My Investing Muse

F or some of us, we look at value and growth stocks as 2 sides of the same coin, as 2 separate camps. I n our minds, a high growth stock may not be a value stock and vice versa. let me put in context what criteria I use to qualify stocks as a " value " stock: 1.  good financial fundamentals  (good trend of revenue, net income, net debt and free cash flow, seen only years and not just in quarters) 2.  durable competitive advantage  - in branding, price positioning, cost leverage, technology, innovation 3.  good management with integrity 4.  margin of safety  - market price being offered with a discount. this includes calculating the intrinsic value or fair value of the business using FCF or DCF, etc 5.  Know the business  - as investors, we need to understand the business products and services, the market reach, the industry, etc. some of the high growth stocks promise future profits thanks to their innovations. These cannot be considered valu...

 ‌ $U.S. Bancorp(USB)$   ‌price fell after a disappointing earnings report as of 19 Jan 2022.  Does this imply a signal to sell? Q4 EPS falls from Q3, on lower net interest income, lower loan fees (SBA Paycheck Protection Program), "seasonally" lower payments and capital markets revenue, and lower mortgage banking revenue as refinancing continued to decline.  Q4 EPS of $1.07 dropped from $1.30 in Q3 2021 but it was an increase from $0.95 in Q4 2020; a marginal miss of market estimate at $1.10. Net income attributable to U.S. Bancorp was $1,673 million for the fourth quarter of 2021, which was $154 million higher than the $1,519 million for the fourth quarter of 2020, and $355 million lower than the $2,028 million for the third quarter of 2021. Diluted earnings per common share were $1.07 in the fourth quarter of 2021, compared with $0.95 in the fourth quarter of 2020 and $1.30 in the third quarter of 2021. For full-year 2021, earnings per share came in at $5.10 per s...