BP plc (ADR) (NYSE:BP)
Veritas purchased an additional 25% of BP shares; the holding represented 4.32% of the fund manager’s total portfolio. The firm initiated its stake in the second quarter of the previous year and has since been buying additional shares. BP has shown a remarkable improvement in terms of its EPS. In fact, the third quarter report has surpassed consensus by a wide margin of 25%. The earnings forecast for the company is as high as 13.93% in 2015.
Source: Finviz.com
Meanwhile, BP remains undervalued with its estimated P/E ratio at 8.15 and PEG of 1.71. The company remains financially sound with its current debt ratio of 0.42. It has also made remarkable improvements in its dividend payment. It is recalled that the amount had drastically declined in 2011 from a peak of $0.84 per share in 2010. The latest dividend paid by BP was $0.54, which is nearing its 2006 levels. With such a performance and the recent liberating decision coming from the US Department of Justice over the oil spill cases in the Gulf of Mexico, BP is becoming a good-looking addition to an investor’s portfolio.
UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE:UNH)
Veritas increased its shares in Unitedhealth Group by 9%; it initiated this position in the fourth quarter of 2011. UNH has encouraging growth prospects. Estimates show that EPS growth this year is at 11.68% and will likely to be sustained in the next 5 years. UnitedHealth, a company that offers diversified health services, had surpassed consensus for its quarterly earnings three times in 2012. This is attributed to its robust sales performance. In fact, the quarterly revenue is up 11% year-on-year. The P/E ratio of 10.46 and PEG of 0.90 make UNH a healthy addition to an investor’s portfolio.
Source: Finviz.com
UNH is also a top dividend stock. It exhibited an outstanding increase in payment from a mere $0.03 in the first quarter of 2010 to $0.125 in the subsequent quarter. In the past 2 years, the annualized dividend has been rising at an average rate of 34%. It offers an undoubtedly attractive opportunity for income-seeking investors.
Source: Nasdaq.com
Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)
Veritas purchased 39,100 shares of Google in the fourth quarter; the holding represented 10.44% of the firm’s portfolio. It initiated the stake in the fourth quarter of 2011, and has since been consistently increasing its shares in the company. Google continues to amass revenues; the quarterly amount has grown by 36.23% year-over-year based on a Finviz.com compilation. The EPS growth estimate for next year is 17.51% and this double-digit growth is expected for the next 5 years.
Source: Finviz.com
The giant tech company operates at a net margin of 21.50%. Its healthy P/E ratio of 23.28 and PEG of 1.58 show encouraging growth prospects for Google. Meanwhile, Google’s futuristic Google Glass is currently on the table of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for review. The Internet-connected headset has Wi-Fi as well as Bluetooth radios.
Indeed, Veritas shows in its recent moves its exemplary management strategies. I believe each of these buys provides great opportunities for growth that every investor has to consider.
The article Big Buys of Veritas Asset Management originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Aubrey Tabuga.
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