The hottest Financial Performance Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top Finance Topics

How much capital can startups profitably eat?

Alex's Personal Blog • 65 implied HN points • 04 Feb 25
💼 Business Startups Venture Capital Investment Trends Market Analysis Financial Performance
  1. Startups seem to have a limit on how much money they can handle, known as being 'founder constrained'. This means that there are not enough strong ideas or founders to support the cash available.
  2. There has been a drop in the success rate of startups getting further funding after their initial rounds. This is particularly true for those that started during the funding boom in 2021.
  3. Venture capital returns from funds initiated in 2021 are underperforming, likely due to an excess of companies funded without sufficient quality ideas or founders backing them.

Eggheads

Doomberg • 8689 implied HN points • 08 Apr 23
💼 Business Market Dynamics Financial Performance
  1. Egg production industry faces challenges like feed costs, disease management, and fluctuating demand.
  2. Global egg shortages post-Covid have unique causes in different countries.
  3. Cal-Maine Foods in the US demonstrates success in supplying eggs during shortages, leading to profits and political controversies.

Meta & Amazon Earnings Reviews

Stock Market Nerd • 884 implied HN points • 02 Feb 24
💰 Finance Market Analysis Financial Performance
  1. Meta Platforms (META) had strong earnings, beating estimates in demand, margins, guidance, and financials.
  2. Amazon (AMZN) also had a successful quarter, exceeding revenue and margin expectations, especially in AWS growth and advertising.
  3. Both companies showcased solid performance, indicating positive trends for their business strategies and financial outlook.

Naming and shaming in Japan

Asian Century Stocks • 884 implied HN points • 17 Jan 24
💼 Business Corporate Governance Market Analysis Investor Relations Financial Performance
  1. Japan's corporate governance reforms, starting with Abenomics, have been driving positive change in the capital allocation practices of Japanese companies.
  2. The Tokyo Stock Exchange's new listing structure, especially the Prime Market, has raised standards for companies, promoting better corporate governance.
  3. The practice of naming and shaming low price/book ratio companies in Japan is pushing them to improve profitability, enhance investor communication, and comply with new capital allocation rules.
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Humana to shutter Louisville, Kentucky headquarters; top executives now working out of Washington, D.C.

HEALTH CARE un-covered • 519 implied HN points • 15 Feb 24
💼 Business Corporate behavior Healthcare Industry Financial Performance Market Trends
  1. Humana is closing its headquarters in Louisville, Kentucky, as top executives have already moved to Washington, D.C. This change aims to cut costs and better align with their government business focus.
  2. The company has recently struggled financially, citing high costs associated with their Medicare Advantage enrollees using more healthcare services than expected. This led to significant losses and a drop in stock prices.
  3. With top leaders now based in D.C., they can quickly engage with lawmakers who are examining Medicare Advantage and its financial impacts, as these plans may be overpaying billions to insurers.

How Vail Resorts Unique Business Model Led To A Strike In Park City (and why they don't care)

Huddle Up • 25 implied HN points • 07 Jan 25
💼 Business Corporate strategy Labor relations Market Trends Financial Performance
  1. Vail Resorts' strategy of buying multiple ski resorts has led to a strike at Park City due to rising costs for employees. Over 200 workers are protesting for better wages and benefits.
  2. The strike is affecting the resort's capacity, with many trails closed and lifts not operating. This has led to long lines and unhappy guests during a peak time for skiing.
  3. Despite earning substantial profits, Vail Resorts seems uninterested in meeting the employees' demands. This highlights how corporate priorities can harm both worker conditions and customer experiences.

Auto Partner: A Boring Business with Brilliant Results

The Wolf of Harcourt Street • 539 implied HN points • 23 Nov 23
💰 Finance Stock Market Business Growth Financial Performance Investment Opportunities
  1. Auto Partner, a distributor of spare parts, is focusing on automation to strengthen its distribution capabilities and increase competitiveness.
  2. The company's revenue growth is attributed to market responsiveness, geographic expansion, and effective management of economic challenges.
  3. Auto Partner's growth strategy includes building new hubs, expanding branches, and increasing automation in warehouses and logistics to prepare for potential expansion into other verticals.

Meta (Facebook) Lesson 1: Corporate Governance

Musings on Markets • 779 implied HN points • 07 Nov 22
💼 Business Corporate Governance Investment Strategies Market Analysis Tech industry Financial Performance
  1. Corporate governance focuses on how companies are run and who gets to make decisions. It's important because when management and shareholder interests do not align, it can result in poor decisions that harm the company.
  2. Facebook's stock has dropped significantly because of issues like the slowdown in online advertising and reputational damage. These challenges highlight the need for better governance to adapt to changing market conditions.
  3. Investors often give up their voting power when companies use dual-class shares, which can limit their ability to influence management. This trend can make it harder to make necessary changes when a company's leadership is not effective.

CD PROJEKT RED - The AMEX of the Big Gaming Industry? (1Q23 Update)

Value Investing Substack • 196 implied HN points • 04 Jun 23
💼 Business Gaming Industry Financial Performance
  1. CD PROJEKT RED's Witcher 3 has sold over 50 million units, a significant milestone in the gaming industry.
  2. CD PROJEKT RED is highly anticipated for its upcoming expansion pack Phantom Liberty for Cyberpunk 2077, expected to be as large as the original game.
  3. The company is strategically focusing on projects like Project Polaris and Sirius within The Witcher franchise and shifting resources accordingly.

MercadoLibre, Inc Investment Thesis

The Wolf of Harcourt Street • 339 implied HN points • 24 Mar 23
💰 Finance Market Analysis Investment Strategies Financial Performance Business Analysis Risk Assessment
  1. MercadoLibre (MELI) is a Latin American e-commerce giant with remarkable growth, experiencing over 4,000% return in 16 years since its IPO.
  2. MELI's success is driven by a strong ecosystem of online commerce, digital payments, logistics, and advertising solutions.
  3. The company faces risks like regulatory changes, geopolitical instability, and increasing competition, but has growth opportunities in the unbanked market and logistics services.

FedEx's strategy is to be a tech company. Should you do the same?

Ruben Ugarte's Growth Needle™ • 39 implied HN points • 26 Mar 24
💼 Business Corporate strategy Technology Adoption Market Trends Innovation Financial Performance
  1. FedEx aims to be recognized as a tech company, showing how important a strategic identity can be. This might help them adapt and succeed in a tech-focused market.
  2. Tech companies like NVIDIA and Google lead the market with their innovative products, inspiring others to follow. Everyone wants to grab a piece of the tech pie because it's popular right now.
  3. Even companies that traditionally aren't tech-based, like FedEx, want to affiliate with the tech identity. This shift reflects a larger trend of blending traditional business with technology to stay competitive.

Deep Dive into DuPont

The Polymerist • 182 implied HN points • 20 Feb 24
💼 Business Chemicals Innovation Financial Performance Corporate strategy Mergers & Acquisitions
  1. DuPont started as a company selling explosives before pivoting to synthetic polymer chemistry in the 1920s, leading to significant innovations like Nylon and Teflon.
  2. Chemours was spun off from DuPont due to the controversy around environmental issues related to Teflon, resulting in significant legal liabilities.
  3. Despite its reputation as a specialty chemicals company, DuPont's financial reports show challenges in generating high profits, possibly due to a focus on commoditized products and significant settlements.

A Dream Indeed

The Radar • 39 implied HN points • 25 Apr 23
💼 Business Company Culture Corporate Governance Financial Performance
  1. Authenticity in workplace culture leads to better results and engagement. Employees feel a sense of safety, invest more time and energy, and focus on long-term goals.
  2. Honesty is essential for building trust and equality within teams. Open communication loops prevent insularity and negative outcomes, like the Enron scandal.
  3. Companies often sacrifice their values for shareholder interests. Boards prioritize shareholder value over principles, leading to short-term cost controls and reduced transparency.

Layoffs for what

SuperJoost Playlist • 19 implied HN points • 10 Aug 23
💼 Business Gaming Industry Financial Performance Investors Employment Stock Market
  1. Letting go of talent to improve share price performance is a common strategy in the gaming industry.
  2. Investors often value cost reductions and efficiencies in companies to impact profitability and share price.
  3. Reductions in workforce may lead to positive effects on share price value, but other external factors can also play a significant role.

Part 2: Deep dive writeup of Nubank ($NU)

Jonah’s Growth Stocks • 0 implied HN points • 04 Mar 23
💰 Finance Stocks Investing Earnings Reports Company analysis Financial Performance
  1. NU is a company with an IPO date of December 9, 2021, at $9.00 per share.
  2. NU has a market cap of $23.1 billion with a 52-week high of $8.47 and a 52-week low of $3.26.
  3. NU has positive net cash/debt of +$3.42 billion and an average analyst price target of $7.20, which is 45.7% higher than the current stock price.

The Jelly of the Month Club (Reprise)

The Radar • 0 implied HN points • 28 Mar 24
💼 Business Leadership Team performance Company Culture Financial Performance
  1. Amazon froze pay for thousands of managers despite record profits, causing surprise and disappointment among employees.
  2. Recognizing and rewarding employees for their contributions leads to higher job satisfaction, retention, and overall better company performance.
  3. Monetary recognition is preferred by employees over hollow gestures like office treats or parties.

GT Biopharma: A Pump-and-Dump Built on the Hopes of Dying Cancer Patients

funnybusiness • 0 implied HN points • 03 Sep 21
💰 Finance Financial Performance Investor Relations
  1. GT Biopharma has a long history of failures, with many unsuccessful product launches leading to massive losses.
  2. The company, under CEO Tony Cataldo, has never made a profit, has a significant accumulated deficit, and has awarded millions in stock-based compensation.
  3. Cataldo has a track record of aggressive stock promotion, insider dealing, and ties to shady characters, making GT Biopharma a risky investment.

Tesla's Travails: Curfew for a Corporate Teenager?

Musings on Markets • 0 implied HN points • 03 Jun 19
💼 Business Corporate strategy Market Analysis Financial Performance Valuation Techniques Investment Analysis
  1. Tesla has seen a huge increase in revenue, almost doubling thanks to the success of the Tesla Model 3. This shows that there is strong demand for electric cars.
  2. Despite this growth, Tesla is heavily in debt, which puts its future at risk. The company borrowed a lot to fund its growth, making it vulnerable if things don't go well.
  3. Elon Musk's unpredictable behavior, especially on social media, adds uncertainty to Tesla's stability. Investors often worry about his actions affecting the company's image and financial health.

January 2016 Data Update 5: Making a case for corporate governance

Musings on Markets • 0 implied HN points • 21 Jan 16
💼 Business Corporate Governance Investment Analysis Financial Performance Market Trends
  1. More than half of publicly traded companies don't make enough returns to cover their costs, meaning they might actually be losing value instead of gaining it.
  2. Some companies consistently make bad investment choices, but their managers often stay in place because it's hard to change leadership or hold them accountable in many parts of the world.
  3. Certain industries, like tobacco, perform much better than others, like oil, which struggled due to falling prices, showing there are businesses that keep failing while managers fail to recognize the problems.

No Light at the end of the Tunnel: Investing in Bad Businesses

Musings on Markets • 0 implied HN points • 25 May 15
💼 Business Investment Corporate strategy Market Analysis Financial Performance Risk management
  1. Businesses can be considered 'bad' if most companies in the industry regularly lose money. It's not enough for just a few companies to struggle; the whole sector needs to be underperforming.
  2. Companies might stick around in bad businesses because they hope things will improve or because it's hard to sell their assets at a good price. Sometimes, they also face pressure from other parties, like unions or governments.
  3. Investors might still invest in these bad businesses if the price is right. However, they need to be careful as putting money into struggling companies can turn out to be risky and often leads to more losses.

Acquisition Archives: Winners and Losers

Musings on Markets • 0 implied HN points • 02 Dec 12
💼 Business Mergers Acquisitions Corporate strategy Financial Performance Market Trends
  1. Acquisitions often don't benefit the buying company. When companies acquire others, their stock prices usually drop rather than rise.
  2. Most acquiring companies struggle to perform better after merging compared to their peers. Studies show a majority underperform in terms of profitability and stock price.
  3. Growth through acquisitions is often less effective than other strategies. Companies can create more value by developing new products instead of buying other companies.

Apple's Crown Jewel: Valuing the iPhone Franchise

Musings on Markets • 0 implied HN points • 29 Aug 12
💼 Business Market Analysis Corporate strategy Valuation Methods Financial Performance Investment Trends
  1. The iPhone makes a lot of money for Apple, generating $100 billion in sales and $21 billion in profits last year. It's a big part of why Apple is so valuable.
  2. Apple has a strong position in the growing smartphone market, selling about 20% of all smartphones while making 43% of the money in that market because of its higher prices.
  3. The iPhone has a short life cycle, meaning customers often wait for the next version. This puts pressure on Apple to keep improving and innovating to keep customers coming back.

Good companies in bad businesses

Musings on Markets • 0 implied HN points • 17 Nov 08
💼 Business Corporate strategy Economics Profitability Market structure Industry Analysis Economics Corporate strategy Market Analysis Industry Trends Financial Performance
  1. Some businesses are really tough, even for great companies. For example, many car manufacturers struggle to make a profit.
  2. Certain industries, like airlines and automobiles, face structural issues that make it hard for companies to succeed consistently. This can be due to factors like competition and high legacy costs.
  3. For consumers, it's important that these companies eventually find a way to make money. We rely on cars and airlines, so it's beneficial for them to be profitable.