I aim to provide alpha-generating investment ideas. I am an independent investor managing my family’s portfolio, primarily via a Self Managed Super Fund. My articles deliver 5-Minute Pitches focused on the core fundamental and technical drivers of the security.I have a generalist approach as I explore, analyze and invest in any sector so long there is perceived alpha potential vs the S&P500. The typical holding period ranges between a few months to multiple years.I am very much focused on adding value via alpha generation. I always start with a Performance Assessment section for each follow-up article. I publish unusually detailed analytics on my long-only, zero-leverage global equity portfolio performance on my Hunting Alphas website every month. At Hunting Alphas, you can also access the models to all the tickers I publish on.A bit about how I approach research and coverage of a stock:I build and maintain spreadsheets showing historical data on the financials, key metric disclosures, data on the guidance and surprise trends vs consensus estimates, time-series values of the valuations vs peers, data on key coincident or leading indicators of performance and other monitorables. In addition to the company’s filings, I also keep tabs on relevant industry news and reports plus other people’s coverage of the stock. In some cases, such as during times of a CEO change, I will do a deep dive on a key leader’s background and his/her past performance record.I very rarely build DCFs and project financials many years out into the future as I don’t think it adds much value. Instead, I find it more useful to assess how a company has delivered and the broad outlook on the 5 key drivers of a DCF valuation: revenues, costs and margins, cash flow conversion, capex and investments and the interest rates (which affect the discount rate/opportunity cost of capital). In some cases, especially for companies trading at very high multiples on a TTM or 1-yr fwd basis, I do a reverse DCF to make sense of the implied growth CAGR implications.Note: Hunting Alphas is related to VishValue Research on Seeking Alpha.

My name is María Fernanda and I’m currently studying an MBA. My inspiration investors are Warren Buffett, Peter Lynch and Terry Smith, so I look for quality companies at a reasonable valuation. I believe that, in the long term, fundamentals are what drive the share price, so I look to predict what a business’s earnings per share will do.

Steven Cress is VP of Quantitative Strategy and Market Data at Seeking Alpha. Steve is also the creator of the platform’s quantitative stock rating system and many of the analytical tools on Seeking Alpha. His contributions form the cornerstone of the Seeking Alpha Quant Rating system, designed to interpret data for investors and offer insights on investment directions, thereby saving valuable time for users. He is also the Founder and Co-Manager of Alpha Picks, a systematic stock recommendation tool designed to help long-term investors create a best-in-class portfolio.Steve is passionate and dedicated to removing emotional biases from investment decisions. Utilizing a data-driven approach, he leverages sophisticated algorithms and technologies to simplify complex, laborious investment research, creating an easy-to-follow, daily updated grading system for stock trading recommendations.Steve was previously the Founder and CEO of CressCap Investment Research until its acquisition by Seeking Alpha in 2018 for its unparalleled quant analysis and market data capabilities. Prior to that, he had also founded the quant hedge fund Cress Capital Management, after spending most of his career running a proprietary trading desk at Morgan Stanley and leading international business development at Northern Trust.With over 30 years of experience in equity research, quantitative strategies, and portfolio management, Steve is well-positioned to speak on a wide range of investment topics.