While not exactly growing at a blockbuster rate, Thomas Nelson, Inc. (TNM) has been a steady performer and is worthy of this list. Welcome back to Bob's Advice! As always, please consult with your investment advisor before taking action on any stocks we discuss here. I do not own any shares of TNM, nor do any members of my family.
Thomas Nelson (TNM) had a nice day today, closing at $19.91 up $1.41 or 7.62% on the day. According to money.cnn.com, TNM "...publishes, produces, and distributes Christian oriented books. TNM also designs, manufactures, and markets a broad line of gift and stationery products."
On November 5, 2003, according to the NYTimes on the Web, as picked up on BUSINESS WIRE, TNM reported second quarter results for the quarter ended September 30, 2003. Net revenue grew 3% in the quarter reaching $63.8 million this year vs. $62.1 million last year in the same period. Net income gained 61% to $6.6 million from $4.1 million last year. Diluted income/share was $.45 compared to $.28 in the same period last year.
Reviewing TNM on Morningstar.com, we find that revenue has grown steadily, although slowly, from $173.9 million in 1999, $182.0 million in 2000, $214.1 million in 2001, $215.6 million in 2002,and $217.2 million in 2003. Earnings/share have grown during this period from $.58 to $.75 per share.
According to Morningstar, free cash flow has grown from ($2) million in 2001 to $52 million in the trailing twelve months.
The balance sheet looks nice with $8.9 million in cash and $103.4 million in other current assets vs. $49.6 million in current liabilities and $23.6 million in long-term debt.
Checking Yahoo.com for "key statistics" we find that the Market Cap is a modest $286.5 million and the trailing p/e is reasonable at 21.41 with a forward p/e of 14.68. The PEG ratio isn't bad at 1.23, and the price/sales also reasonable at 1.21.
There are only 14.39 million shares outstanding with 10.40 million of them that float. As of 11/10/03, there were 119,000 shares out short representing 1.725 trading days.
Overall, the company is a nice value. I am not too excited about it however, as the growth rate is actually very modest although steady. I do not think TMN can support much of an expansion in multiples.
Thanks for stopping by! Again, always remember to discuss everything we write here with your investment advisor! If you have any questions, comments, or words of encouragement, please feel free to write me at bobsadviceforstocks.lycos.com
Bob