Quarterly Movers & Shakers
During the past three months, the S&P 500 Index declined 5% due to fears of a recession brought on by the global impact of the coronavirus. Despite the overall market pullback, the following stocks generated gains during the same period.

ULTA BEAUTY $700 MILLION SHARE BUYBACK
Ulta Beauty (ULTA) reported fiscal third quarter sales increased 7.9% to $1.7 billion with EPS increasing 3.2% to $2.25 on fewer outstanding shares. Despite a challenging environment in cosmetics, Ulta Beauty continued to gain market share in the category. Through the first nine months of the fiscal year, Ulta Beauty repurchased $507 million of its common shares with the company expecting to repurchase a total of $700 million shares in fiscal 2019. Sales are expected to increase 10% in fiscal 2019 with same store sales growth expected to approximate 5% and EPS expected in the range of $11.93 to $12.03.

Ulta Beauty’s stock rebounded a pretty 12% in the last three months. Buy.

MICROSOFT FREE CASH FLOW +15%
Microsoft (MSFT) reported fiscal second quarter revenues rose 14% to $36.7 billion with net income booting up a 38% increase to $11.6 billion. This strong growth was broad-based across geographic segments and all business segments. Free cash flow increased 15% during the first half of fiscal 2020 to $17.6 billionwith the company paying $7.4 billion in dividends and repurchasing $10.1 billion of common stock during the same time period. Microsoft’s balance sheet remains strong with $134 billion in cash and investments, $63 billion in long-term debt and $110 billion in shareholders’ equity as of 12/31/19.

Over the past decade, Microsoft’s stock has increased sixfold. Hold.

ALPHABET $120 BILLION IN CASH
Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) reported 2019 revenue rose 19% to $161.9 billion with net income up 12% to $34.3 billion. Return on shareholders’ equity was 17.4% in 2019. Free cash flow increased 36% during the year to $31 billion. Alphabet continued to heavily invest in capital expenditures of $23.5 billion for technology infrastructure and data centers. Alphabet used excess cash to repurchase $18.4 billion of common stock including $6.1 billion in the fourth quarter. The company has $21 billion remaining authorized for future share repurchases. Alphabet ended the year with a fortress balance sheet with nearly $120 billion in cash and investments.

Over the last nine years, Alphabet’s stock has Google mapped out a 425% gain. Buy.

BIOGEN $5 BILLION SHARE BUYBACK
Biogen (BIIB) reported a healthy 7% increase in 2019 sales to $14.4 billion with adjusted net income increasing 17% to $6.3 billion. In 2019, Biogen generated a robust 44% return on shareholders’ equity. During 2019, Biogen repurchased $5.9 billion of its common stock with $1.3 billion remaining authorized under the buyback program. In December, Biogen expanded the share buyback by an additional $5 billion. For 2020, revenues are expected in the $14 to $14.4 billion range with adjusted EPS in the $31.50 to $33.50 range, down slightly from last year as the company ramps up operations in anticipation of completing a U.S. regulatory filing for its Alzheimer’s drug, aducanumab.

During the past quarter, Biogen’s stock rose 3%. Hold. 

FACTSET FREE CASH FLOW +88%
FactSet (FDS) reported fiscal first quarter revenues increased 4% to $366.7 million with net income up 12% to $94 million. Annual Subscription Value (ASV) plus professional services was $1.48 billion. Annual ASV retention was greater than 95%. Free cash flow increased 88% during the first quarter to $69 million due to higher earnings and favorable working capital changes. During the past quarter, FactSet paid $27 million in dividends and repurchased $84.4 million of its common shares with $154.2 million remaining authorized for future share repurchases. FactSet maintained its guidance for the full fiscal 2020 year with revenue expected in the range of $1.49 billion to $1.5 billion and EPS in the range of $8.70 to $9.00.

Over the past six years, FactSet has provided a tidy total return of 167%. Hold. 
 

THE TJX COMPANIES INCREASED DIVIDEND 13%
The TJX Companies (TJX) reported fiscal 2020 sales increased 7% to $41.7 billion with net income up 7% to $3.3 billion and EPS increasing 10% to $2.67. Same store sales increased 4%, marking TJX’s 24th consecutive year of comp store sales growth. During fiscal 2020, TJX generated a fancy 55% return on shareholders’ equity. Given TJX’s continued strong cash flow, the board raised the dividend 13%, marking the 24th straight year of dividend increases. In addition, the directors approved a new $1.5 billion share repurchase authorization. In fiscal 2021, TJX expects EPS in the range of $2.77 to $2.83, up 4% to 6% from fiscal 2020. This guidance is based on estimated comp store sales growth of 2% to 3%.

Over the last 20 years, TJX has provided highly fashionable returns with the stock up more than 23-fold, rising from $2.54 per share to $59.80 per share. Buy. 

Also see the rest of my stock portfolio highlights for March 2020 - Rating Changes From Hold to Buy
And my other stock picks, exclusively on TalkMarkets here.