1.2 Million Room Assignments in a Second: Marriott, Highgate on Hotels and AI
Hotels are seen as being behind on AI. But we're beginning to see more experiments and how tech can improve service.
AI may one day transform hotels, but Marriott's global tech chief says any innovation must keep guests at the center.
Naveen Manga, global chief technology officer for Marriott International, and Kurien Jacob, partner and managing director at Highgate Technology Ventures, said AI should be used to improve the human experience.
"I would love to wake up a couple years from now in a world where AI-assisted hospitality is immersive, is personalized, and unmistakably human," Manga said at the recen
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Yahoo
15 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Universal Health Services, Inc.'s (NYSE:UHS) Intrinsic Value Is Potentially 34% Above Its Share Price
Universal Health Services' estimated fair value is US$229 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity Universal Health Services is estimated to be 25% undervalued based on current share price of US$172 Our fair value estimate is 1.8% higher than Universal Health Services' analyst price target of US$225 In this article we are going to estimate the intrinsic value of Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS) by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to their present value. We will use the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model on this occasion. There's really not all that much to it, even though it might appear quite complex. Companies can be valued in a lot of ways, so we would point out that a DCF is not perfect for every situation. If you still have some burning questions about this type of valuation, take a look at the Simply Wall St analysis model. This technology could replace computers: discover the 20 stocks are working to make quantum computing a reality. We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years. A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, so we need to discount the sum of these future cash flows to arrive at a present value estimate: 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 2034 Levered FCF ($, Millions) US$1.06b US$1.19b US$686.5m US$628.6m US$597.1m US$581.4m US$575.8m US$577.0m US$582.9m US$592.3m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x1 Analyst x3 Analyst x2 Est @ -8.43% Est @ -5.02% Est @ -2.63% Est @ -0.96% Est @ 0.21% Est @ 1.03% Est @ 1.60% Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 6.4% US$997 US$1.1k US$570 US$490 US$438 US$401 US$373 US$351 US$333 US$318 ("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = US$5.3b The second stage is also known as Terminal Value, this is the business's cash flow after the first stage. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a country's GDP growth. In this case we have used the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield (2.9%) to estimate future growth. In the same way as with the 10-year 'growth' period, we discount future cash flows to today's value, using a cost of equity of 6.4%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF2034 × (1 + g) ÷ (r – g) = US$592m× (1 + 2.9%) ÷ (6.4%– 2.9%) = US$18b Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= US$18b÷ ( 1 + 6.4%)10= US$9.5b The total value is the sum of cash flows for the next ten years plus the discounted terminal value, which results in the Total Equity Value, which in this case is US$15b. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of US$172, the company appears a touch undervalued at a 25% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind. We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. You don't have to agree with these inputs, I recommend redoing the calculations yourself and playing with them. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Universal Health Services as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 6.4%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.800. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business. See our latest analysis for Universal Health Services Strength Earnings growth over the past year exceeded the industry. Debt is well covered by earnings and cashflows. Weakness Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Healthcare market. Opportunity Annual earnings are forecast to grow for the next 3 years. Good value based on P/E ratio and estimated fair value. Threat Annual earnings are forecast to grow slower than the American market. Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it shouldn't be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Instead the best use for a DCF model is to test certain assumptions and theories to see if they would lead to the company being undervalued or overvalued. For instance, if the terminal value growth rate is adjusted slightly, it can dramatically alter the overall result. Can we work out why the company is trading at a discount to intrinsic value? For Universal Health Services, we've put together three essential factors you should explore: Risks: For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Universal Health Services that you should be aware of before investing here. Future Earnings: How does UHS's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other Solid Businesses: Low debt, high returns on equity and good past performance are fundamental to a strong business. Why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals to see if there are other companies you may not have considered! PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the NYSE every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here. — Investing narratives with Fair Values Vita Life Sciences Set for a 12.72% Revenue Growth While Tackling Operational Challenges By Robbo – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: A$2.42 · 0.1% Overvalued Vossloh rides a €500 billion wave to boost growth and earnings in the next decade By Chris1 – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: €78.41 · 0.1% Overvalued Intuitive Surgical Will Transform Healthcare with 12% Revenue Growth By Unike – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: $325.55 · 0.6% Undervalued View more featured narratives — Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
19 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Retail investors account for 55% of Gesher Acquisition Corp. II's (NASDAQ:GSHR) ownership, while private companies account for 29%
Significant control over Gesher Acquisition II by retail investors implies that the general public has more power to influence management and governance-related decisions 45% of the business is held by the top 5 shareholders 11% of Gesher Acquisition II is held by Institutions This technology could replace computers: discover the 20 stocks are working to make quantum computing a reality. If you want to know who really controls Gesher Acquisition Corp. II (NASDAQ:GSHR), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. With 55% stake, retail investors possess the maximum shares in the company. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk). Private companies, on the other hand, account for 29% of the company's stockholders. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Gesher Acquisition II. View our latest analysis for Gesher Acquisition II Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing. We can see that Gesher Acquisition II does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This implies the analysts working for those institutions have looked at the stock and they like it. But just like anyone else, they could be wrong. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Gesher Acquisition II's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters. It would appear that 5.3% of Gesher Acquisition II shares are controlled by hedge funds. That catches my attention because hedge funds sometimes try to influence management, or bring about changes that will create near term value for shareholders. Gesher Acquisition Sponsor II LLC is currently the company's largest shareholder with 29% of shares outstanding. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 5.3% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 4.7% by the third-largest shareholder. Our studies suggest that the top 5 shareholders collectively control less than half of the company's shares, meaning that the company's shares are widely disseminated and there is no dominant shareholder. While it makes sense to study institutional ownership data for a company, it also makes sense to study analyst sentiments to know which way the wind is blowing. As far as we can tell there isn't analyst coverage of the company, so it is probably flying under the radar. The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves. I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions. Our data cannot confirm that board members are holding shares personally. Given we are not picking up on insider ownership, we may have missing data. Therefore, it would be interesting to assess the CEO compensation and tenure, here. The general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, collectively holds 55% of Gesher Acquisition II shares. With this amount of ownership, retail investors can collectively play a role in decisions that affect shareholder returns, such as dividend policies and the appointment of directors. They can also exercise the power to vote on acquisitions or mergers that may not improve profitability. It seems that Private Companies own 29%, of the Gesher Acquisition II stock. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company. I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Like risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Gesher Acquisition II (of which 2 are concerning!) you should know about. Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. — Investing narratives with Fair Values Vita Life Sciences Set for a 12.72% Revenue Growth While Tackling Operational Challenges By Robbo – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: A$2.42 · 0.1% Overvalued Vossloh rides a €500 billion wave to boost growth and earnings in the next decade By Chris1 – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: €78.41 · 0.1% Overvalued Intuitive Surgical Will Transform Healthcare with 12% Revenue Growth By Unike – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: $325.55 · 0.6% Undervalued View more featured narratives — Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Investors in ConnectOne Bancorp (NASDAQ:CNOB) have seen notable returns of 73% over the past five years
The main point of investing for the long term is to make money. Furthermore, you'd generally like to see the share price rise faster than the market. But ConnectOne Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:CNOB) has fallen short of that second goal, with a share price rise of 51% over five years, which is below the market return. However, more recent buyers should be happy with the increase of 26% over the last year. So let's investigate and see if the longer term performance of the company has been in line with the underlying business' progress. We've found 21 US stocks that are forecast to pay a dividend yield of over 6% next year. See the full list for free. While the efficient markets hypothesis continues to be taught by some, it has been proven that markets are over-reactive dynamic systems, and investors are not always rational. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time. During five years of share price growth, ConnectOne Bancorp actually saw its EPS drop 0.2% per year. So it's hard to argue that the earnings per share are the best metric to judge the company, as it may not be optimized for profits at this point. Therefore, it's worth taking a look at other metrics to try to understand the share price movements. On the other hand, ConnectOne Bancorp's revenue is growing nicely, at a compound rate of 4.1% over the last five years. In that case, the company may be sacrificing current earnings per share to drive growth. You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image). Balance sheet strength is crucial. It might be well worthwhile taking a look at our free report on how its financial position has changed over time. As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR incorporates the value of any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings, along with any dividends, based on the assumption that the dividends are reinvested. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. As it happens, ConnectOne Bancorp's TSR for the last 5 years was 73%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return. We're pleased to report that ConnectOne Bancorp shareholders have received a total shareholder return of 30% over one year. Of course, that includes the dividend. That gain is better than the annual TSR over five years, which is 12%. Therefore it seems like sentiment around the company has been positive lately. In the best case scenario, this may hint at some real business momentum, implying that now could be a great time to delve deeper. Keeping this in mind, a solid next step might be to take a look at ConnectOne Bancorp's dividend track record. This free interactive graph is a great place to start. Of course ConnectOne Bancorp may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of growth stocks. Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on American exchanges. — Investing narratives with Fair Values Vita Life Sciences Set for a 12.72% Revenue Growth While Tackling Operational Challenges By Robbo – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: A$2.42 · 0.1% Overvalued Vossloh rides a €500 billion wave to boost growth and earnings in the next decade By Chris1 – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: €78.41 · 0.1% Overvalued Intuitive Surgical Will Transform Healthcare with 12% Revenue Growth By Unike – Community Contributor Fair Value Estimated: $325.55 · 0.6% Undervalued View more featured narratives — Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Sign in to access your portfolio
