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Sinnlos verprügelt!!!
Kann mal jemand bis heute nachmittag was recherchieren?
Ich muß jetzt schlafen!
Auf meiner WL: GDW
P/E: 13.33
PEG: 0.827
Und das nach starken Zahlen!
PANIK macht Geschenke!




Selloff in Thrift Shares Was First Leak in Storm Shelter
By Yi Ping Ho
Staff Reporter
8/27/01 12:37 PM ET




Savings and loan shares saw their role as the stock market`s current safest bet tarnished Friday as investors dumped thrift stock en masse. Several big names were downgraded by brokerage analysts who cited concerns that the Federal Reserve is done easing, although the scope of the selloff surprised even them.

"It was a little bit exaggerated, [and] seemed almost like a flight to risk," said Mark Agah, analyst at Dain Rauscher Wessels, who downgraded Golden West Financial (GDW:NYSE) and Downey Financial (DSL:NYSE) to neutral from buy on Friday. "I didn`t come out and say sell the things. I just said I don`t see a lot of upside. And wham, they got crushed." Golden West gave up 10.4%, finishing at $54.75, and Downey lost 6.8% to end at $47.51. Both stocks are about 30% off their 52-week highs.

The Fed`s rabid campaign to lower the price of money has been rocket fuel for a sector that derives its profit from the difference between what it pays on deposits and what it charges on loans. In an environment of monetary easing, the spread tends to widen, and more loans are made.

"We anticipate that, potentially in the fourth quarter and definitely in 2002, margins will come under pressure as we get to the end of the rate-cut cycle," said Agah, noting that after Friday`s "bludgeoning," many thrift stocks are still trading at a relatively high average valuation of 10.5 or 11 times earnings. But the analyst said he`d recommend buying the stocks again if valuations drop to eight or nine times earnings.

Within the Russell 2000 index of small-cap stocks, financial services shares - a decent proxy for thrifts and mid-cap regional banks -- were up 13.5% in the second quarter, while their large-cap brethren in the Russell 1000 were up 8.2%. Before Friday, the S&P Bank Index was up 6.4% this year and 14% since last August, compared with declines in the S&P 500 of 9.4% and 22.4%, respectively. The bank index gave back about two percentage points of that gain on Friday.

Most market participants expect the Fed to move again at its Oct. 2 meeting, although futures contracts showed slightly reduced chances following Friday`s stock rally. Nevertheless, "tightening is hardly the name of the game here," said John Bollinger, head of Bollinger Capital Management, although he conceded the Fed could shift into neutral monetary policy soon. "I think the environment will remain comfortable for banks for some time. Whether they get the majority of the gains or not is a separate question."

Small Bets, Large Gains
The average small- and mid-cap bank managed year-over-year earnings growth of 10% in the second quarter, compared with 2% growth in large-cap banks, said Jason Goldberg, analyst at Lehman Brothers. Smaller banks for the most part have been insulated from trends that have hampered their larger counterparts, including shaky credit conditions and weakening commercial lending.

Pure-play mortgage lenders and regional banks have been posting record earnings. On Aug. 17, Washington Mutual (WM:NYSE), the largest savings and loan, reported a 63% increase in second-quarter earnings and forecast a strong second half. Its shares are up 10.3% this year. Hibernia (HIB:NYSE), Louisiana`s largest bank, is up 45%, while Commerce Bancorp (CBH:NYSE), which operates more than 150 branches

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