State Street Corp Stock Buy Recommendation Reiterated (STT)

Editor's Note: TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- State Street (NYSE:STT) has been reiterated by TheStreet Ratings as a buy with a ratings score of B . The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its attractive valuation levels, expanding profit margins, good cash flow from operations, solid stock price performance and notable return on equity. Although no company is perfect, currently we do not see any significant weaknesses which are likely to detract from the generally positive outlook.

• ACTIVE STOCK TRADERS: Get trading ideas for stocks under $10 for less than $6/week. Start with a 14-Day Free Trial.

Highlights from the ratings report include:

• The gross profit margin for STATE STREET CORP is currently very high, coming in at 95.60%. It has increased from the same quarter the previous year. Along with this, the net profit margin of 19.30% is above that of the industry average.
• STATE STREET CORP' earnings per share from the most recent quarter came in slightly below the year earlier quarter. This company has reported somewhat volatile earnings recently. But, we feel it is poised for EPS growth in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, STATE STREET CORP increased its bottom line by earning $3.79 versus $3.08 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($3.83 versus $3.79).
• Net operating cash flow has slightly increased to -$2,764.00 million or 8.65% when compared to the same quarter last year. Despite an increase in cash flow of 8.65%, STATE STREET CORP is still growing at a significantly lower rate than the industry average of 77.64%.
• STT's share price has surged by 31.90% over the past year, reflecting the market's general trend, despite their weak earnings growth during the last quarter. Regarding the stock's future course, although almost any stock can fall in a broad market decline, STT should continue to move higher despite the fact that it has already enjoyed a very nice gain in the past year.

State Street Corporation, a financial holding company, provides various financial products and services to institutional investors worldwide. The company has a P/E ratio of 11.4, equal to the average banking industry P/E ratio and below the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. State Street has a market cap of $20.09 billion and is part of the financial sector and banking industry. Shares are up 4% year to date as of the close of trading on Thursday.

You can view the full State Street Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.

--Written by a member of TheStreet Ratings Staff.

FREE from Real Money's Jim Cramer: Winners and Losers Election 2012 - Steps to take NOW so you can profit no matter who is in charge! Free Download Now

For more information on State Street Corp click any of the following:

• State Street Corp Stock Price

• State Street Corp Analyst Ratings

• State Street Corp Key Stats & Profile

• State Street Corp Earnings

• State Street Corp Ratio Comparison

• State Street Corp Growth Rates

• State Street Corp Balance Sheet

• State Street Corp Cash Flow

• State Street Corp Income Statement