| |
| |
|
Investing Information |
|
|
|
Porters Five Forces Analysis
If you've ever listened to Warren Buffett talk about investing, you've heard him mention the idea of a company's moat. The moat is a simple way of describing a company's competitive advantages. Company's with a strong competitive advantage have large moats, and therefore higher profit margins. And investors should always be concerned with profit margins. This article looks at a methodology called the Porter's Five Forces Analysis. In his book Competitive Strategy, Harvard professor Michael Porter describes five forces affecting the profitability of companies. These are the five forces he noted: These five forces, taken together, give us insight into a company's competitive position, and its profitability. Rivals Rivals are competitors within an industry. Rivalry in the industry can be weak, with few competitors that don't compete very aggressively. Or it can be intense, with many competitors fighting in a cut-throat environment. Factors affecting the intensity of rivalry are:
New Entrants One of the defining characteristics of competitive advantage is the industry's barrier to entry. Industries with high barriers to entry are usually too expensive for new firms to enter. Industries with low barriers to entry, are relatively cheap for new firms to enter. The threat of new entrants rises as the barrier to entry is reduced in a marketplace. As more firms enter a market, you will see rivalry increase, and profitability will fall (theoretically) to the point where there is no incentive for new firms to enter the industry. Here are some common barriers to entry:
Substitute Products This is probably the most overlooked, and therefore most damaging, element of strategic decision making. It's imperative that business owners (us) not only look at what the company's direct competitors are doing, but what other types of products people could buy instead. When switching costs (the costs a customer incurs to switch to a new product) are low the threat of substitutes is high. As is the case when dealing with new entrants, companies may aggressively price their products to keep people from switching. When the threat of substitutes is high, profit margins will tend to be low. Buyer Power There are two types of buyer power. The first is related to the customer's price sensitivity. If each brand of a product is similar to all the others, then the buyer will base the purchase decision mainly on price. This will increase the competitive rivalry, resulting in lower prices, and lower profitability. The other type of buyer power relates to negotiating power. Larger buyers tend to have more leverage with the firm, and can negotiate lower prices. When there are many small buyers of a product, all other things remaining equal, the company supplying the product will have higher prices and higher margins. Conversely, if a company sells to a few large buyers, those buyers will have significant leverage to negotiate better pricing. Some factors affecting buyer power are:
Supplier Power Buyer power looks at the relative power a company's customers has over it. When multiple suppliers are producing a commoditized product, the company will make its purchase decision based mainly on price, which tends to lower costs. On the other hand, if a single supplier is producing something the company has to have, the company will have little leverage to negotiate a better price. Size plays a factor here as well. If the company is much larger than its suppliers, and purchases in large quantities, then the supplier will have very little power to negotiate. Using Wal-Mart as an example, we find that suppliers have no power because Wal-Mart purchases in such large quantities. A few factors that determine supplier power include:
It's important to analyze these five forces and their affect on companies we want to invest in. The Porter Five Forces Analysis will give you a good explanation for the profitability of an industry, and the firms within it. If you want to know why a company is able, or unable, to make a decent profit, this is the first analysis you should do. About The Author Chris Mallon is the editor and publisher of the Undervalued Weekly, a free personal finance and investment newsletter, published once a week. To sign up for the Undervalued Weekly, send e-mail to underval@hot-response.com, or sign-up through the website at www.dynamicinvestors.net/index7.html; chrismallon@dynamicinvestors.net
MORE RESOURCES:
Investing - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Part II of Day Traders and Swing Traders and Options? Maybe! Before every protective put trade it is possible to calculate your anticipated maximum loss. Use the formula: (stock price minus strike price) plus option price. Reasons For Joining An Investment Club Whether you're a novice investor or an experienced stock picker an investment club may be beneficial to growing your investment portfolio. This article explains what an investment club is, why you should have an investment program and finally why you should join an investment club. Dumb Money Many people have, at one time or another, taken some of their hard-earned funds, and decided to put them in the stock market. These well-meaning individuals either acted on a tip they saw on CNBC, or actually believed one of those crazy faxes/emails that said XBXB @ $0. The Dreaded Direct Question (Please have a glass of water within reach before reading this article.)Your personal financial planning is the topic of discussion here today, but not quite yet. How to Analyze the Veracity of Investment Newsletters When trying to analyze whether a promotional ad for an investment newsletter or a market timing investment trading system is worthy of investigation, the following questions should be asked:Does the strategy have a track record? Without this you are really allowing your emotions to be in play. All of us want to believe that if someone says something it must be true. Keep Stock Market Investment Profits Have you had one of those huge investment winners - a stock that went from $2.00 to $80. Options Made Easy and Investor Education - Simple Enough for a 10 yr Old Kid How many of you out there think that the market is performing well?How many think the market is performing poorly?And how many feel the markets performance is neutral?Actually none of these answers is correct. You see, learning and reading our options made easy articles, you will realize that the market does not perform, you do. Going Against the Conventional Investment Wisdom First of all, I want to give everyone the disclaimer that I am not a registered financial advisor and I don't play one on TV. Therefore, I cannot legally provide financial advice and I will not do so. Why Should I Use Penny Shares to Build Wealth? A strategic question. Why indeed?1. Annuity Help Many people today are looking for annuity help. The biggest challenge seems to be that most of the help is biased. Investing in World Markets There are many different ways to invest in world markets: stocks, bonds, mutual funds, options, commodities or currencies. Sometimes people refer to these options as investment vehicles (or method of investment). A Secret Revealed: Why Most (Day) Traders Fail The following perspective on (day) trading comes from my many years of experience of active day trading or being the moderator of one of the largest day trading chat rooms on the Internet.One of the biggest problems I see with new traders (and even some old ones) has nothing to do with the software or the broker they are using. Investing 101: Risk Terminology - BETA About thirty years ago, statisticians armed with all of their statistical theories began to confront the financial markets. A handful of useful tools emerged that the average investor should be familiar with when they look to purchase stocks. Press Release Scams and Successes: Reading Between the Lines Press releases are a means through which companies can keep the public up to date regarding their recent affairs. It is the duty of every public company to keep its investors and indirectly potential investors aware of what is going on in the company. Can Your Annuity Do This? Many people buy annuities according to their agent's recommendations. However, many people do not even know what they own. Raising Capital Using a Public Company Going public in this manner is ideal for companies that may not be large enough to attract an underwriter for an IPO and those that don't need to raise capital immediately. They want to go public because of the many benefits that being a public company offers such as increased valuation, using public stock as currency to acquire other companies and assets, liquidity, prestige and to reduce the need for expensive venture capital and other financing sources. A Gadfly On A Dinosaurs Butt, Or The Hood-winking Of The American Investor Have you ever noticed how some words in the English language are so perfectly named for what they describe? And how some words seem to be, I guess you could say, backwards? For instance, the word sunflower! How wonderfully aptly named is the sunflower, that beautiful yellow flower that follows the sun from sunrise to sunset.And then there are those words in the English language where there meaning appears to be backward, so to speak - like parkway and driveway. Landlording 101, Tricks of The Trade Looking Inside Your Tenant's Mind Basic Mind-Reading Report 101 for LandlordsIt goes without saying but I will say it anyway. The better you understand your tenants and their personal situation, the better you can serve their needs and your own. Annuity Investment Guide While there is not a lack of information on annuities, there certainly is a lack of good information. In an age full of information, we are constantly bombarded with irrelevant data. Forex Trading Best Practices FOREX, the term for the FOReign EXchange market, is an international exchange market where currencies from many different countries are bought and sold. Both long-term hedge investors and short-term investors that seek quick profits use FOREX.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
