Charles de Vaulx (Trades, Portfolio), portfolio manager of International Value Advisers, disclosed this week that he established six new positions for his IVA Worldwide Fund during the fourth quarter of 2019: Adtalem Global Education Inc. (ATGE, Financial), Bangkok Bank PCL (BKK:BBL-R), The Western Union Co. (WU, Financial), Publicis Groupe SA (XPAR:PUB, Financial), Dollar Tree Inc. (DLTR, Financial) and News Corp. (NWS, Financial).
Managing a portfolio of 74 stocks, de Vaulx employs a value-oriented investment approach, seeking investments in companies that have high financial strength, temporarily-depressed earnings and entrenched franchises. Prior to joining IVA, de Vaulx managed several funds for First Eagle Investment (Trades, Portfolio) and Sofire Fund Ltd.
As of quarter-end, the $3.30 billion equity portfolio has a turnover ratio of 6%. The top three sectors in terms of weight are financial services, consumer cyclical and industrials, with weights of 21.69%, 19.57% and 18%.
Adtalem
De Vaulx purchased 1,072,257 shares of Adtalem, giving the stake 1.14% weight in the equity portfolio. Shares averaged $34.37 during the quarter.
The Chicago-based company operates several colleges and universities that specialize in business, medicine, education and nursing degree programs. GuruFocus ranks Adtalem’s profitability 7 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include an operating margin that has increased approximately 11.70% per year on average over the past five years and is outperforming over 74% of global competitors.
John Rogers (Trades, Portfolio)’ Ariel Investment also purchased shares of Adtalem during the quarter.
Bangkok Bank
De Vaulx purchased 4,585,200 shares of Bangkok Bank, giving the position 0.74% weight in the equity portfolio. Shares averaged 170.49 baht ($5.39) during the quarter.
The Thai commercial bank provides a wide range of financial services, including corporate, commercial, business, consumer, international and investment banking. According to GuruFocus, Bangkok Bank’s equity-to-asset ratio of 0.13 outperforms 76.6% of global banks while the debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34 outperforms 68.83% of global competitors.
Western Union
De Vaulx purchased 704,403 shares of Western Union, giving the position 0.57% weight in the equity portfolio. Shares averaged $26.01 during the quarter.
The Denver-based company provides domestic and international money transfers through its global network of over 500,000 outside agents. GuruFocus ranks the company’s profitability 8 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a return on assets that outperforms 95.22% of global competitors and a three-year Ebitda growth rate that outperforms 82.69% of global credit service companies.
Publicis Groupe
De Vaulx purchased 373,183 shares of Publicis Groupe, giving the holding 0.51% weight in the equity portfolio. Shares averaged 39.75 euros ($44.52) during the quarter.
The French diversified media company provides a wide range of traditional and digital advertising services. GuruFocus ranks Publicis Groupe’s profitability 9 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a five-star business predictability rank and a return on equity that outperforms 81.44% of global competitors.
David Herro (Trades, Portfolio)’s Oakmark International Fund also purchased shares of Publicis Groupe during the quarter.
Dollar Tree
De Vaulx purchased 4,315 shares of Dollar Tree, with shares averaging $104.48 during the quarter.
The Chesapeake, Virginia-based company operates a wide network of Dollar Tree and Family Dollar discount stores. According to GuruFocus, the company’s operating margin of 6.78% outperforms 83.69% of global competitors, suggesting good profitability.
News
De Vaulx purchased 22,953 shares of News, with shares averaging $13.77 during the quarter.
The New York-based company operates a wide range of media brands, including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and the Herald Sun. According to GuruFocus, News’ financial strength ranks 6 out of 10 on the heels of debt ratios outperforming just around half of global competitors.
Disclosure: No positions.
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