Beautify Your Portfolio With This Small-Cap
The other day I was looking at vitamin stocks that are benefiting from consumer (and investor) demand for healthy living products. Trends in this segment of consumer stocks are showing that even in a high unemployment environment, people are still making sure that their well-being is a priority.
Regardless of what this morning’s University of Michigan Consumer Survey says – preliminary numbers for November show that consumer sentiment dropped to 66 from October’s reading of 70.6 - it seems consumers are willing to spend money to be well, both inside and out.
As an investor you can benefit too, by buying shares in those companies that are winning customers over with products that promise a better look.
Check out Revlon (NYSE: REV) for instance – this $770 million market cap consumer goods company has seen shares surged 220% since October 1. The New York City based company makes, markets, and sells a range of women’s cosmetics, hair-care, beauty-care, and skin-care products.
We’re not talking about a high margin business here - Revlon has a paltry 3.7% profit margin over the last twelve months. But the company is firing on all cylinders – it generated free cash flow for the first time since its IPO in 1996 and has grabbed 22.3% market share in lip makeup – good enough to put it back at number one.
Revlon has grown 2009 earnings at a clip of 304% over 2008, reporting EPS of $0.45 in the third quarter. Trailing 12-month earnings are $0.92 per share – not bad for a company that analysts had expected to lose $0.47 per share in the last three quarters.
At today’s price of $15.10, investor’s can by shares of Revlon at 16.5 times trailing 12-month earnings – a significant discount to large-cap competitor Estee Lauder (NYSE: EL). This stock is trading near its 52-week high, but it’s expensive with a trailing earnings multiple of 30.
Revlon is getting its debt load in order – and the results are paying off, literally. On November 9 the company received lender consent to issue $330 million in senior-secured debt, due in 2015. This allowed the company to refinance its high-interest debt that had been due April 2011.
The stock surged 38% after these financing moves. Many other companies have been forced to dilute shareholder value with equity offerings, only to be rewarded with crushed share prices.
Clearly, the fact that Revlon was able to refinance and sell debt in an economy where credit has been tight – especially for notes that Moody’s rates B3, or ‘junk’ – is a testament to the company’s strength.
It just goes to show you, even in an environment of high unemployment, people want to take care of themselves. And perhaps you can help take care of your investment portfolio with health and beauty stocks like Revlon. Stay tuned, I’ll be highlighting more stocks in this sector in the weeks to come.
About the Author
Ian Wyatt is a co-founder and President of Business Financial Publishing and the Chief Investment Strategist and Publisher of SmallCapInvestor.com and SmallCapInvestor.com PRO.
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