Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Why to invest in Mainframe?


Mainframe companies have a big advantage on the financial market. They are robust and predictable. That's why investing in the Mainframe is a valid option. Investing, not speculating. In other words, you may consider acquiring stocks from companies in the Mainframe market, for long term investment. Because the fruits are the dividends, like in a good old stable factory. Although classified in the IT market, Mainframe companies are no start-ups, they are not good for day-to-day (or hour-to-hour !) speculation. Consider this: you may place your savings in a bank, but the interests are not very substantial. Often, the interests will be lower than the inflation (varying by country). So you actually lose money over time. 

Buying stock options implies risk, so you need to be careful with your life's savings. Mainframe companies have years (decades) of financial history that can be considered: average price over the last X years, variations in the stock price, amount of the dividends, stability of dividends... If you are looking for a way to invest a part of your savings, more profitable that a bank saving account, you may have a look at stocks. Stocks that generate predictable dividends. High dividends. Stocks which price does not fluctuate like a yo-yo: you want to be able to sell your stocks, without losing money. Stable stock price, high & predictable dividends: Good combination for long term stock investment. Mainframe.

I did some analysis of the main Mainframe companies' stocks, summarized for your convenience in the table below, that contains assessments:
  • Risk: analyzing stock price to assess price fluctuation (yo-yo) High/Med/Low
  • Risk: analyzing dividends' stability over the years High/Med/Low 
  • Benefit: computation of the yearly profit (annual dividends/AVG stock price)

AVG stock price (3Yrs)
Last year trend
yo-yo price
dividends
dividends' stability
yearly profit
IBM (NYSE: IBM)
$180
-14%
Med
$0.95 / quarter
High
2.10%
CA Technologies (NYSE: CA)
$26
+28%
Low
$0.25 / quarter
High
3.80%
Compuware (NYSE: CPWR)
$10
-13%
Low
$0.125 / quarter
Med
5.00%

Disclaimer: I am no financial consultant nor any kind or financial professional, the above article is a summary of my candid thoughts on the topic. Data in the table are a quick assessment of stocks based on data publically available on http://www.nasdaq.com/.   Concerns & critics are welcome.

1 comment:

  1. IBM, the only meaningful mainframe player left in the market, was the poorest performing Dow Jones Industrial Average ("The Dow", ticker $INDU) in 2013. In a year of all time highs, and its best years for almost 20 years, IBM fell. IBM was a huge drag on the Dow in 2013. Had it kept pace, it would have been a stupendous year for the Average.
    Of course, one needs to break down the revenues etc by Division, but when any stock falls, and the rest of the market rises, be it on a single trading day, and especially over an entire year (and a record year), this is an extremely bad sign.

    http://stockcharts.com/h-sc/ui

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