Stockopedia's 'High Flyers' are stocks with stellar track records, sparkling reputations and the ability to deliver stunning returns over long periods - and Bunzl (LON:BNZL) is one of them.
What makes stocks like Bunzl so appealing is their strong exposure to the proven return drivers of high quality and momentum. It makes them capable of compounding market-beating returns over many years. The catch is that they often come with expensive valuations - which means you have to pay up for the privilege of owning them.
You can think of these shares as being the stock market's High Flyers. So what are the common features of stocks like Bunzl and where can you find more companies that have them?
High Flyers are high quality...
To start with, High Flyers are very distinctive. They are good quality, both in terms of their franchise and financial strength. This tends to show up in high profitability and strong industry leading margins. They’re stable, growing and often have accelerating sales and earnings. They also have strong and improving financial histories and no signs of accountancy or bankruptcy risk.
Bunzl (Bunzl) is a large cap stock in the Diversified Trading & Distributing industry. One of its stand out quality metrics is its 5-year Return on Capital Employed, which is a solid 14.9%. Good, double-digit ROCEs are a pointer to companies that can grow very profitably.
...and they have powerful momentum...
In addition, High Flyers have strong momentum both in the price of their shares but also in their track records of earnings growth. It shows up in stocks trading close to their 52 week high prices and outperforming the market. They’ll often be beating broker estimates and getting forecast upgrades and recommendation changes.
This is also true at Bunzl, where the share price has risen by 56.0% over the past five years. That said, the performance has been much more muted over the past year and Bunzl's 1-year relative price strength is a more modest 0.10%. Could this be a sign that the market is overlooking it?
... but they can be expensive
The drawback with high quality, strong momentum shares is that the market loves these traits. So stocks like Bunzl rarely look cheap, and that can put many investors off them. Only with hindsight could you say they were a bargain.
Stockopedia's ValueRank scores stocks using a blend of the most important value ratios - from 0 (expensive) to 100 (cheap). On this basis, Bunzl has a ValueRank of 29 - putting it squarely in the most expensive third of the market, even though its share price has been fairly flat over the past year.
Next Steps
The appeal of the High Flyer approach is that it targets the best quality, strongest momentum shares in the market.
One word of warning is that High Flyers aren’t immune from problems. When sentiment changes, the momentum in these shares can crash. So they need to be watched carefully.
But on the flip-side, the combination of two factors in quality and momentum can zero-in on the type of company that’s capable of compounding investment returns over many, many years. If you can catch them at slightly less expensive valuations - perhaps when the market is distracted - then all the better.
Disclaimer: These articles are provided for information purposes only. The content is not intended to be a personal recommendation. The investments referred to in this article may not be suitable for all investors, and if in doubt, an investor should seek advice from a qualified investment adviser. The author has no position in the stocks mentioned, unless otherwise stated.