The Investment Road Less Travelled Has More Opportunity, But Less Available Information
An expanding customer base has always been a solid reason for further exploration of an investment opportunity. An investor’s expectations of growth potential have the power to create initial intrigue and prompt further exploration. This exploration should, at a minimum, include actual data (not hunches), and outside estimates from experts in the field – along with a review of management’s plans.
One also has to understand competition, direct and indirect, and how that is expected to grow. And, of course, current profit and earnings breakdown with an idea of plans for the future. You may even explore if there is a chance the company is a possible acquisition target and how that may impact stock performance. Then, depending on the company or industry, less cursory digging should be done. This is where self-directed investors or small or mid-sized investment advisors get tripped up. They may not have access to someone knowledgeable enough about the company.
Opportunity to Think About
A co-worker asked the other day what I thought of traditional media companies in the U.S. as an investment, including TV and radio. Without thinking too deeply, I said what most people might say, the industry is spread thin as competition for people’s time and attention keeps growing. While anything is good at the right price, if the audience (customer base) is declining, that “right price” is going to be low.
He asked another question, how many Spanish-speaking people are immigrating to the U.S. each year, and what one product will they likely be using that is generally not consumed by English-speaking residents? Although I didn’t know there was a company that has approximately 65% market share of the Spanish-speaking market, I understood where his line of questioning was going – and became intrigued.
A Few Things I Learned
I did some Googling.
The Census Bureau’s monthly Current Population Survey (CPS) shows that the total foreign-born or immigrant population in the U.S. hit 47.9 million in September 2022. This is an increase of 2.9 million since January 2021.
Immigrants from Latin American countries other than Mexico account for 60 percent of the increase in the foreign-born population since January 2021. The Mexican-born population in the U.S. actually decreased by 4%.
At 143,000, the average monthly growth in the foreign-born population, which is 60% Hispanic, is at an all-time high pace.
There is a company, Entravision (EVC), which is a diversified Spanish-language media company. They own both television and radio stations to reach Hispanic consumers across the United States.
Entravision owns and/or operates 53 primary television stations and is the largest affiliate group of both the top-ranked Univision television network and Univision’s TeleFutura network. They have television stations in 20 of the nation’s top 50 Hispanic markets. As far as radio, the company also operates one of the largest groups of primarily Spanish-language radio stations in the U.S.
My thoughts are while the business itself is getting fragmented, the rapidly growing demographic that is likely to tune in to an Entravision station is growing at a rapid pace. And there is very little competition.
An Interesting Time to Explore Spanish Language Media
While I’m still doing some due diligence and reading thoughts from the multiple analysts that cover EVC, including one whose research of the company is available on Channelchek (see it here), I’m waiting for their earnings report this Thursday (November 3).
If my intrigue is still high after Thursday, Noble Capital Markets is holding two lunches and a breakfast where investors can attend one and meet with management, hear them discuss their company, and ask any questions to clear up unanswered questions.
These meetings are in Florida, one in Boca Raton on November 8 and two in Central Florida (Orlando and Winter Park), on November 9. If you will be in the area and also find Entravision worth exploring, register for a breakfast or lunch meeting here.
Take Away
The investment “road less traveled” is often lined with gold but also requires a lot more digging to find useful information that makes you comfortable making a decision. Discovering actionable ideas and then exploring them is what Channelchek is about.
The In-Person “Meet the Management” Series, put on by Noble Capital Markets and Channelchek, is a good way for investment professionals and individuals to supplement the data and research on Channelchek with an opportunity most investors never get, a discussion over breakfast or lunch with management.
Managing Editor, Channelchek