Charles Brandes (Trades, Portfolio), chairman of Brandes Investment Partners, invests in companies using a Graham-style approach. During fourth-quarter 2017, the guru initiated 45 new positions, including Comcast Corp. (CMCSA, Financial). Brandes' top three buys are Celestica Inc. (CLS, Financial), Avadel Pharmaceuticals PLC (AVDL, Financial) and Edgewell Personal Care Co. (EPC, Financial).
Comcast
Brandes invested in 116,178 shares of Comcast for an average price of $37.59 per share. The guru increased his portfolio 0.09% with this transaction.
Comcast, the holding company for NBC, said full-year consolidated revenues increased to $84.5 million, up 5.1% from the prior year. CEO Brian Roberts said the company has “significant momentum” going forward as the company markets “new innovations, experiences and must-see content” to global audiences. GuruFocus ranks Comcast’s business predictability four stars out of five as the company has consistent revenue and earnings growth.
Celestica
Brandes invested in 3,648,707 shares of Celestica for an average price of $11.07 per share. With this transaction, the guru increased his portfolio 0.77%.
Celestica provides supply chain solutions to customers from a wide variety of industries. The company has four positive investing signs, including expanding operating margins and price-sales ratios near a five-year low. Despite this, Celestica’s profitability ranks a modest 6 out of 10 as its profit margins underperform 63% of global competitors.
Avadel Pharmaceuticals
Brandes invested in 3,308,250 shares of Avadel Pharmaceuticals for an average price of $9.38 per share. With this transaction, the guru increased his portfolio 0.55%.
Avadel, an Irish specialty pharmaceutical company, markets various products, including controlled-release therapeutic products based on proprietary drug delivery technologies in the U.S. The company has a strong financial strength rank of 7, driven by low debt-to-equity ratios and robust interest coverage.
Edgewell Personal Care
Brandes invested in 415,103 shares of Edgewell Personal Care for an average price of $63 per share. With this transaction, the guru increased his portfolio 0.50%.
Edgewell Personal Care markets various personal care products, ranging from skin care to infant care. The company has a modest financial strength rank of 5: although the company’s Piotroski F-score ranks a solid 7 out of 9, Edgewell’s Altman Z-score of 1.73 implies moderate financial distress.
See also
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Disclosure: No positions.
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