Motif Investing Bullish on Funeral Industry

By Dave Westburg February 7, 2017

Motif Investing is bullish in the funeral industry for two reasons: aging baby boomers will increase the demand for funerals and cremations between now and 2036; and 80% of funeral providers are private which provides room for consolidation.  

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Matthews Memorialization Flat in 1Q 2017

By Dave Westburg January 26, 2017

Matthews International announced revenue for the first quarter of fiscal 2017 (3 months ended  December 31, 2016).   You can read the earnings release here and the Seeking Alpha earnings call transcript here.  Funeral Director Daily will focus on the performance of the company’s memorialization segment which produces headstones, caskets and urns. Memorialization sales declined…

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Stonemor Partners CFO departs.

By Dave Westburg January 23, 2017

TREVOSE, Pa., Jan. 23, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — StoneMor Partners L.P. (NYSE:STON) (“StoneMor” or the “Partnership”) today announced that Sean P. McGrath resigned as Chief Financial Officer of StoneMor GP LLC (“StoneMor GP”), the general partner of the Partnership, to pursue business opportunities outside the deathcare industry. Mr. McGrath will remain in his current role…

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StoneMor Partners L.P. Issues $20 million private placement

By Dave Westburg January 3, 2017

TREVOSE, Pa., Jan. 03, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — StoneMor Partners L.P. (NYSE:STON) (“StoneMor” or the “Partnership”) today announced that on December 30, 2016, StoneMor GP Holdings LLC, the sole member and owner of the general partner of the Partnership, acquired 2,332,878 common units representing limited partner interests of the Partnership in a private placement for…

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Carriage Services Acquires Rich & Thompson Funeral Services in North Carolina

By Dave Westburg November 15, 2016

HOUSTON, Nov. 15, 2016  Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE: CSV) is pleased to announce that we have partnered with Rich & Thompson Funeral Services in the Strategic Market of Raleigh/Durham/Greensboro in North Carolina.  Dating back to 1913, the Rich & Thompson name has been a prominent name in funeral service in both Burlington, NC and Graham, NC.…

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BUSINESS

Happy Thanksgiving — Enjoy, food, family, and football!!!

By Funeral Director Daily | November 27, 2025

  This year for my evening devotions I am using a book of daily notes by Billy Graham titled, “Wisdom for Each Day“.  It was in the back of my mind to write something for…

62 Years ago this week. . . . the story of the Kennedy casket

By Funeral Director Daily | November 26, 2025

  Imagine it is lunch time at the funeral home you work at when you get a call from the hospital two miles away that you need to immediately bring the best casket you have…

Transformation continues — You can’t afford to be left behind

By Funeral Director Daily | November 25, 2025

  Simply as a member of a community I was again reminded this past week that transformation, and especially technology transformation, continues to happen at a rapid pace in the Death Care profession.  Last week…

FINANCE

Security National Financial’s 3rd Quarter: Cemeteries/Mortuaries are the bright spot

By Funeral Director Daily | November 19, 2025

    Security National Financial Corporation, the Utah-based public company with parts of its operation in the Death Care segment, reported their 3rd Quarter 2025 financials last week.   When the President of the company,…

Wealth generation, private equity, funeral homes — Will this period last forever?

By Funeral Director Daily | November 17, 2025

  The Wall Street Journal in this recent article (you may find a paywall here) estimates that over the past 5 years Americans have gained a total of $63 trillion in personal wealth.  And, this…

Seeking Alpha author says “Carriage Services is coming back to life”

By Funeral Director Daily | November 14, 2025

    Seeking Alpha author Daniel Jones made the following comment in this opinion article titled “Carriage Services is coming back to life” published last week about the company:   “. . . I believe…

REGULATIONS

Subject of iconic “Homecoming” photo died on Veterans Day

By Funeral Director Daily | November 28, 2025

  This is Thanksgiving weekend — a time to reflect and give thanks for the lives we are living.  Those of you who are old enough will remember back in 1973 a time when our…

Happy Thanksgiving — Enjoy, food, family, and football!!!

By Funeral Director Daily | November 27, 2025

  This year for my evening devotions I am using a book of daily notes by Billy Graham titled, “Wisdom for Each Day“.  It was in the back of my mind to write something for…

Turning golf courses into cemeteries. . .here’s a city that wants to do just that

By Funeral Director Daily | November 13, 2025

  Golf courses, in this day and age, are incredibly expensive to build.  It’s not only the land acquisition costs but you have the costs involved in shaping the fairways and the greens, building a…

CEMETERY

62 Years ago this week. . . . the story of the Kennedy casket

By Funeral Director Daily | November 26, 2025

  Imagine it is lunch time at the funeral home you work at when you get a call from the hospital two miles away that you need to immediately bring the best casket you have…

Turning golf courses into cemeteries. . .here’s a city that wants to do just that

By Funeral Director Daily | November 13, 2025

  Golf courses, in this day and age, are incredibly expensive to build.  It’s not only the land acquisition costs but you have the costs involved in shaping the fairways and the greens, building a…

Socialism in NYC and Death Care

By Funeral Director Daily | November 12, 2025

  The election of Democrat Socialist Zohran Mamdani as Mayor of the city that many refer to as the “World’s Financial Center” has brought about questions on what might change.  Most of those questions deal…

CREMATION

Does KFC have a template for Death Care?

By Funeral Director Daily | November 24, 2025

  Alex Fasciano, an analyst for CFRA Research suggests that quick service restaurant player KFC’s (formerly Kentucky Fried Chicken) strategy is “. .centered on driving growth through brand relevance, marketing innovation, (and) operational excellence. .…

Cremation Air: A new service to help funeral homes

By Funeral Director Daily | November 20, 2025

  Funeral Director Daily learned last week that one of the best known names in Death Care was branching out to continue to help funeral directors.  The Czachor family, founders of the leading funeral home…

Socialism in NYC and Death Care

By Funeral Director Daily | November 12, 2025

  The election of Democrat Socialist Zohran Mamdani as Mayor of the city that many refer to as the “World’s Financial Center” has brought about questions on what might change.  Most of those questions deal…

PRENEED

Preneed companies emerge as funeral home lending sources

By Funeral Director Daily | October 3, 2025

    Morgan Stanley, a global financial services firm that provides a wide range of products and services, including investment banking, wealth management, consumer banking, and brokerage services, recently made this comment in an article, “Life…

Co-op Funeralcare increases “Funeral Plan” sales over 17% despite cyberattack

By Funeral Director Daily | October 1, 2025

  An April cyberattack which you can read about here probably cost the parent company of Great Britain’s largest funeral home operator, Co-op Funeralcare, about a US$ 107 million profit swing but didn’t seem to…

Acquiring client families — “Any Which Way You Can”

By Funeral Director Daily | September 30, 2025

    As so often happens in my world I’ve had some real life and/or businesses experiences or discussions in the last week or ten days that has made me think about Death Care.  And,…

PRODUCTS

Transformation continues — You can’t afford to be left behind

By Funeral Director Daily | November 25, 2025

  Simply as a member of a community I was again reminded this past week that transformation, and especially technology transformation, continues to happen at a rapid pace in the Death Care profession.  Last week…

Cremation Air: A new service to help funeral homes

By Funeral Director Daily | November 20, 2025

  Funeral Director Daily learned last week that one of the best known names in Death Care was branching out to continue to help funeral directors.  The Czachor family, founders of the leading funeral home…

Consumers do change habits

By Funeral Director Daily | November 7, 2025

  Service Corporation International Chairman and CEO Thomas Ryan made some interesting comments in his opening statements in last week’s SCI Earnings Call.  And, I wonder when looking at the long-range perspective if these comments…