Financials

My view of HSBC (HSBA) to date has largely been along the lines of “it’s not a great business, but it’s not as bad as the market implies either”. Admittedly, initiating coverage during the COVID sell-off made that a fairly easy call to make, with the stock slumping to very…

In a way, Standard Chartered (STAN) sums up the problem with bank stocks. I say that because on paper it looks like a very good long-term proposition. The bank is largely an Asian and emerging market player for one, while it also generates the lion’s share of its income from…

HSBC (HSBA) stock has rallied around 40% since it last appeared on the site back in September. At the time, shares of the global banking giant traded for just over 300p each. That quote represented an almost unprecedented slump that had taken the stock to a circa 25-year low. Of…

Like most banks, Lloyds (LLOY) has had a pretty tough 12 months. Its business was obviously hit by the pandemic, while its stock remains subdued despite rallying on the back of positive vaccine developments. Still, 2020 results released on Wednesday were much better than many would have dared predict ten…

Asset management firm Schroders (SDRC) throws up a bit of a mixed bag. On the plus side, it has a very good underlying business model. Operations are inherently capital light, which usually means plenty of cash for things like dividends. On the down side, competition from ‘passive’ providers has left…