Mettler-Toledo International Inc (MTD)

Core expertise is scales. For 20 years, has bought back 3% of outstanding shares annually. For 20 years, 5% topline growth on average. No dividend, so tends to be a bit more volatile.

It is a global leader in scales, from very tiny units to very large ones. There is no dividend but they are buying back about 3% of the shares. The outlook for the sector looks quite good. It is not cheap.

Precision scales (microscopic measurements) to an extent we haven't seen with other companies. So returns are extremely high, with ROIC north of 30% (incredible for an industrial). Reasonably consistent growth rates. Not the biggest AI beneficiary. Quality company. Extremely well managed. 

Valuation consistently rich. No reason to pay up when there are so many other high-quality growth opportunities. Loves it as a long-term company, but not as a long-term stock purchase today.

Like many others it had a fairly significant draw-down in April. It is a global leader in scales with Swiss expertise in engineering. Does tuck-in acquisitions and is a good long term performer.

Are the global leader in scales (i.e. trucks on highways). They enjoy a recurring revenue model. They buyback over $800 million of shares annually; bought back 25% of shares over 10 years. Pays no dividend. Since 2003, earnings are up 17x.

MTD has a strong long-term performance track record and is now trading at 30x times' Forward P/E. In the 1Q, MTD’s revenue grew 3% to $929M (grew 7% on the constant currency), beating estimates of $921M and EPS was $8.69 beating estimates of $8.61. The guidance was quite weak, however, as management expects revenue growth to slow down to 3% on a constant currency basis for Q2 and around 5% for 2023. Overall, the company has executed really well, by consistently growing its top-line organically, while repurchasing shares aggressively over the years, creating shareholder value (shares compounded around 20% annualized in the last ten years). We think the current outlook is understandable due to the challenging macro headwinds. However, it is not cheap, and the guidance may temper gains this year. We think one can start buying slowly if it drifts lower over the next few months, in the low $1,300 range. 
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