Buy Sonata Software; target of Rs 380: HDFC Securities

HDFC Securities' research report on Sonata Software

Sonata� delivered� soft� 4QFY18� with� slight miss on both revenue and IITS margin.� International� IT� services� (IITS)� revenue� was� flat QoQ at USD 37.4mn,� below� our� estimate� of� USD� 38.9mn. Adjusting for one-time pass through� revenue� last� quarter,� QoQ IITS rev growth was 2.7%. IITS margin slipped� to� 19.8%� (vs.� our� est.� of� 21.0%)� despite higher off-shoring (+400bps QoQ). Travel (27% of rev, -3.6% QoQ) and Retail (25% of rev, -7.4% QoQ)� were under pressure while OPD (28% of rev) was flat QoQ. Focus on IPs and� Platforms� is driving Digital revenue (33% of rev, +3.1% QoQ, +23% YoY for FY18). Total revenue stood at Rs 6.26bn, down 18.4% QoQ, led by drop in Domestic Product & Services�� (DPS) rev (Rs 3.89bn, -26.7% QoQ).

Outlook

We expect IITS�� USD revenue to grow 14/15% with margin of 20/21% in FY19/20E. We like Sonata IP-focussed business model, capability to scale up� top-accounts,� quality� balance sheet (net cash of Rs 48/share, ~13% of Mcap), high RoE (~31%) and high dividend yield (~3.1%). Maintain BUY with a TP of Rs 380 based on 16x FY20 EPS.

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Read More First Published on May 31, 2018 04:27 pm

$0.27 Earnings Per Share Expected for FNB Co. (FNB) This Quarter

Equities analysts predict that FNB Co. (NYSE:FNB) will post earnings per share (EPS) of $0.27 for the current quarter, according to Zacks. Seven analysts have issued estimates for FNB’s earnings, with the lowest EPS estimate coming in at $0.26 and the highest estimate coming in at $0.28. FNB posted earnings per share of $0.23 during the same quarter last year, which indicates a positive year over year growth rate of 17.4%. The firm is expected to announce its next quarterly earnings report on Thursday, July 19th.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that FNB will report full year earnings of $1.12 per share for the current financial year, with EPS estimates ranging from $1.09 to $1.15. For the next financial year, analysts expect that the business will post earnings of $1.24 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $1.21 to $1.30. Zacks Investment Research’s EPS averages are a mean average based on a survey of analysts that that provide coverage for FNB.

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FNB (NYSE:FNB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.26. FNB had a return on equity of 7.37% and a net margin of 19.72%. The firm had revenue of $294.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $298.63 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.23 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on FNB shares. ValuEngine upgraded FNB from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 7th. Zacks Investment Research raised FNB from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $15.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, April 6th. Boenning Scattergood reissued a “buy” rating on shares of FNB in a research report on Tuesday, April 24th. TheStreet cut FNB from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $15.00 price target on shares of FNB in a research report on Wednesday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. FNB presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $16.29.

FNB stock traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $13.56. 1,966,925 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,230,293. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. FNB has a 1-year low of $12.02 and a 1-year high of $14.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.90.

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.54%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 31st. FNB’s dividend payout ratio is 51.61%.

In other news, Director Mary Jo Dively purchased 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $13.40 per share, with a total value of $40,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,680. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Stephen J. Gurgovits purchased 4,070 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $13.52 per share, with a total value of $55,026.40. Following the purchase, the chairman now owns 256,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,465,568.08. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 10,770 shares of company stock valued at $145,250 in the last three months. 0.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in FNB by 2.8% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,411,593 shares of the bank’s stock worth $18,986,000 after purchasing an additional 37,977 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its stake in FNB by 28.8% during the first quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 17,928 shares of the bank’s stock worth $241,000 after purchasing an additional 4,010 shares during the last quarter. Xact Kapitalforvaltning AB lifted its stake in FNB by 35.5% during the first quarter. Xact Kapitalforvaltning AB now owns 39,331 shares of the bank’s stock worth $529,000 after purchasing an additional 10,300 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in FNB by 1.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,849,468 shares of the bank’s stock worth $38,326,000 after purchasing an additional 39,539 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC lifted its stake in FNB by 36.7% during the first quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 11,698,305 shares of the bank’s stock worth $157,342,000 after purchasing an additional 3,139,400 shares during the last quarter. 79.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About FNB

F.N.B. Corporation, a financial holding company, provides a range of financial services primarily to consumers, corporations, governments, and small- to medium-sized businesses. The company operates through four segments: Community Banking, Wealth Management, Insurance, and Consumer Finance. It offers commercial banking solutions, including corporate and small business banking, investment real estate financing, business credit, capital market, and lease financing services.

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Fiat Chrysler Recalls 4.8 Million Cars Over Cruise-Control Flaw

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV recalled about 4.8 million U.S. vehicles to fix a software glitch that could keep a driver from being able to deactivate the cruise-control system.

The Italian-American automaker advised customers driving select Ram pickups, Jeep SUVs and Chrysler and Dodge brand models to avoid using cruise control until the software in their vehicles is upgraded. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued an advisory to “strongly encourage” that consumers follow the directive.

While the recall is significant because of the sheer number of vehicles -- the number of cars, SUVs and trucks involved exceed Fiat Chrysler’s total U.S. sales during the last two years -- the costs may be less severe because the repair involves a software fix. Fiat Chrysler said it’ll start alerting customers as soon as next week and that it’s unaware of any injuries or accidents related to the flaw.

The company’s U.S. shares extended their decline in early trading, falling as much as 3.9 percent, and were down 2.5 percent as of 9:25 a.m. in New York.

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The recall affects 15 models from as early as the 2014 model year to brand new vehicles and includes top sellers like the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Wrangler SUVs, Ram’s 1500 pickup and Chrysler’s Pacifica minivan.

Fiat Chrysler said that in certain driving conditions, its cruise control systems automatically initiate acceleration to maintain speed. In an “an unlikely sequence of events,” automatic acceleration could occur simultaneously with an electrical network short-circuit and could prevent a driver from being able to cancel cruise control, according to the company.

The automaker said that the cruise control acceleration can still be overpowered by braking.

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Renewable Energy Group Target of Unusually High Options Trading (REGI)

Renewable Energy Group Inc (NASDAQ:REGI) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders acquired 728 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 522% compared to the average daily volume of 117 call options.

Shares of Renewable Energy Group opened at $17.60 on Friday, according to Marketbeat.com. Renewable Energy Group has a one year low of $9.50 and a one year high of $17.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 1.45.

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Renewable Energy Group (NASDAQ:REGI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 8th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.44) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by ($0.47). The firm had revenue of $577.26 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $535.60 million. Renewable Energy Group had a net margin of 6.23% and a return on equity of 29.89%. analysts anticipate that Renewable Energy Group will post 1.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

In other Renewable Energy Group news, Director Delbert Christensen bought 7,441 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 16th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $11.60 per share, with a total value of $86,315.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 68,756 shares in the company, valued at $797,569.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Chad Stone bought 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $13.73 per share, with a total value of $27,460.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 104,245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,431,283.85. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders purchased 29,441 shares of company stock valued at $332,576. 1.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Renewable Energy Group during the 1st quarter worth about $131,000. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Renewable Energy Group during the 1st quarter worth about $149,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in shares of Renewable Energy Group during the 4th quarter worth about $140,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in shares of Renewable Energy Group by 73.1% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 11,887 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $140,000 after buying an additional 5,020 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Renewable Energy Group during the 4th quarter worth about $160,000.

REGI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. ValuEngine raised shares of Renewable Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 14th. Roth Capital set a $21.00 price objective on shares of Renewable Energy Group and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 17th. Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Renewable Energy Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 10th. Finally, BidaskClub raised shares of Renewable Energy Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $15.75.

About Renewable Energy Group

Renewable Energy Group, Inc produces and sells biofuels and renewable chemicals in North America. The company operates through Biomass-Based Diesel, Services, Renewable Chemicals, and Corporate and Other segments. It acquires feedstock; and manages construction and operates biomass-based diesel production facilities.

Kaplan sees another four rate hikes or so before Fed finishes its job

The Federal Reserve needs to raise interest rates about four more times before it reaches an equilibrium level, Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan said Thursday.

Speaking a day after the central bank released minutes from its May meeting, Kaplan said the Fed still has work to do before it can say that it has its benchmark funds rate at a level that is considered "neutral" for growth.

"My own view is we should be raising rates until we get to neutral," he told CNBC's Steve Liesman in a live interview from Dallas. "We should do it gradually. I'm not prepared to say yet I want to go above neutral."

The release of the minutes moved markets Wednesday afternoon, likely on commentary out of the meeting summary that indicated the policymaking Federal Open Market Committee, of which Kaplan is a nonvoting member, is willing to let inflation run a bit hotter than normal as the economy continues in recovery phase.

That could mean the Fed will take a more dovish approach to policy, holding off on raising rates even if inflation climbs above the FOMC's 2 percent target.

Kaplan said he is in the camp that would be willing to let conditions heat up a bit.

"I want to run around 2, and if we got a little bit above it and I thought it would be short-term and not long-term, I could tolerate it," he said during the "Squawk Box" interview. "If I thought it would persist I think it would affect my policy views."

On top of the increase already approved in March, market participants widely expect the Fed to hike its benchmark rate a quarter-point in June, followed by another move in September. However, traders have sharply pared back expectations for a fourth move in December. Last week the market saw chances of a fourth increase above 50 percent; that fell to just above 40 percent as of Thursday morning.

Fed officials have been discussing where they might reach a "neutral" rate that is neither stimulative nor restrictive. Kaplan said he estimates that is between 2.5 percent and 2.75 percent, compared to the 1.5 percent to 1.75 percent current target range.

On a separate matter, Kaplan said he is watching conditions in emerging economies such as Turkey and Argentina and the effects that Fed rate increases have in those parts of the world. He said that Fed tightening could trigger restraints on capital flows.

"If that get pronounced enough, that could lead to a rapid tightening in conditions in the United States, which in turn could slow the economy," he said.

Facebook's controversial 'revenge porn' pilot program is coming to the US, UK

Facebook's controversial pilot program to cut down on the spread of revenge porn is rolling out to more countries with a slightly revised process.

The company received flak for its pilot to fight revenge porn when it was announced in November. It asked users in Australia to send their intimate photos to themselves so Facebook could register and block them from ever being posted by other users.

Revenge porn is the term for the spread of intimate, nude or sexual images that are distributed without a person's consent -- and it is an epidemic in Australia. One in five Australians between the ages of 16 and 49 are affected, according to a recent study.

Now, users will reach out to one of Facebook's partners -- such as the Australian Office of the eSafety Commissioner, The National Network to End Domestic Violence in the US and the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative, to obtain an online form requesting to submit revenge porn photos.

Users will be sent a link to a secure email address to then upload photos.

A Facebook spokesperson said the forms will be securely shared with Facebook, and a "very small team" will have access to the photos. The team will review and "hash" the image -- a process of creating and storing a numerical fingerprint of the photo to prevent anyone from uploading it across Facebook, Messenger or Instagram. Once hashed, Facebook said the photo will be deleted within a week.

The new process applies to Australian users, as well as users in the US, U.K. and Canada.

Antigone Davis, Facebook's global head of safety, described in a blog post on Tuesday how her team traveled to nine countries across four continents to learn more about the abuse and cruelty that women face online.

"From Kenya to Sweden, women shared their painful, eye-opening experiences about having their most intimate moments shared without permission," wrote Davis. "From anxiety and depression to the loss of a personal relationship or a job, this violation of privacy can be devastating."

One in eight American social media users has been a target of nonconsensual pornography, according to a 2017 study conducted by the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative.

Both men and women are victims of online harassment, but women are much more likely to receive sexualized forms of online abuse, according to the Pew Research Center.

In the US, there is no federal law against revenge porn, just a patchwork of state laws.

In addition to banning nudity on its platform, Facebook says it removes intimate images that are not consensually shared as it becomes aware of them. But content moderation is partly a volume issue. Millions of content reports flood its system weekly.

Facebook declined to share numbers for how many users have participated in its Australia program, but the spokesperson said it is encouraged by the feedback it has received from safety experts and partners.

Analysis: 3 tough questions after US-China trade truce

The United States and China have hit pause on a potential a trade war. Now comes the hard part.

After high-level talks in Washington, the world's two largest economies are putting threats of tariffs on hold while they try to deal with the issues that fueled recent clashes.

China has promised to increase its purchases of US exports significantly, but experts and senior officials say the key problems remain unresolved.

"This is unlikely to be the end of tension between the two countries," said Tai Hui, chief market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management in Hong Kong.

Here's where the difficulties are likely to arise.

1. Will China address US allegations of technology theft?

The United States' threat to impose steep tariffs on as much as $150 billion of Chinese goods resulted from an investigation into how China gets it hands on American technology.

Those issues, which include US companies being pressured to hand over tech secrets in exchange for access to China's huge market, haven't gone away, US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in a statement Sunday.

"Real work still needs to be done to achieve changes in a Chinese system that facilitates forced technology transfers in order to do business in China," said Lighthizer, who also complained about "the theft of our companies' intellectual property and business know-how."

"Tens of millions of American jobs" could be at stake, he added.

US officials are particularly concerned about China's industrial plans including "Made in 2025," which seeks to pump hundreds of billions of dollars into high-tech industries like robotics, electric cars and computing with the aim of becoming a global leader in those fields.

But experts are skeptical that China will agree to change those plans, which it sees as central to its continued economic development.

"It isn't a line in the sand. It's a line set in stone. That's not even on the table," said Andrew Polk, co-founder of Beijing-based consultancy Trivium China. "It's China's plan to win the future."

2. Will US be able to make a dent in the giant trade gap?

China's pledge to significantly boost its purchases of American goods and services touches on a key demand from the Trump administration.

But experts are skeptical that the United States will be able to get Beijing to significantly close its $375 billion trade surplus. The US demand for a reduction of $200 billion was "practically impossible," said Louis Kuijs, head of Asia Economics for research firm Oxford Economics.

The difficulty of achieving a big change in the headline number could result in "disappointment on the US side," he wrote in a note to clients.

President Donald Trump's top economic adviser, Larry Kudlow, said Sunday on ABC that $200 billion is "a number that interests the president a lot." But Beijing has shot down suggestions it put a dollar figure on its offer.

A US team will travel to China to work out the details of increased Chinese buying in areas like energy and agriculture.

JPMorgan's Hui said tensions could flare up again if the United States thinks China is "dragging its feet on fulfilling its pledges."

Adding to the potential risks, Oxford Economics predicts that the US trade deficit with the rest of the world is set to rise by another $100 billion this year because of the Trump administration's moves to cut taxes and boost spending.

US trade with China, explained

3. What happens to ZTE?

Uncertainty also hangs over the fate of Chinese tech company ZTE (ZTCOF), which was hit last month by a US Commerce Department ban preventing it from buying vital parts from American companies.

Beijing has been pressing during the trade talks for Washington to lift the ban, which the company says has brought its factories to a standstill.

US officials said they imposed the ban because ZTE failed to comply with the terms of a deal last year under which it admitted to violating sanctions on Iran and North Korea.

Trump undermined that position last week when he announced he was working to help the company back into business and linked it to a "larger trade deal" he said was being negotiated with China.

But his comments sparked a backlash in Washington. And there was no mention of ZTE in the two countries' joint statement on the trade talks, keeping the company in limbo.

ZTE "may be part of the overall trade discussion, but it really is an enforcement action" being managed by the Commerce Department, Kudlow told ABC.

"Do not expect ZTE to get off scot-free," he added. "It ain't gonna happen."

Nutanix (NTNX) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Analysts

Nutanix (NASDAQ:NTNX) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the twenty-four research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $52.53.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on NTNX. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Nutanix from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Nutanix from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo increased their price target on shares of Nutanix from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 10th. Robert W. Baird reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $61.00 price target on shares of Nutanix in a research note on Thursday, May 10th. Finally, ValuEngine raised shares of Nutanix from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 2nd.

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In other news, Director Jeffrey T. Parks sold 1,858,951 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.94, for a total transaction of $70,528,600.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Sudheesh Nair Vadakkedath sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.94, for a total transaction of $1,357,600.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,458,246 shares of company stock valued at $99,766,863 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 19.81% of the company’s stock.

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in shares of Nutanix by 1.6% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 101,523 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,986,000 after buying an additional 1,595 shares during the last quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Nutanix by 7.1% during the first quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 27,197 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,336,000 after buying an additional 1,798 shares during the last quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Nutanix by 1.6% during the first quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 123,290 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $6,055,000 after buying an additional 1,910 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its holdings in shares of Nutanix by 9.0% during the first quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 23,880 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,173,000 after buying an additional 1,972 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Nutanix by 1,600.0% during the first quarter. Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. now owns 2,125 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 43.86% of the company’s stock.

Nutanix traded down $0.06, reaching $58.24, during trading on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The company had a trading volume of 1,684,475 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,954,870. Nutanix has a 52 week low of $15.85 and a 52 week high of $60.00. The company has a market cap of $9.42 billion, a P/E ratio of -17.49 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 3.10 and a quick ratio of 3.10.

Nutanix (NASDAQ:NTNX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 1st. The technology company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the Zacks’ consensus estimate of ($0.20) by $0.06. Nutanix had a negative net margin of 33.34% and a negative return on equity of 196.67%. The company had revenue of $286.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $283.22 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.28) earnings per share. Nutanix’s revenue was up 44.1% on a year-over-year basis. equities research analysts expect that Nutanix will post -1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nutanix Company Profile

Nutanix, Inc develops and provides an enterprise cloud operating system software. It offers enterprise applications, virtual desktop infrastructure, virtualization and cloud, big data, remote and branch office IT, and data protection and disaster recovery solutions; and hardware platforms and software options; and support and services.

Procter & Gamble Now at 5 Weeks as Dow’s Worst Performing Stock

Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG) posted a slim share price gain of 0.1% last week, not enough to shake off the company’s ranking as the worst performing Dow Jones industrial stock of this year. So far in 2018, the shares have lost 20.1%. This is P&G’s fifth consecutive week as the Dow’s worst stock for the year.

The second-worst Dow stock so far this year is 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM), which is down 15.5%. That is followed by Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT), down 15.3%, General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE), down 14.2%, and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), down 11.1%. Dow losers outnumber winners for the year to date by a score of 18 to 12.

The Dow dropped 116.08 points over the course of the past week to close at 24,715.09, down about 0.4% for the week. For the year to date, the consumer staples sector was down 13.7%, the worst performing among the 10 market sectors.

P&G’s share price hit a weekly low early Tuesday morning, tracking the Dow’s movement almost exactly. Then it bounced about twice as high, before dropping sharply again on Friday.

There are few tailwinds in the consumer staples sector. Its �� and P&G’s �� saving grace is its massive cash flow, according to a report Saturday morning in Barron’s. P&G pays a dividend yield of almost 4% at Friday’s closing price, and the company has boosted its payout every year for 62 consecutive years.

It’s that dividend that makes stocks like P&G stand out, and a patient investor is also likely to see share price growth that could boost the total return on some consumer staples stocks to as much as 10%. P&G’s $4 billion acquisition of Merck KGaA’s consumer-health unit is intended to raise the firm’s cash flow and boost margins, but not this year and maybe not by much next year.

But as CFRA analyst Keith Snyder told Barron’s: “I don’t mind sitting on a 4% dividend yield waiting for [top-line growth] to happen.”

Procter & Gamble stock closed at $73.45 on Friday, down about 0.7% for the day, in a 52-week trading range of $70.73 to $94.67. The 12-month consensus price target on the stock is $81.79, unchanged from the prior week, and the forward price-earnings ratio is 16.43.

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