The following are the top rated Basic Materials stocks according to Validea's Price/Sales Investor model based on the published strategy of Kenneth Fisher. This value strategy rewards stocks with low P/S ratios, long-term profit growth, strong free cash flow and consistent profit margins.
ADVANSIX INC (ASIX) is a small-cap value stock in the Chemicals - Plastics & Rubber industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Kenneth Fisher is 100% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.
Company Description: AdvanSix Inc. is a manufacturer of Nylon 6, a polymer resin which is a synthetic material used by its customers to produce fibers, filaments, engineered plastics and films that, in turn, are used in such end-products as such as building and construction, fertilizers, plastics, solvents, packaging, paints, coatings, adhesives and electronics. It also sells caprolactam, ammonium sulfate fertilizer, acetone and other intermediate chemicals, all of which are produced within unit operations across its integrated manufacturing value chain. It sells its Nylon 6 resin globally, primarily under the Aegis brand name. In addition, its Nylon 6 resin is used to produce nylon films which it sells to its customers primarily under the Capran brand name. Caprolactam is the key monomer used in the production of Nylon 6 resin. Its Ammonium sulfate fertilizer is derived from the caprolactam manufacturing process and sells ammonium sulfate primarily to North American and South American distributors.
The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.
| PRICE/SALES RATIO: | PASS |
| TOTAL DEBT/EQUITY RATIO: | PASS |
| PRICE/RESEARCH RATIO: | PASS |
| PRICE/SALES RATIO: | PASS |
| LONG-TERM EPS GROWTH RATE: | PASS |
| FREE CASH PER SHARE: | PASS |
| THREE YEAR AVERAGE NET PROFIT MARGIN: | PASS |
Detailed Analysis of ADVANSIX INC
TERNIUM SA (ADR) (TX) is a mid-cap value stock in the Iron & Steel industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Kenneth Fisher is 100% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.
Company Description: Ternium S.A. is a producer of steel products. The Company produces finished and semi-finished steel products and iron ore, which are sold either directly to steel manufacturers, steel processors or end users. The Company operates through two segments: Steel and Mining. The Steel segment includes the sales of steel products and the Mining segment includes the sales of iron ore products, which are primarily inter-company. The Steel segment comprises three operating segments: Mexico, the Southern Region and Other Markets. In the steel segment, steel products include slabs, billets and round bars (steel in its basic, semi-finished state), hot-rolled coils and sheets, bars and stirrups, wire rods, cold-rolled coils and sheets, tin plate, hot dipped galvanized and electrogalvanized sheets and pre-painted sheets, steel pipes and tubular products, beams, roll-formed products, and other products. In the mining segment, iron ore is sold as concentrates (fines) and pellets.
The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.
| PRICE/SALES RATIO: | PASS |
| TOTAL DEBT/EQUITY RATIO: | PASS |
| PRICE/RESEARCH RATIO: | PASS |
| PRICE/SALES RATIO: | PASS |
| LONG-TERM EPS GROWTH RATE: | PASS |
| FREE CASH PER SHARE: | PASS |
| THREE YEAR AVERAGE NET PROFIT MARGIN: | PASS |
Detailed Analysis of TERNIUM SA (ADR)
UFP INDUSTRIES INC (UFPI) is a mid-cap value stock in the Forestry & Wood Products industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Kenneth Fisher is 100% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.
Company Description: UFP Industries, Inc. is a holding company with subsidiaries throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia, which supply products primarily manufactured from wood, wood and non-wood composites, and other materials. The Company has three segments: Retail, Industrial and Construction. Retail segment offers a portfolio of outdoor living products, including wood and wood composite decking and related accessories, decorative lawn and garden products, and craft and hobby products. Industrial segment manufacturers and agricultural customers who use pallets, specialty crates, wooden boxes and other containers used for packaging, shipping and material handling purposes, as well as various other products, including protective packaging, used in a variety of different applications. Construction segment is made up of customers in four primary markets, factory-built housing, site-built residential construction, commercial construction and concrete forming.
The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.
| PRICE/SALES RATIO: | PASS |
| TOTAL DEBT/EQUITY RATIO: | PASS |
| PRICE/RESEARCH RATIO: | PASS |
| PRICE/SALES RATIO: | PASS |
| LONG-TERM EPS GROWTH RATE: | PASS |
| FREE CASH PER SHARE: | PASS |
| THREE YEAR AVERAGE NET PROFIT MARGIN: | PASS |
Detailed Analysis of UFP INDUSTRIES INC
GERDAU SA (ADR) (GGB) is a mid-cap value stock in the Iron & Steel industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Kenneth Fisher is 90% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.
Company Description: Gerdau SA is a Brazil-based manufacturer of steel products. The Company is engaged in the production and commercialization of steel products in general, through its mills located in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, the United States, Mexico, Peru, the Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela. The Firm's product portfolio includes crude steel; finished products for the construction industry, such as rebar, wire-rods, structural shapes, hot-rolled coils and heavy plates; finished industrial products, such as commercial rolled-steel bars, light profiles and wires; agricultural products, such as stakes, smooth wire and barbed-wire; and special steel items. The Company's activities include also operations of iron ore mines located in the state of Minas Gerais.
The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.
| PRICE/SALES RATIO: | PASS |
| TOTAL DEBT/EQUITY RATIO: | PASS |
| PRICE/RESEARCH RATIO: | PASS |
| PRICE/SALES RATIO: | PASS |
| LONG-TERM EPS GROWTH RATE: | FAIL |
| FREE CASH PER SHARE: | PASS |
| THREE YEAR AVERAGE NET PROFIT MARGIN: | PASS |
Detailed Analysis of GERDAU SA (ADR)
MUELLER INDUSTRIES, INC. (MLI) is a mid-cap value stock in the Misc. Fabricated Products industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Kenneth Fisher is 90% based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals and the stock’s valuation. A score of 80% or above typically indicates that the strategy has some interest in the stock and a score above 90% typically indicates strong interest.
Company Description: Mueller Industries, Inc. is a manufacturer of copper, brass, aluminum and plastic products. The Company manufacture a range of products, including copper tube and fittings; line sets; PEX plastic tube and fittings; steel nipples; brass rod, bar, and shapes; aluminum and brass forgings; aluminum impact extrusions; compressed gas valves; refrigeration valves and fittings; pressure vessels; coaxial heat exchangers; and insulated flexible duct systems. It operates in the United States and in Canada, Mexico, Great Britain, South Korea, the Middle East and China. It has three segments. The Piping Systems segment is composed of Domestic Piping Systems Group, Great Lakes Copper, Heatlink Group, European Operations, Trading Group, Jungwoo-Mueller and Mueller Middle East. The Industrial Metals segment is composed of Brass Rod, Impacts & Micro Gauge and Brass Value-Added Products. The Climate segment is composed of Refrigeration Products, Westermeyer, Turbotec, Flex Duct and Linesets, Inc.
The following table summarizes whether the stock meets each of this strategy's tests. Not all criteria in the below table receive equal weighting or are independent, but the table provides a brief overview of the strong and weak points of the security in the context of the strategy's criteria.
| PRICE/SALES RATIO: | PASS |
| TOTAL DEBT/EQUITY RATIO: | PASS |
| PRICE/RESEARCH RATIO: | PASS |
| PRICE/SALES RATIO: | FAIL |
| LONG-TERM EPS GROWTH RATE: | PASS |
| FREE CASH PER SHARE: | PASS |
| THREE YEAR AVERAGE NET PROFIT MARGIN: | PASS |
Detailed Analysis of MUELLER INDUSTRIES, INC.
More details on Validea's Kenneth Fisher strategy
About Kenneth Fisher: The son of Philip Fisher, who is considered the "Father of Growth Investing", Kenneth Fisher is a money manager, bestselling author, and longtime Forbes columnist. The younger Fisher wowed Wall Street in the mid-1980s when his book Super Stocks first popularized the idea of using the price/sales ratio (PSR) as a means of identifying attractive stocks. According to his alma mater, Humboldt State University, Fisher is also one of the world's foremost experts on 19th century logging. Appropriately, Fisher's firm, Fisher Investments, is located in a lush forest preserve in Woodside, California, where the contrarian-minded Fisher says he and his employees can get away from Wall Street groupthink.
About Validea: Validea is aninvestment researchservice that follows the published strategies of investment legends. Validea offers both stock analysis and model portfolios based on gurus who have outperformed the market over the long-term, including Warren Buffett, Benjamin Graham, Peter Lynch and Martin Zweig. For more information about Validea, click here
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
