Columbia Wanger (Trades, Portfolio) Asset Management has identified a number of bargain stocks with consistent growth in revenue per share.
The Chicago-based investment company posted its greatest estimated gains of up to 60% in four undervalued stocks. The investments have high holding periods.
Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste SAB de CV (ASR, Financial) has posted an estimated gain of 24% since Columbia Wanger initiated the position in the first quarter of 2013. It now holds 2% portfolio space.
The asset manager bought and sold hundreds of thousands of shares for approximately five years. The Mexican airport operator now fills 2% of the portfolio space, bringing its total holding to 435,000 shares. Asur, as it is called, is discounted by 41%. It is headquartered in Mexico City.
Columbia Wanger made an estimated gain of 60% on the stock of subprime auto lender Credit Acceptance Corp. (CACC, Financial) after an initial buy in the first quarter of last year. It holds about 109,000 shares of the stock, taking up 0.53% portfolio space. It is discounted by 51%.
Amerco Inc. (UHAL, Financial) is selling at a 71% discount. Columbia Wanger first bought 45,000 shares of the company in the fourth quarter of 2013. It now holds more than 32,700 shares. It has made an estimated gain of 59% since the initial purchase. Amerco is the parent company of U-Haul.
The asset manager now holds more than 985,000 shares of Gentex Corp. (GNTX, Financial). It held, at one point, over 10 million shares since the third quarter of 2014. Overall, Gentex has produced an estimated gain of 3% and is discounted by 36%. Michigan-based Gentex is the maker of automatic-dimming rear-view mirror and camera-based driver assistance systems for the automotive industry.
Columbia Wanger adheres to a “disciplined” approach to investments. It identifies risks to pursue consistent returns. It also interprets economic and market trends and provides recognized thought leadership. It manages a $6.7 billion portfolio, which is composed of a total of 212 stocks.
The portfolio is distributed across various sectors, including technology (21.9%), health care (21.5%), consumer cyclical (19.5%), industrials (17.4%) and financial services (9.6%). The remainder is in real estate, basic materials and energy.
Other bargain stocks in its portfolio include Snap-on Inc. (SNA), Ulta Beauty (ULTA), Leggett & Platt Inc. (LEG), Dorman Products Inc. (DORM) and Tractor Supply Co. (TSCO).
Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste SAB de CV
Asur serves about 23 million passengers every year. It operates airports in tourist destinations, including Cancun, Veracruz, Cozumel and Oaxaca.
The company’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization per share has been on an upswing for the last decade. Preliminary results show $25.21 per share, up from the prior year's $15.86 per share.
In the trailing 12 months, revenue per share grew by 28% for the company. GuruFocus identified declining gross and operating margins.
It has a market cap of $5 billion.
Shares stood at $172.78, down 2.68%, on Thursday.
Credit Acceptance Corp.
The company’s EBITDA per share is 36.84%, signifying steady growth over the last 15 years. The Michigan-based company was resilient during the financial crisis of 2008.
It reported $56.75 in revenue per share in 2017, a rise from $47.49 in the prior year.
It has a market cap of $6.49 billion. Some red flags to consider: Debt has risen to $1.3 billion over the past three years, while 38.77% of the float is shorted. Operating margins have also declined.
The Peter Lynch chart suggests its stock is undervalued. The median is $360 a share while its sale price is $334. On Thursday, it was trading at $333.70 a share, down 0.97%. Its price-earnings ratio is 13.96.
Amerco Inc.
The parent company of U-Haul has seen its revenue per share grow by 6.4% in the last decade. EBIDTA per share has grown steadily over the last decade. Its EBIDTA per share in 2017 saw a slight decrease, however, to $62.28 from $63.93 in the prior year. In 2015, EBITDA per share was at $51.
The Nevada-based company has a price-earnings ratio of 8.54 versus an industry median of 17.07. It has a price-book ratio of 2 versus an industry median of 1.78. On Thursday, its stock was at $342 a share, down .02%.
The company has a market cap of $6.7 billion. Earnings per share were $20.34 in 2017.
Operating margins also have been rising since 2003. The company reported a slight dip in 2017 to 21.69%, compared to 26.46% in 2016.
Gentex Corp.Ă‚
Gentex has a market cap of $6.36 billion and a price-earnings ratio of 16.54. EBITDA per share has been steadily growing over the last decade to $2.16 a share in 2017. The company’s revenues have also been on the rise, standing at $6.23 a share in 2017, up from $5.77 per share in 2016.
Shares on Thursday stood at $23.16 a share, down 1.53%.
Its operating margins have been hovering around 29% since 2014.
