Daily Brief United States: Berkshire Hathaway Inc Cl B, Lululemon Athletica, Electronic Arts, Church & Dwight Co, Corning Inc, Equinor ASA, Exxon Mobil, International Paper Co, KLA-Tencor Corp, Mcdonald’s Corp and more

This is Part 1 of our exclusive deep dive on “Sogo Shosha”, or Japanese trading companies.

We’ve decided to break this deep dive into two parts given its length.

Part 1 will build the foundation and covers the business, history, and a discussion of Berkshire’s investment.

• Lululemon Athletica Inc.’s calendar year margin compression is due to variable costs that will probably adjust lower this year.
• Many analysts mistake’monetized costs’ such as excess amortization for cash costs.
• Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ:LULU) stock has surged by nearly 2000% since its initial public offering in 2007.

• Electronic Arts delivered a mixed set of results in the last quarter.
• In the quarter more than 10 million new players entered into the community which drives strong engagement.
• The player network of EA also continues to grow and its flagship, EA SPORTS FIFA delivered strong engagement this quarter across the company’s entire ecosystem.

• Church & Dwight delivered a strong set of results in the last quarter, with revenue growth of around 0.4% that was beyond Wall Street expectations.
• Its international business delivered 3.2% organic growth, driven by impressive performance across international subsidiaries.
• On the other hand, TROJAN condoms returned to share growth, while OXICLEAN stain removers and ARM & HAMMER baking soda achieved double-digit consumption growth.

• Corning faced the impact of a series of pandemic-driven effects during the last quarter but the company managed to deliver an all-around beat.
• The purchase of laptops, tablets, smartphones, televisions, and cars was below the company’s estimation in the last quarter.
• Baptista Research looks to evaluate the different factors that could influence the company’s price in the near future and attempts to carry out an independent valuation of the company using a Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) methodology.

• Equinor rose 75% over the three-year period but has stalled.
• European gas prices may be nearing a bottom, according to the company.
• The company’s 10-year outlook looks good after record profits this quarter. It has been offered as an alternative to U.S.

• Exxon Mobil delivered a mixed set of results for the last quarter.
• The company’s cash flow performance was solid.
• Exxon merged its downstream and chemical businesses to create Product Solutions, one of the world’s biggest fuels, chemicals, and lubricants companies.

• Despite high inflation and declining demand in the second half of the year, International Paper managed a fair result.
• Despite the strong marketing efforts, the company failed to meet the revenue expectations of Wall Street.
• International Paper has made strategic investments to support the profitable development potential across its Industrial Packaging business.

• KLA Corp managed to deliver an all-around beat in its last quarterly results, demonstrating steady execution despite the supply chain issues.
• Their customers also continue to invest in technological transitions regardless of the business situation which is a good sign.
• Among new launches, KLA Corporation introduced the Axion T2000 X-ray metrology equipment for memory chip producers that could become a good revenue driver.

• McDonald’s delivered an all-around beat in its last result as it continued advancing its brand’s top-line momentum and global reach.
• For the fourth quarter, comparable sales increased by double digits, and they kept gaining market share in most key markets.
• In addition, McDonald’s Monopoly made a triumphant comeback to the Canadian market during the fourth quarter, enhancing the experience by employing their app.