Money Matters, Simplified.
4-Star Stocks Poised to Pop: E*Trade
Thu, 05/28/2009 - 15:50 by Brian D. Pacampara
Based on the aggregated intelligence of 130,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, embattled discount broker E*Trade Financial (Nasdaq: ETFC) has earned a respected four-star ranking.
With that in mind, let's take a closer look at E*Trade's business, and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.
E*Trade facts
|
Headquarters (founded) |
New York, N.Y. (1982) |
|
Market Cap |
$761 million |
|
Industry |
Investment Brokerage |
|
TTM Revenue |
($264.1 million) |
|
Management |
CEO Donald Layton (since 2008) |
|
Return on Equity (average, last five years) |
(6.7%) |
|
Competitors |
Charles Schwab (Nasdaq: SCHW) |
|
CAPS members bullish on ETFC also bullish on: |
General Electric (NYSE: GE) |
|
CAPS members bearish on ETFC also bearish on: |
Citigroup (NYSE: C) |
Sources: Capital IQ (a division of Standard & Poor's), and Motley Fool CAPS. TTM = trailing 12 months.
Over on CAPS, 2,291 of the 2,459 members who have rated E*Trade -- or 93% -- believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bulls include All-Stars 30andholding and BringUs, both of whom are ranked in the top 15% of our community.
Late last month, 30andholding tapped E*Trade as a rather risky (but improving) proposition:
Their cash position has grown significantly over the past few quarters and their LT and ST debt has decreased. Additionally they are showing reduced delinquency in their higher risk home equity loans. This is still a speculative play, but one I feel comfortable with.
In a pitch from one week later, BringUs also urges Fools to focus on E*Trade's core:
E*Trade Bank made smart moves to position themselves
to weather the storm (e.g. paused lending, figured out what was going
on, then restarted with a new focus).
On top of the right moves
on the bank side, they are also continuously growing their brokerage
business with the increased trading activity. If I were someone looking
to open a new brokerage account, the baby commercials definitely come
to mind and remind me that they're alive and kicking.
In the
past few years, I have noticed a great deal of improvements. Order
execution has been flawless and quick, I have not had to stay on hold
for more than 30 seconds, and the trading platform is outstanding.
It's
Foolish to know what a company's customer base thinks. I know this one
first hand. The E*Trade brand is solid, and I only hope they regrow
organically without being snatched up by another company that may not
offer as much.
What do you think about E*Trade, or any other stock for that matter? Make your voice heard on Motley Fool CAPS today. More than 130,000 investors are waiting to hear what you have to say. CAPS is 100% free, so simply click here to get started.
Copyright © 2009 Universal Press Syndicate.
