To The Moon

• Pizza Pizza reported strong same-store sales growth, fueling the royalty company’s dividend payout.
• Pembina reported a mixed quarter, and we expect management to show EPS growth from its acquisition.
• Home Depot reported a mixed quarter as we see the effects of high interest rates, but we like the company’s strategic move of acquiring SRS Distribution.
• Palo Alto Networks beat on the top and bottom lines, but the company did not meet our expectations with its tepid outlook.
• Nvidia reported a blowout quarter and continues to defy skeptics with its outsized growth in artificial intelligence.
• Veeva Systems reported a solid quarter with margin expansion, but management cut its financial outlook.

Pizza Pizza Royalty (PZA.TO): Pizza Pizza Royalty Corp reported its first-quarter earnings for the fiscal year 2024. The company announced earnings per share (EPS) of C$0.23 (in line with Wall Street estimates)for the quarter. Total revenue for the quarter was reported at C$148.9 million (missed Wall Street estimates by $800k). The company revenue growth of 4.32% was driven by same-store sales growth of 1.7%, with Pizza Pizza restaurants reporting a 0.6% growth and Pizza 73 restaurants reporting an 8.5% growth. Pizza Pizza Royalty Corp experienced its 13th quarter of positive same-store sales growth. Growth was attributed to increases in both guest traffic and the average customer check. Five restaurants were added to the royalty restaurant network during the quarter.

Despite a typically slower first quarter, the company reported positive sales in a challenging economic environment. The company returned C$5.2 million to shareholders, a payout of 122%, up from 104% in the same period last year. The payout ratio reflects how dividend-friendly the company is for shareholders. The working capital reserve was C$7.2 million, down from C$8.2 million during the same period last year. This was a solid quarter for the Pizza Pizza franchise restaurant, given that the period covered Canada’s cold/harsh weather.

Pembina Pipeline Corporation (PBA): Pembina Pipeline Corporation reported a solid first quarter in FY2024, with a record adjusted EBITDA of $1.044 billion and earnings per share (EPS) of $0.54, aligning with the consensus estimate. Revenue for the quarter was reported at $1.14 billion, which did not meet the analyst estimates of $1.83 billion. Despite Pembina having record EBITDA, the company headline numbers were disappointing compared to our estimates. We estimated that the pipeline company would earn $0.62/share from a revenue base of $1.89 billion. The company reported a revenue decline of 4.8% despite volumes being up. The company highlighted the completion of the Alliance and Aux Sable acquisition as a significant event that aligns with Pembina’s growth strategy.

The company’s margin expanded, showing management controls costs and executes well. The gross margin was 47.4%, up from 41.5%, and the net income margin expanded to 28.4% from 22.8%. The free cash flow declined from $321 million to $250 million as the company had to pay higher taxes. Despite declining free cash flow, the company raised its dividend by 3.9%, and the debt level still looks good. Pembina’s leadership expressed enthusiasm for the future, citing recent industry developments and company successes as momentum builders. This sentiment raised management outlook, seeing the Alliance and Aux Sable acquisition as accretive. Overall, Pembina reported a mixed quarter, and we look forward to the synergies the acquisition will bring to the company’s earnings power.

The Home Depot Inc. (HD): The Home Depot Inc. reported sales of $36.4 billion for the first quarter of fiscal 2024, a decrease of 2.3% from the first quarter of fiscal 2023. This was mainly attributed to the company’s comparable sales decreasing by 2.8%, with a more significant decrease in the U.S. at 3.2%. The reduction in sales shows that the high-interest environment is a headwind for the company. Net earnings for the first quarter were reported at $3.6 billion, or $3.63 per diluted share (beat Wall Street estimates by $0.04), compared to $3.9 billion, or $3.82 per diluted share, during the same period last year. Despite declining sales and earnings, The Home Depot reaffirmed its fiscal 2024 guidance, including a projected total sales growth of approximately 1.0%, factoring in an additional 53rd week of operations. The 53rd week is expected to add roughly $2.3 billion to total sales and contribute about $0.30 to the diluted earnings per share.

The company plans to open approximately 12 new stores and expects a gross margin of around 33.9% and an operating margin of roughly 14.1%. The Home Depot’s tax rate is projected to be around 24.5%, with net interest expenses estimated at $1.8 billion for the fiscal year. The acquisition of SRS Distribution Inc. is anticipated, although it has not been finalized. Thus, the current guidance does not reflect any impacts from this potential acquisition. Looking at the reported quarter, Home Depot had a gross profit margin of 34.1% (up from 33.7%), while the operating margin contracted by 100 basis points to 13.9%. A contributor to the operating margin contraction can be attributed to the company’s SG&A expenses growing 4.9%. Home Depot’s free cash flow came in at $4.65 billion, down from $4.71 billion, and the cash paid to shareholders decreased to $2.9 billion from $5 billion a year ago. Overall, this was a mixed quarter for Home Depot, and we like the company’s acquisition of SRS to increase its foothold in the contractor offerings.

Palo Alto Networks (PANW): Palo Alto Networks reported a successful fiscal third quarter in 2024 with top and bottom line beats. The company reported a revenue of $1.98 billion (beating Wall Street estimates by $10 million)for the quarter, indicating a robust financial performance. Earnings per share (EPS) of $1.32 exceeded the analyst estimate of $1.25. Compared to our fund estimates, Palo Alto’s headline numbers came in a bit light of our expectations of earnings of $1.36/share from a revenue basis of $2 billion. This shows that Palo Alto is facing increased competition in cybersecurity despite the industry’s secular growth. The company reported a year-over-year percent revenue growth of 15.3%, with the subscription segment being the biggest driver, with growth of 19.6%. The product revenue segment experienced stagnant revenue growth due to the company’s emphasis on transitioning to subscription-based services.

The company’s operating margin grew to 8.9% from 4.6%, while the net income margin was 14%, up from 6.3%. The net income margin increased as the company’s short-term investments helped increase Palo Alto’s Other Income by 27.8% on higher interest rates. The company increased its R&D and Sales & Marketing spending as competition heats up. The company’s focus on platformization and AI-infused security is part of the increased R&D spend. The remaining performance obligation, representing the company’s backlog, grew by 23% yearly to $11.3 billion. The free cash flow shows that Palo Alto Networks had year-to-date free cash flow generated of $2.64 billion, up from $2.25 billion. This increased free cash flow allowed the company to purchase $2.49 billion in short-term investments.

For the upcoming fiscal fourth quarter of 2024, PANW expects total billings from $3.43 billion to $3.48 billion and total revenue between $2.15 billion to $2.17 billion. The projected diluted non-GAAP net income per share for the fiscal fourth quarter is between $1.40 to $1.42. For the full fiscal year 2024, PANW updated its guidance with expected total billings between $10.13 billion to $10.18 billion and total revenue from $7.99 billion to $8.01 billion. Investors saw this as a tepid outlook, showing that Palo Alto has difficulty closing some big deals. The stock sold off on the earnings release because the tepid outlook shows deceleration, but companies are scrutinizing its enterprise spending. Cybersecurity is a necessity that will benefit Palo Alto Networks in the long run. We took advantage of the sell-off in the stock to add to our stock position.

NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA): NVIDIA reported a record quarterly revenue of $26.0 billion (beating Wall Street estimates by $1.45 billion) for the first quarter of fiscal year 2025, which is an 18% increase from the previous quarter and a 262% increase from the previous year. GAAP earnings per diluted share were reported at $5.98, up 21% from the last quarter and 629% from the prior year. Non-GAAP earnings per diluted share were slightly higher at $6.12 (beat Wall Street estimates by $0.54), up 19% from the preceding quarter and 461% from the previous year. Compared to our fund estimates, Nvidia blew away our expectations of earnings of $5.75/share from a revenue base of $24.8 billion. This reflects that the company is benefiting from this new frontier of artificial intelligence and continues to be the number one AI chip company.

The company’s Data Center revenue reached a new high of $22.6 billion, marking a 23% increase from the last quarter and a staggering 427% increase from last year. NVIDIA’s growth can be attributed to the strong demand for generative AI training and inference on the Hopper platform, with CEO Jensen Huang stating that AI will bring significant productivity gains across industries. The company’s gross profit margin came in at 78.9%, up from 66.8% a year ago, and exceeded our fund estimate of 76.7%. Nvidia’s operating margin came in at 64.9%, up from 29.8%, despite the company’s increased R&D spend of 31% as it looks to produce the next generation AI chip. The company announced a ten-for-one forward stock split to make stock ownership more accessible, with the split expected to commence trading on a split-adjusted basis on June 10, 2024. NVIDIA also raised its quarterly cash dividend by 150% to $0.01 per share on a post-split basis, reflecting confidence in the company’s financial health and prospects.

Regarding free cash flow, Nvidia generated $14.98 billion, up from $2.66 billion. Overall, Nvidia is firing on all cylinders, and this earnings report shows the run-up in the stock price. The company has emerged as an early leader in the AI industry, but concerns about the sustainability of its earnings may put pressure on the stock price in the future. However, for now, Nvidia is the premier stock to own in the AI space.

Veeva Systems (VEEV): Veeva Systems reported a solid start to fiscal year 2025 with its first-quarter earnings. The company’s earnings per share (EPS) were $1.50, exceeding the analyst estimate of $1.43. Total revenue for the quarter was $650.35 million, surpassing the analyst estimate of $642.02 million. The company’s earnings exceeded our fund estimate of $1.47 per share, but the revenue number missed our estimate of $660 million. Given the increased activity in the biotechnology and life science space, we expected the company to accelerate its revenue growth. Veeva reported revenue growth of 23.6%, which was driven by the Subscription services revenue, which saw a significant increase to $534.0 million, marking a 29% year-over-year growth. The Professional Services & Other segment had growth of 4%.

Operating income also showed remarkable growth, with a 152% increase year-over-year to $155.2 million. The operating income represents a margin of 23.9%, which increased from 11.7%, as the company increased its R&D spending by 10.7%. Net income rose to $161.7 million, a 23% increase from the previous year. However, on the margin, the net income margin slightly contracted to 24.9% as the company’s income tax expense increased by $84.9 million. The free cash flow was solid as the company generated $755 million, up from $503 million, which allowed the company to purchase $777 million in short-term investments and take advantage of the high interest rates. Management lowered its financial outlook for the fiscal year, disappointing investors and making the stock sell-off on the news. We think the stock remains a hold for us, and we would add more if the sell-off continued.

Disclosure: Cresco Investments is long Pizza Pizza Royalty Corp. (PZA.TO), Pembina Pipeline Corporation (PBA), The Home Depot Inc. (HD), Palo Alto Networks Inc. (PANW), Nvidia Corporation (NVDA) and Veeva Systems (VEEV).

I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Additional disclosure: This article is intended for information, engagement & entertainment purposes only and is not to be construed as investment advice or direction. Investors are strongly encouraged to perform due diligence and consult with their financial advisor(s).