The following are today's upgrades for Validea's Book/Market Investor model based on the published strategy of Joseph Piotroski. This value-quant strategy screens for high book-to-market stocks, and then separates out financially sound firms by looking at a host of improving financial criteria.
LOMA NEGRA COMPANIA INDL ARGNTNA SA-ADR (LOMA) is a small-cap value stock in the Construction - Raw Materials industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Joseph Piotroski changed from 0% to 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: Loma Negra Compania Industrial Argentina SA is an Argentina-based vertically integrated company active in the cement industry. It produces and distribute cement, masonry cement, aggregates, concrete, and lime, primarily used in private and public construction, to wholesale distributors, concrete producers, and industrial customers, among others. The Company operates five segments: Cement, masonry cement and lime Argentina, Cement Paraguay, Concrete, Aggregates, Railroad and Others. Cement, masonry cement and lime Argentina includes the cement, masonry cement and lime business in Argentina. Cement Paraguay includes the cement business in Paraguay. Concrete includes principally the production and sale of ready-mix concrete. Aggregates includes the production and sale of granitic aggregates. Railroad includes the provision of the railroad transportation service. Others includes the industrial waste treatment and recycling business to produce materials for use as fuel o raw material.
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.
| BOOK/MARKET RATIO: | PASS |
| RETURN ON ASSETS: | PASS |
| CHANGE IN RETURN ON ASSETS: | PASS |
| CASH FLOW FROM OPERATIONS: | PASS |
| CASH COMPARED TO NET INCOME: | PASS |
| CHANGE IN LONG TERM DEBT/ASSETS | PASS |
| CHANGE IN CURRENT RATIO: | PASS |
| CHANGE IN SHARES OUTSTANDING: | PASS |
| CHANGE IN GROSS MARGIN: | PASS |
| CHANGE IN ASSET TURNOVER: | FAIL |
Detailed Analysis of LOMA NEGRA COMPANIA INDL ARGNTNA SA-ADR
TRECORA RESOURCES (TREC) is a small-cap growth stock in the Chemical Manufacturing industry. The rating according to our strategy based on Joseph Piotroski changed from 0% to 80% 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: Trecora Resources is engaged in the manufacturing of specialty petrochemical products, specialty waxes, and providing custom processing services. The Company operates through two segments: Specialty Petrochemicals and Specialty Waxes segment. Its Specialty Petrochemicals segment is conducted through South Hampton Resources, Inc. (SHR). SHR owns and operates a specialty petrochemicals facility in Silsbee, Texas, which produces hydrocarbons used primarily in polyethylene, packaging, polypropylene, expandable polystyrene, poly-iso/urethane foams, Canadian tar sands, and in the catalyst support industry. Its Specialty Waxes segment is conducted through Trecora Chemical, Inc. (TC) located in Pasadena, Texas, which produces specialty polyethylene and poly-alpha-olefin waxes and provides custom processing services. The specialty polyethylene waxes are used in markets from paints and inks to adhesives, coatings, and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) lubricants.
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.
| BOOK/MARKET RATIO: | PASS |
| RETURN ON ASSETS: | PASS |
| CHANGE IN RETURN ON ASSETS: | PASS |
| CASH FLOW FROM OPERATIONS: | PASS |
| CASH COMPARED TO NET INCOME: | PASS |
| CHANGE IN LONG TERM DEBT/ASSETS | PASS |
| CHANGE IN CURRENT RATIO: | PASS |
| CHANGE IN SHARES OUTSTANDING: | PASS |
| CHANGE IN GROSS MARGIN: | FAIL |
| CHANGE IN ASSET TURNOVER: | FAIL |
Detailed Analysis of TRECORA RESOURCES
More details on Validea's Joseph Piotroski strategy
About Joseph Piotroski: Piotroski isn't your typical Wall Street big shot. In fact, he's not even a professional investor. He's a good old numbers-crunching accountant and college professor. But in 2000, shortly after he started teaching at the University of Chicago's Graduate School of Business, Piotroski published a groundbreaking paper in the Journal of Accounting Research entitled "Value Investing: The Use of Historical Financial Statement Information to Separate Winners from Losers". In it, Piotroski laid out an accounting-based stock-selection/shorting method that produced a 23 percent average annual back-tested return from 1976 through 1996 -- more than double the S&P 500's gain during that time. Piotroski's findings were reported in major financial publiations like SmartMoney. Today, he teaches accounting at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business.
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.
