AXIS Capital Holdings Ltd As of October 2, 2009 """

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1 Competitive Strength wratings Analysis Strength Most Tier Distribution 1.1% W Score Company Description AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides various insurance and reinsurance products to insureds and reinsureds worldwide. It operates in two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. REPORT CONTENTS Performance Snapshot Competitive Strength Trends Pricing Power, Execution & Image 10-Yr History About This Report ABOUT wratings Created by Harvard Review author and persuasion expert Gary A. Williams, wratings is the only system that ranks 5,000 stocks every week based on how well the company meets customer expectations. We provide 23 unique metrics never available before to measure each company's competitive strength relative to all others. Using a systematic and disciplined approach since 1999, our patented system continually tracks customer buying expectations through panels of consumers and business executives. Each customer rates the same set of attributes twice, once to set their level of expectations and again to rate the company's performance. We blend the customer scores with an economic profit momentum score to calculate their competitive strength, what we call a W Score. Due to our forward-looking data from customers available prior to quarterly earnings announcements, shifts in a company's W Score may not be captured in their stock price yet. High 30.2% Average --> 38.4% Low 23.6% Least 6.7% n=4818 Market Data & Strength Trends Stock Price as of month's close $50 $40 $30 $20 $10 Competitive Strength Axis Capital Holdings Ltd () has a W Score in the average competitive tier. This indicates the stock carries equal risk to increase or decrease its returns, with the direction depending mostly on industry trend. Outlook Axis Capital Holdings Ltd is holding steady in its business performance across most areas, which may indicate similar revenue and earnings growth as in the recent past. The competitive outlook for in 2009-Q4 is: Vulnerable (see page 5). W Score Comparisons : : Size: Mid Cap TTM Current " # --- TRENDS --- Tier W Scores are equal blends of a company's moat barriers rank and 5-year economic profit / revenue rank. Because these are blended scores, unequal numbers of companies appear as 5 "'s, 4 "'s, etc. Economic Profit / Revenue (EPR) is net operating profit after tax (NOPAT) minus the invested capital times weighted average cost of capital (WACC) divided by revenues. (MB) are what companies build through their business framework to protect customers and economic profit from rivals. The higher the rank, the better the protection against rivals. Pricing Power is the amount more customers are willing to pay if a business fully met their expectations. Customer Expectations is the average score of 12 functional (e.. Quality, Uniqueness) and weighted 5 emotional (e.g. Trust, Stability) attributes. Execution and Image are the average of customer scores across 12 functional and 5 emotional needs, respectively. $0 '10 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4e Q1e Q2e Q3e W Rating (5=Best) Performance National Rank W Score $ Trailing Twelve Month, Current Period, Economic Profit Pricing Power Customer Expectations Execution Image Better > Worse 1

2 Financial Snapshot (latest available) All dollars in US $ Millions NEG = Negative FCF, -- = Not Available Company vs. Averages Market Value EPS TTM Revenue TTM $3,909 $0.93 $2,687 $3,127 $31.80 $2,850 $2,393 $1.27 $2,110 Net Prof TTM 7.2% % Econ Prof / Revenue LTD to FCF 3.7% % % 38.4 ROIC 10.9% 12.5% 2.2% WACC 9.1% 5.2% 5.6% Reinvest Rate 3.9% 3.1% -14.8% Market Return YTD 2.7% 17.2% 13.1% See other pages for remaining financial definitions. Market Value is the monthly price close multiplied by common shares outstanding. Revenues are gross sales minus any discounts, returns and allowances. Market Return YTD is the return for the stock price plus the sum of dividends reinvested year-to-date. Snapshot (National Ranks) FUNCTIONAL NEEDS EMOTIONAL NEEDS Insurance Property & Casualty PRICING GROWTH COMPETITIVE Functional Needs are delivery score ranks of 12 standard attributes that contribute to business execution; Emotional Needs are delivery score ranks that contribute to business image. Pricing Power is the percentile rank of the amount more customers are willing to pay if a company fully met their expectations. Customer Expectations are ranked scores of 12 standard attributes for functional and emotional needs; Company Delivery are ranked scores calculated on the same rank index as customer expectations. and EPR Strength are percentile ranks of total moats and economic profit/revenue. Overall Durability is a percentile rank of W Scores. MOAT BARRIERS Moats are barriers to entry created through business frameworks that hold customers captive long enough to generate economic profit. Each moat consists of a customer data pattern in functional and emotional needs. Company performance across each need is force ranked against all other stocks in our coverage. See page 5 for definitions of each moat. Fair Pricing Widely Available Staff Competence Useful Offerings Leadership Reputation Quality Offierings Brand Coolness Simple To Do Unique Offerings Safe Offerings Snapshot (National Ranks) Service Consistency Timely Support Trust Precision Connection Variety Stability Pricing Power Customer Expectations Insurance Property & Casualty Company Delivery EPR Strength Overall Durability % Economies of Scale Economies of Skill Cost Containment Design Dominance Brand Perception Routine Reliance Channel Lock- Out Switching Lock- In Network Effect 2

3 EPS is earnings per share adjusted to remove the effect of all special and non-recurring items. Quarter-over-Quarter (QoQ) Growth Rate is the percentage improvement from the previous quarter. Financial Growth Trailing Twelve Months (TTM), Calendar time-frame latest available Revenue Q/Q Growth EPS Q/Q Growth EPR Q/Q Growth W Scores are equal blends of a company's moat barriers rank and a momentum-based historical economic profit / revenue rank. (MB) are what companies build through their business framework to protect customers and economic profit from rivals. The higher the rank, the better the protection against rivals. Economic Profit / Revenue (EPR) is the net operating profit after tax (NOPAT) minus the invested capital times weighted average cost of capital (WACC), then divide by revenues. -20 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 All Data TTM Revenue in $Billion Earnings Per Share (EPS) LTDebt : Free Cash Flow % Net Income/Revenue % Economic Profit/Revenue Competitive Strength Growth ---- TTM Moving Average W Scores as of month's close (100=Most Competitive) TRENDS --- STRENGTH TRENDS A W Score is a blended view of historical economic profit/revenue (EPR) and how well a company is meeting customer expectations than others to build moat barriers. Trends use a momentum-based algorithm to calculate future W Scores, with the algorithm based on the past 1- and 5- years of competitive strength. We use these two timeframes to gauge the impact of recent management decisions (1-year) against the overall momentum of the company (5-years) '10 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4e Q1e Q3 Q2e W Score Average W Score vs. EPR Growth National Percentile Ranks of and Economic Profit/Revenue Economic Profit/ Revenue Rank Rank Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 EPR Data TTM Moat Rank Moat Rank EPR Rank EPR Rank 3

4 Pricing Power is the amount more customers are willing to pay if a business fully met their expectations. High, stable pricing power indicates that future customer demand for the business remains strong and the ability to grow earnings is available, although not a given. Pricing Power vs. Customer Expectations Expectations Rank Pricing Power Rank Customer Expectations is the ranking of the average score of 12 functional (e.. Quality, Uniqueness) and 5 emotional (e.g. Trust, Stability) attributes weighted according to their contribution to each functional attribute. High expectations are required in order to prevent commoditization and competition on price alone. Execution and Image are the average customer scores across 12 functional and 5 emotional needs, respectively. Due to human perception, scores of emotional needs can widely fluctuate from one quarter to the next. Each company's delivery score is divided by the customer expectation score and multiplied by 100. The scores are then force ranked against all other companies in our coverage. Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q Expectations Rank CE Rank Pricing Power Rank PP Rank Image vs. Execution Average Image Rank Average Execution Rank Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 IMAGE RANK Trust Precision Connection Variety Stability EXECUTION RANK Fair Pricing Widely Available Staff Competence Useful Offerings Leadership Reputation Quality Offierings Brand Coolness Simple To Do Unique Offerings Safe Offerings Service Consistency Timely Support 4

5 LIFE CYCLE Return on Invested Capital (ROIC) is NOPAT divided by invested capital. Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) is the proportional cost of equity plus the proportional cost of debt, then divided by 100. Reinvestment Rate is net income divided by stockholder's equity. Competitive Outlook uses the current period's 80th percentile rank as a threshold to exceed in terms of Economic Profit/Revenue and. This quadrant placement shows the current stage of the competitive life cycle the company. Competitive Life Cycle All data TTM at calendar quarter close ROIC WACC Reinvest 35% 3 25% 15% 1 5% -5% Competitive Outlook: Vulnerable Cross-marks at 80th percentile for Moats and Economic Profit/Revenue EP / Rev Narrowing Vulnerable Durable Emerging MOAT Moats are barriers to entry created through business frameworks that hold customers captive long enough to generate economic profit. Economies of Scale requires high customer expectations for fair-pricing and wide availability. Scale depends not on ABSOLUTE size of the dominant firm, but on size difference against rivals. Economies of Skill requires high customer expectations for fair-pricing and competency. Skill depends on automating a customer process to benefit them in a time-sensitive way. Cost Containment requires high customer expectations for fair-pricing and usefulness. This optimizes manufacturing, supplier or management process for a cost differential over rivals. (Annual National Ranks) Economies of Scale Economies of Skill Insurance Property & Casualty Cost Containment SUPPLY CHAIN Design Dominance requires high customer expectations for leadership and quality. This depends on building true functional distinctiveness into an offering, which is easiest for rivals to duplicate. Design Dominance Brand Perception Routine Reliance Brand Perception requires high customer expectations for leadership and culture. This establishes trust with customers in a high expectation market, built through execution first and image next. Routine Reliance requires high customer expectations for leadership and simplicity. This requires customers to build habitual usage of a product/service into their regular schedule PRODUCTS Channel Lock-Out requires high customer expectations for uniqueness and safety. Companies must control the distribution channel by reducing choice. Switching Lock-In requires high customer expectations for uniqueness and consistency. Customers are held captive by fearing loss of time, money or status if they were to change providers. Network Effect requires high customer expectations for uniqueness and time-sensitivity. This requires the formation of community, optimally with TWO nodes that connect disparate groups. Channel Lock-Out Switching Lock-In Network Effect DELIVERY CHAIN 5

6 About This Report THE wratings CORPORATION The wratings Corporation is an independent stock research firm. We are not a registered broker dealer and do not offer investment banking services. We conduct primary research using our consumer and business panels on a continual basis. For the most recently collected data and ratings, go to wratings.com. wratings Corporation 2325 Dulles Corner Boulevard Suite 500 Herndon, VA main fax members@wratings.com No wratings officers, employees or contractors may serve as officers or directors of the companies we cover, or may own more than one percent of a company's stock in our coverage. WHY wratings? We are the only firm that blends customer and financial performance into a standard equity rating. For over a decade, investors and corporations have used wratings data to improve their financial decisions about where to invest money, time and resources. Our approach is not based on theory but on real-world, backtested results. The initial fiveyear analysis correlated findings from 135,000+ customer interviews with the financial performance of 2,600+ stocks. We filtered the stocks by those companies able to maintain a revenue share and return on invested capital at a 65th percentile level or higher for five consecutive years. Analyzing the top 300 leaders (by market cap), we found nine specific patterns (moats) exist when a company meets customer expectations better than its rivals over those five years. Each moat consists of 3 to 6 functional and emotional needs. By discovering the existence of moat barriers at the customer level, our data is a leading indicator to which companies are on track to building superior economic profit. Companies with moat barriers are less risky to own since they are likely to grow in revenue and earnings. Our universe of coverage expanded drastically in 2009 to about 5,000 stocks, therefore past rankings for each stock were adjusted to reflect the new universe. OUR PATENTED APPROACH The wratings system measures the competitive strength of companies in a systematic, disciplined approach over rolling 13-week periods. Although customer data is gathered on a daily basis, we structure quarterly interviews by pre-qualifying customers of each company in our coverage through our consumer and business panels. The seven step, multi-patented process is: 1) We cover all major economic sectors. 2) We measure virtually all companies that operate in North America and report their financials (including ADRs) on NASDAQ, NYSE, OTC or TSE with at least $10 million in revenues and market value. 3) We ask customers what they expect from companies in an industry, and then repeat the questions to ask how well each company (stock) is delivering against expectations. 4) We convert expectations and delivery into a moat barriers number using a backtested & proven algorithm, and then percentile rank their total moats against all companies. 5) We calculate a company's Net Operating Profit After Taxes (NOPAT) and Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) using public data, and convert into Economic Profit. 6) We rank the last 5-years of Economic Profit/Revenue (EPR) % against all companies. 7) We blend the percentile ranks of moat barriers and EPR into a single W Score. 1 All Economic s North American Listed Companies 2 $10M+ Revenues/Market Cap NASDAQ, NYSE, OTC, TSE US Patent 6,658,391 3 Customer Expectations 5 Operating Profit, Capital Versus Company Delivery % Company Financials % 4 % 6 Economic Profit / Revenue % Rank of 9 Moat Scores % Rank of EPR Momentum 7 W Score & Blended Moat/EPR rankings RESEARCH DISCLAIMER The information contained herein is provided on an as is basis. Additional information exists that has been prepared by wratings Corporation which is not included in this report. The data in these materials reflects the wratings Corporation ratings on a particular company. When limited customer interviews are available, certain data may be extrapolated based on algorithms built by the wratings research team. These materials are for informational purposes only and are not an offer to hold, buy or sell any particular stock, company, product or service. Readers should consider the wratings data as only a single factor in their decision making while taking into account all other market conditions. In addition to historical information, this report contains forward-looking statements that reflect projections, objectives and expectations as of the date hereof. The wratings Corporation assumes no responsibility or liability for any damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein. The ratings and data in this report were compiled from data provided through the wratings consumer and business panels, as well as public and third-party data made available to wratings. The wratings system relies on multiple data aggregators in the formation of the W Scores. Company descriptions on page 1 are provided by Standard & Poors Capital IQ. While wratings believes the information provided is reliable, wratings nor its third-party providers guarantee the accuracy, timeliness, completeness or correct sequencing of the information. wratings does not warrant any results from the use of this information, and cannot be held responsible for any inaccuracies or omissions. The included information is subject to change without notice. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of the wratings Corporation. Margin of Error ±0.27 for all wratings data in this report Copyright 2009 wratings Corporation. All rights reserved. To reproduce or redistribute any of the data in this report, please contact us at info@wratings.com or The research methods used in this report are protected by US patent 6,658,391 and certain patents pending that are under license to wratings Corporation from Gary A. Williams. Moat Maker and "The W Report" are trademarks of Gary A. Williams. All other trademarks used in this report are property of their respective owners wratings Corporation. All rights reserved. 6