PLDT: Defensive With Its Solid Fundamentals And Continued Data Center Investment

Asian Value Investor742 FollowersFollow5ShareSavePlay(13min)CommentsSummaryPLDT, Inc. is upgraded from hold to buy, driven by defensive fundamentals, resilient subscriber growth, and attractive valuation.Despite macro headwinds and rising competition, PHI maintains high operating and EBITDA margins, recurring revenues, and robust cash flows.Strategic expansion in data centers and digital banking, alongside prudent debt management, positions PHI for long-term growth and capital unlocking.At a P/E of 9.52x and target price of $26.72, PHI trades at multi-year lows, with technicals indicating oversold conditions and potential entry points. Charday Penn/E+ via Getty Images In the months that followed my last coverage of PLDT, Inc. (PHI), we saw how it regained its strength and proved it deserved to be the other half of the telco duopolyThis article was written byAsian Value Investor742 FollowersFollowI have been working in the logistics sector for almost two decades. I have been into stock investing and macroeconomic analysis for almost a decade. Currently, I focus on ASEAN and NYSE/NASDAQ Stocks, particularly in banks, telco, logistics, and hotels. Since 2014, I have been trading on the PH stock market. I focus on banking, telco, and retail sectors. A colleague encouraged me to engage in the stock market as part of my portfolio diversification instead of putting all my savings in banks and properties. That was also the year when insurance companies became very popular in the PH. Initially, I invested in popular blue-chip companies. Now, I have investments across different industries and market cap sizes. There are stocks I hold for my retirement, while others are purely for trading profits. In 2020, I also entered the US Market. It was about a year after I discovered Seeking Alpha. Originally, I was using the trading account of NY CA-based cousin. Somehow, I acted like his personal broker. That made me more aware of the US market before deciding to open my own account. I decided to write for Seeking Alpha to share and gain more knowledge since I have been trading on the US market for only four years. Like in the ASEAN market, I have holdings in US banks, hotels, shipping, and logistics companies. I discovered it in 2018. Since then, I have been using the analyses here to compare them to the ones I'm doing in the PH Market.Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of PHI either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article. Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.