Decoding “The Best” Run SAP
While the technology around us is changing at an exponential rate, has the definition of the best ever changed ?
In almost every sphere of life, from sports to business, the best have a common thread. The best always remain in motion, constantly motivated for more. The best embrace change, to accomplish more. The best take up innovation – both human and technological. The best delay gratification and remain humble, committed to disrupting complacency. Perhaps, for companies around the globe that is what it means to run at your best. Earlier this year SAP refreshed its tagline to “The Best Run SAP”. The stories of its customers for last 40+ years is a testimony to it. Through this blog, I want to decode the meaning of the best from an investor perspective.
I was exposed to equities from childhood. The lessons of finding best run businesses came from my father. Though I hold common stocks, I am not a high profile investor and don’t believe in trading. As I grew up, one piece of advice that I received was – there can be no better place of information about a company than its annual reports. Hence, I generally read those before making an investment decision. Reading those may seem to be a time consuming and a boring job. However, my penchant for business writing is another reason that I enjoy reading those. On the other hand, annual reports or letters to shareholder’s of great companies/CEOs are invaluable source of business insights as those are available free of cost.
“I realized right away that if I just literally read a company’s annual report and the notes – or better yet, 4-5 years of report – I would know much more than other investors out there” said Jim Rogers
In the annual report, the company’s management discusses the important aspects about the company like industry performance, its vision for the long term, opportunities and threats faced by the company, company’s historical performance etc. But have you ever seen a mention of a technology vendor in a company’s annual report? It is very very rare. SAP is one such technology vendor which has been mentioned in the annual reports of some companies.
Through this blog, I am taking liberty to make you aware of 3 Indian companies who have mentioned about SAP in the annual reports for 2017-2018. These companies are leaders in their industry and have created tremendous value for their investors in last 5-7 years.
Marico
Marico is one of India’s leading consumer products companies operating in the beauty and wellness space. Currently present in 25 countries across emerging markets of Asia and Africa, Marico has nurtured multiple brands in the categories of hair care, skin care, edible oils, health foods, male grooming, and fabric care. Its stock has given 1,096.32% returns to the shareholders in last 10 years. No wonder that it is in top 50 companies in 2017 on Forbes India.
Marico writes about SAP in the following way in the annual report 2017-2018.
Symphony Ltd.
Symphony is the world leader in evaporative air cooling. According to HDFC Securities Institutional Research it has a value share of 50% in branded cooler market in India. The closest competitor has only 15% market share. Symphony’s stock has given a whooping return of 26,799% to the shareholders in last 10 years where has BSE Sensex delivered only 157%.
Symphony writes about SAP in the following way in the annual report 2017-2018.
Jubilant Foodworks
The Company & its subsidiary operates Domino’s Pizza brand with the exclusive rights for India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The Company is market leader in the pizza segment with a network of 1,144 Domino’s Pizza restaurants across 268 cities in India (as on June 30, 2018). Its stock has given a respectable 178% returns to the shareholders in last 5 years where has BSE Sensex delivered only 106%.
Jubilant writes about SAP in the following way in the annual report 2017-2018.
As an SAP fan, it is heartening to read about SAP in these annual reports. After all , The best run SAP 🙂
Though the blog was celebration of SAP’s customer centricity, the important key take away for us is – Annual report can reveal the secrets a company wants to hide. So if you own common stocks, read key parts of the annual report.