Avon Rubber
Happy 2021! I trust SharePad will help bring you good fortune in what could be another twelve months of financial thrills and spills. As usual I plan to trawl the market for interesting shares that I hope assists your company analysis and stock-picking. I start the year with Avon Rubber, a FTSE 250 member that […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Manolete Partners
I am always looking for ‘multi-baggers’ — investments that can double, triple, quadruple or more. And here’s some very good news: I have stumbled on a company that can find them for me. Not just the occasional five-bagger or ten-bagger mind, but 20-baggers. It’s incredible stuff, especially as the track record of success extends for […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Jarvis Securities
Today I have returned to one of my favourite SharePad screens. This screen applies two ratios favoured by ‘quality’ investors — operating margin and return on equity (ROE). The main filter criteria are: 1) An operating margin (latest and 10-year average) of 20% or more, and; 2) An ROE (latest and 10-year average) of 20% […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Polar Capital
I am not a great fan of the fund-management industry. I cannot think of another sector where the employees collect enormous salaries while the customers pay hefty fees and sometimes get nothing in return. Quite often us amateur investors are better off with simple index trackers rather than falling for the industry’s persuasive advisers and […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Fuller, Smith & Turner
First, a wealth warning. The last price-to-book ‘bargain’ I looked at for SharePad was Hammerson. Back then the property group’s £5 billion asset base could be acquired for a £1.6 billion market cap. Investors were in theory able to purchase £1 of assets for just 30p. Twelve months on, and the share price below tells […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Headlam
Let me start by thanking you for clicking on an article with Headlam in the title. Rest assured, not everyone will want to read about this rather dull business that has suffered badly during the pandemic. But for us contrarians, now may be the time to consider such stocks — unloved names that the market […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Frontier Developments
Has the market become too obsessed with ‘pandemic-proof’ shares? I ask because my SharePad screening has brought Frontier Developments to my attention. The shares of this computer-game developer have leapt 66% so far this year as industry sales rally during the lockdown. However, Frontier’s accounting looks rather questionable and the near-£800 million market cap seems […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Hikma Pharmaceuticals
One way to invest during the pandemic is to consider shares that have climbed higher as the market has dropped. Such companies may well be ‘safe havens’ — businesses that are coping well with the lockdown, or perhaps even benefitting from the crisis. I applied the following simple criteria within SharePad to identify potential ‘pandemic-proof’ […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: A Covid-19 Special
Let me start with a confession.This Covid-19 ‘Special’ may not be all that special. I have just applied a new SharePad screen to seek ‘quality bargains’ amid the market chaos — and sadly the results were not that inspiring. The problem is nothing to do with me or my filters or SharePad. Instead, the Covid-19 […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: AB Dynamics
Recent market ructions have sent many shares tumbling — and perhaps created some buying opportunities. Amid the mayhem, I devised a straightforward screen. I simply looked for decent-sized businesses that were still expected to grow, paid a dividend and were conservatively financed, too I applied the following criteria within SharePad to identify some respectable candidates: […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Boohoo
Cash flow movements can often indicate whether or not a business enjoys a powerful operational advantage. A strong business might: Receive customer payments upfront for goods/services it has yet to deliver, and/or; Pay suppliers months after goods/services have been received. However, a weak business might: Receive customer payments months after its goods/services have been delivered, […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Greggs
‘Run your winners’ is popular stock-market advice. Great companies often remain great investments for a lot longer than most people expect… … and can deliver life-changing rewards to anyone who refrains from selling out too soon. Where can we find potential winners to run? I thought the best performing shares of 2019 would provide a […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Mears
This article has not turned out as I had expected. I searched on SharePad for magnificent dividend histories, and thought I would be evaluating a business with glorious financials and tip-top management. I have instead ended up with accounting alarm bells and a dissident shareholder trying to oust the boardroom. The screen I applied in […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Dotdigital
Today I have returned to the share screen I employed to pinpoint Victrex earlier this year. To quickly recap, this screen applies two ratios favoured by ‘quality’ investors — operating margin and return on equity (ROE). The exact criteria I re-used were: 1) An operating margin (latest and 10-year average) of 20% or more, and; […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Rightmove
Studying free cash conversion is vital when evaluating a set of accounts. The measure compares free cash flow to reported earnings, and can indicate whether a business is a ‘cash fountain’ or a ‘cash guzzler’. Ideally we want to own companies that generate plenty of spare cash, because such cash can: * Underpin accounting profits; […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Medica
Dynamic growth shares are among the market’s most exciting investments. Find a business that has expanded rapidly and offers the prospect of further earnings growth — but also has an overlooked share price — and you could be on to a winner. Let’s use SharePad to pinpoint a possible example. Filter criteria These days many […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Hammerson
Buying a share at a discount to its book (or net asset) value ought to be the safest way of investing. Indeed, what could go wrong if you can effectively buy assets worth £1 per share for, say, 50p? The reality — sadly — is not always that simple. Let me show you what I […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: AG Barr
Quality companies undergoing temporary problems can often become attractive investment opportunities. On that basis, perhaps AG Barr is worth closer inspection. The soft-drinks manufacturer famous for Irn-Bru recently warned that profits would be lower than expected… and the share price plunged accordingly: However, AG Barr does boast a quality track record. During the last 40 […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Imperial Brands
Imagine this. You find a blue-chip company that offers: * 21 years of consecutive dividend increases, with the last ten years showing 10% per annum growth; * Management guidance of further 10% annual dividend growth “over the medium term”, and; * A share price with a 10% dividend yield. Too good to be true? Well, […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: JD Sports Fashion
Today I am revisiting the share screen that pinpointed Games Workshop back in January. The shares of the quirky wargaming retailer have soared more than 60% since that review… …and I wonder whether the same screen can unearth another promising opportunity. To recap, the exact criteria I am re-using are: 1) Annualised earnings per share […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Jupiter Fund Management
Today I have revisited a share screen that applies two ratios favoured by ‘quality’ investors — operating margin and return on equity (ROE). The exact criteria I re-used were: 1) An operating margin (latest and 10-year average) of 20% or more, and; 2) An ROE (latest and 10-year average) of 20% or more. Any business […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Domino’s Pizza
This in-depth article covers one of the most impressive UK growth stocks of the last 20 years — Domino’s Pizza. Domino’s appeared on my radar after I revisited one of my previous SharePad screens. The screen in question searches for companies with dependable dividends and reasonable yields. The exact criteria are: 1) 10 or more […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Abcam
Today I have returned to the share screen I employed to pinpoint Victrex the other week. To quickly recap, this screen applies two ratios favoured by ‘quality’ investors — operating margin and return on equity (ROE). The exact criteria I re-used were: 1) An operating margin (latest and 10-year average) of 20% or more, and; […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Victrex
This week I am tracking down a potential long-term winner by employing two ratios favoured by ‘quality’ investors. The first measure is operating margin, which represents the percentage of sales converted into profit. In theory, a company exhibiting a high operating margin may enjoy pricing power over customers — which in turn may indicate a […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Renishaw
I am convinced the very best shares to own are often led by executives who truly act in the interests of ordinary shareholders. In particular, bosses who: * do not dilute investors by issuing shares willy-nilly; * create dependable returns through a rising dividend, and; * own a lot of shares themselves… …should deliver better […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Craneware
Years ago I read Super Stocks, an investment book that claimed to reveal “powerful new ideas” to uncover “opportunities for spectacular profits”. I sadly can’t recall identifying any “opportunities for spectacular profits”… …but the book’s “powerful new ideas” did make some sense — not least the concept of identifying companies that undertook significant research and […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Accesso Technology
This article has not turned out as I had expected. I was hoping to study a quality growth business that had seen its share price slump to attractive levels… …but instead I have ended up untangling some very awkward accounts and guessing whether management changes are signalling problems ahead. Sit back and brace yourself. The […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Hargreaves Lansdown
Quality companies often produce exceptional returns for ordinary investors. Just ask Terry Smith or Nick Train. These ace fund managers have delivered wonderful gains by investing in first-class businesses such as Diageo, Reckitt Benckiser and London Stock Exchange. Let’s use SharePad to find a quality company to study for ourselves. Immense figures imply an incredibly […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Apple
Being able to analyse international shares — at no extra cost! — is a wonderful feature of SharePad. And finding overseas shares within SharePad is easy, too. Simply click on Other Lists within the main toolbar… …and take your pick from the various US and European indices available. I have chosen the top 500 US […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Games Workshop
Could now be the time to return to dynamic growth shares? Wonder-stocks such as Fever-Tree, Boohoo.com and Keywords Studios are all well below their highs of 2018… …and I wonder whether the widespread selling has created a super-growth bargain somewhere in the market! Let’s employ SharePad to find out. I bought the shares at £8 […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Plus500
Before I start looking at Plus500 (LSE: PLUS), I have some good news…. …you can now employ my SharePad screening criteria with just a few clicks! The process involves SharePad’s amazing Filter library. This facility gives you complete access to numerous pre-defined filters that have been used within various SharePad articles. Just follow these instructions […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Somero Enterprises
How did your portfolio fare during 2018? If you managed to side-step the market falls, very well done. For the rest of us — including me — I guess we can only cross our fingers and hope the FTSE performs a lot better during 2019! Still, with share prices in the doldrums and many investors […]
A Special SharePad Investigation: Patisserie Valerie
Before I go any further, let me just state that I am not here to say “I told you so”. But whenever I have lost money on a share, I have always found going back to see where I went wrong to be very instructive. In fact, trying to spot the warning signs from any […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Mattioli Woods
Many years ago, one of my favourite sources for investment ideas was the Financial Times. However, the FT’s articles did not interest me, and nor did the Lex column. Instead, I studied a small table that was tucked away on those pages that listed every share price. You see, this table named the shares that […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Warpaint London
I am always looking for shares that can double, triple, quadruple or more during the years ahead. And one good way of finding such great investments is to study shares that have, well, already doubled, tripled, quadrupled or more. Take Fever-Tree (LSE: FEVR). This tonic-water specialist has rewarded savvy investors handsomely since the firm floated […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Zytronic
Let me start with a confession: 2018 is fast becoming a year to forget for my portfolio. Suffice to say, my shares have suffered a further drubbing… and my annual return is now firmly entrenched in negative territory. I have to admit, those sizzling summer days of soaraway share prices now feel a long time […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: PayPoint
I don’t know about your shares, but my portfolio was thumped during this month’s market sell-off. The drubbing prompted me to consider whether I should remain invested in my racy growth stocks and contrarian recovery plays — or seek out some alternative opportunities instead. My latest SharePad trawling has therefore centred on dividends — which […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: Character
My SharePad screening for buying opportunities has short-listed Character (LSE: CCT) as a possible longer-term investment. The attraction here is a quite extraordinary story about buybacks. You see, since 2006, this small-cap has bought back shares every year to reduce its overall share count by a huge 60%. What’s more, the purchases have been an […]
Screening For My Next Long-Term Winner: CMC Markets
In this article I continue my hunt for shares that could deliver market-beating returns… …and this time my SharePad system has identified CMC Markets (LSE: CMCX) as a potential longer-term investment. CMC is a high-margin, cash-rich and owner-run business that I believe could sit well within a diversified income portfolio — despite the firm’s earnings […]
Screening for my next long-term winner: Ramsdens
I am always hunting for great shares that could power ahead of the market during the years to come… …and just few days ago, my SharePad set-up pinpointed Ramsdens (LSE: RFX) as a contender for my long-term portfolio. Ramsdens is a small-cap that boasts cash-rich accounts, a seasoned chief exec, respectable prospects, and a rather […]
