Research from Superfluous Value, Superfluous Value

Superfluous Value

Research from Superfluous Value

Stock selection has rarely been as important as it is today. After a roaring decade for US markets and with signs of mania everywhere, the S&P 500 as over-priced as it has ever been.

But, there is better way. Superfluous Value is a contrarian, deep-dive into the markets forgotten by the 60/40 instos and indexing, momentum chasers. Where the hot money has long moved on, it leaves behind investments offering great safety and prospective returns.

I believe the 2020s will look diametrically opposite to the recent past, with Emerging Markets, the UK, Japan and commodities set to rip and I intend to be holding the best opportunities available as they do.

Please feel free to come along on the journey.

Contrarian Deep-Dive into the Markets

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul><li>The UK remains one of my favourite hunting grounds and I’ve written about its challenges ad nauseam over the last few years.</li><li>But today, it’s particularly worth pointing out that an unusually large number of UK stocks are down significantly over the last month.</li><li>Many are for business specific reasons, but it’s almost uncanny the way UK stocks find a way to tank, even when much of the world is rallying.</li></ul>

The UK remains one of my favourite hunting grounds and I’ve written about its challenges ad nauseam over the last few years.But today, it’s particularly worth pointing out that an unusually large number of UK stocks are down significantly over the last month.Many are for business specific reasons, but it’s almost uncanny the way UK stocks find a way to tank, even when much of the world is rallying.

Equity Bottom-Up

S4 Capital PLC operates as a media company. The Company provides digital advertising and marketing services. S4 Capital serves customers worldwide.

<ul><li>Rules are made to be broken. While I have generally followed a practice of backing away slowly from any company mentioning AI or TAM in recent times, this week I bought shares in a “tech-led, new age/new era digital advertising, marketing and technology services company” at a highly depressed valuation.</li><li>While the tech sector and its tie-ins haven’t been the place to find value lately, S4 Capital has declined to an attractive price through a combination of industry cyclicality, operational mis-steps and a UK listing.</li><li>The stock is down an astonishing 95% from its heady, post-covid days to the point of trading for less than a quarter of the capital invested since its founding. </li></ul>

Rules are made to be broken. While I have generally followed a practice of backing away slowly from any company mentioning AI or TAM in recent times, this week I bought shares in a “tech-led, new age/new era digital advertising, marketing and technology services company” at a highly depressed valuation.While the tech sector and its tie-ins haven’t been the place to find value lately, S4 Capital has declined to an attractive price through a combination of industry cyclicality, operational mis-steps and a UK listing.The stock is down an astonishing 95% from its heady, post-covid days to the point of trading for less than a quarter of the capital invested since its founding. 

Mandarin Oriental International / Equity Bottom-Up

Mandarin Oriental International Limited is an owner and operator of luxury hotels, resorts, and residences. The Group now operates, or has under development, hotels in the Americas, Europe, Middle East, and North Africa. Mandarin Oriental International also operates, or has under development, residences at Mandarin Oriental.

Mandarin Oriental International (MAND SP)

<ul><li>Mandarin owns the One Causeway Bay precinct which is likely worth more than the company’s current Enterprise Value ($2.4b) having recieved an offer of $3.8b for the site in 2017.</li><li>For those unfamiliar, this site is being massively re-developed into retail and office- not a hotel as might be expected given the company.</li><li>Mandarin is transitioning to a capital light hotel management model by selling its owned hotels and maintaining management contracts with the purchasers.</li></ul>

Mandarin owns the One Causeway Bay precinct which is likely worth more than the company’s current Enterprise Value ($2.4b) having recieved an offer of $3.8b for the site in 2017.For those unfamiliar, this site is being massively re-developed into retail and office- not a hotel as might be expected given the company.Mandarin is transitioning to a capital light hotel management model by selling its owned hotels and maintaining management contracts with the purchasers.

<ul>
<li>Value investing is often described as running towards the fire or seeking out disaster.</li>
<li>Often, outstanding returns can be had as the market reverts from total capitulation, to merely bad.</li>
<li>In the case of Brazil today, an investor is paying capitulation pricing for prospects that are already better than merely bad.</li>
</ul>


Value investing is often described as running towards the fire or seeking out disaster.
Often, outstanding returns can be had as the market reverts from total capitulation, to merely bad.
In the case of Brazil today, an investor is paying capitulation pricing for prospects that are already better than merely bad.


Cia Brasileira de Distribuicao / Equity Bottom-Up

Cia Brasileira de Distribuicao operates in the food and non-food retail businesses. The Group's structure comprises of supermarkets, hypermarkets, electronics/household appliance stores, convenience stores, cash & carry (wholesale/retail), e-commerce operations and a wide distribution network.

<ul><li>I recently made my first purchase for the year, buying a core position in Brazilian holdco Companhia Brasileira de Distribuição (CBD:NYSE).</li><li>I believe it has merely been caught up in the general market/SIVB sell-off and the price being offered is too good to pass up.</li><li>CBD is engaged in supermarket/retailing operations and is controlled by the French giant Casino, with 41% ownership.</li></ul>

I recently made my first purchase for the year, buying a core position in Brazilian holdco Companhia Brasileira de Distribuição (CBD:NYSE).I believe it has merely been caught up in the general market/SIVB sell-off and the price being offered is too good to pass up.CBD is engaged in supermarket/retailing operations and is controlled by the French giant Casino, with 41% ownership.

CBD - When The Catalyst Is Slapping You in the Face