Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Insurance is still attractive


"You know what's worse than taxes?
What's worse than tax is insurance.
You got to have some insurance.
They shouldn't even call it insurance.
They just should call it ''in case shit.''
l give a company some money
in case shit happens.
Now, if shit don't happen,
shouldn't l get my money back?"
-- Chris Rock, "Bigger & Blacker"

I know that many insurance stocks have rallied off their 52-week lows, but they are still attractive. Take for instance, Conseco (CNO) which is up sizably today on better than expected earnings. It's still selling for P/S, P/B, and PEG ratios that at best would be described as meager. It's trading for about half the cash on the balance sheet.
If a money loser like Conseco scares you, then consider Unum (UNM). It's not as cheap, but still cheap. Plus, it has a positive P/E.

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