AFSI – Amtrust Financial Services

http://leonardthemonkey.com/index.php/2007/11/08/afsi_solid

These stocks are so difficult to call. A stock like AFSI does look cheap on a valuation basis, but there are quite a few financial services companies that look cheap but continue to trade lower. Long term a good stock, in the short term its debatable.

AFSI did not even participate in today’s rally. what’s wrong with it?

It’s been over-valued since it crept past 10 dollars. It’ll take a while for company growth to justify a P/E that is still significantly higher than the industry average.

>It’s been over-valued since it crept past 10 dollars. It’ll take a while for company growth to justify >a P/E that is still significantly higher than the industry average.

http://www.seekingalpha.com/article/50648-amtrust-financial-services-sometimes-boring-is-best

They discuss the P/E ratio a bit toward the bottom, back when the stock was valued at $15 a share in October. Also, the stock had a book value of $6.32 *before* they beat earnings again this semester. Basically, this company is worth more but trading for less than it was in October.

At $22 a share a few months back, no insider’s sold. Good sign.

I’ve got confidence. It may dip more, but I’ve got confidence it’s heading back towards $20, or at least $17. Of course, it may stay stuck down with the other financials, even though they have no subprime exposure.

With all due respect, I’d say owning any financially related stock in the next 6 months is not going to get you anywhere. Long-term, however, this company’s growth strategy will probably propel it to the limit of it’s growth. And considering that it operates in a niche market, future opportunities for growth will most likely be constricted.

Bill, I see your point about owning financially related stocks in the current market. I completely understand your point of view. However, I’ve got confidence in this one.

The news that the company is going to buy back three million shares also came out today.
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/primenewswire/131539.htm
but again, even this news barely budged the stock. It only moved eight cents.
they’ve beat earnings every quarter, this quarter by about 25%.
they’ve got good management.
they’ve got no subprime exposurej, and have announced this publically.
they’re buying back their shares.
insiders didn’t sell, even at $22 per share.

you may be right about me having to wait long on this one, and that’s a valid concern. –much respect to your comments. but with good earnings and the stock buyback, this thing is going to pop eventually, and I’m guessing sooner rather than later.

I may be wrong, and I can agree with the current state of financial stocks, your assessment is completely justified. Your comments are much appreciated.

Wow… I feel sorry for all of you who bought this stock around 14.

This is a classic example of how underlying trends of the market are MUCH more powerful than fundamental strength. Right now, AFSI is an example of one of the worst stocks you could buy. Why?

1) It’s a U.S. equity.
2) It’s a small cap.
3) It’s in the financial sector.

Nobody cares that they beat earnings or that they continue to grow. Good luck if you’re already taken a position in AFSI. It’s going to be a rough 6-12 months for you, assuming you haven’t already bailed on it.

It’s down 5% today.

http://www.streetinsider.com/Upgrades/Keefe+Bruyette+and+Woods+Upgrades+AmTrust+Financial+(AFSI)+to+Outperform/3137552.html

Analyst upgrade with a $17 price target. The stock bounced 10% earlier today, but is leveling back off.

Just about all finacially wise Americans are invested in government bonded investments. But what they don’t realize, is that the government has control of your money. So if the government crashes, we all crash. Even with our current economy recession, I still believe it is wiser to invest into stocks. Wizetrade shows a strong up for AFSI. But be careful.

Wizetrade found me this stock when it was $5/share.

I agree. This stock is dirt cheap right now. And it’ll rise soon; so if you have it, buy it. Wizetrade also shows postive growth. So in recap, the bull trader + wizetrade recommendation = BUY NOW.

Hmm. This is a crazy one. I’ll with you guys and wizetrade’s advise though.

http://www.easystockalerts.com will keep you abreast on the latest news on stocks you follow. You can get e-mail and RSS alerts when a stock you are tracking has news, an SEC filing, or a press release. We also monitor some of the top financial blogs for opinions on your stocks.

I recently came across a new site http://www.easystockalerts.com with lots information and updates. You can get all recent news and information relating to the stock you follow from this site. Site also monitor monitor some of the top financial blogs for opinions on your stocks.

Congratulation, it was very interesting surfing around here, It was a great pleasure for me to visit and enjoy you site. Keep it running!