World Fuel Services, Galoob Toys, AnnTaylor and Teco Energy
A selection of some of the most intriguing stock newsletter suggestions on the Web. The items presented do not represent the views of
TheStreet.com
; rather, the collection is offered as a service to our members who may be scanning the Web for stock-related information.
World Fuel Services
Robert Metz
Ex-
New York Times
financial writer Robert Metz has spotted a
Big Board
stock he thinks is flying below everyone's radar screens.
World Fuel Services
(INT) - Get Report
, an oil refining and marketing company, has a mere 12 million shares outstanding and a recent average daily volume of just 30,000 shares.
But Metz describes management as aggressive and talented, and says the fundamentals look good: a 19.7% return on equity and a price that's roughly 17.5 times trailing 12-month earnings. The stock has split 3-for-2 twice in the past two and a half years, and profits have remained steady even as fuel prices have declined. Metz quotes analyst Ravi Kamath of
Jefferies
, who sees a 12-month price target of 24 to 28.
It's now trading around 19. Kamath also expects earnings growth of 15% to 25% over the next several years, driven by increases in volumes of aviation and marine fuel.
More information can be found at:
www.talks.com
Galoob Toys
Herb Greenberg
The force is going to really have to be with
Galoob Toys
(GAL) - Get Report
if the toy maker's slumping stock is going to turn around, warns columnist Herb Greenberg. (Click
here for a story on the longtime
San Francisco Chronicle
writer's decision to join
TSC
.)
The company has promised to pay
George Lucas
$140 million for a license to make toys tied in with the next three
Star Wars
films. Given the success of the
Star Wars
franchise, that sounds promising. But even the movies' hype factor won't be enough to sustain Galoob in the long run, Greenberg warns, though investors "swept up by the hoopla" could give the stock a lift when the movies premiere.
Galoob reported a fourth-quarter loss of $2.9 million this week. More alarming signs: Retained earnings are $49.6 million in the hole, and of $67 million cash raised in 1996, just $3.3 million remains.
More information can be found at:
www.sfgate.com
AnnTaylor Stores
Rika Yoshida
Morningstar
analysts often examine stocks through a variety of prisms besides the familiar price-to-earnings ratio. A favorite is free cash flow because it is a purer measure, free from accounting assumptions. Analyst Rika Yoshida highlights
AnnTaylor Stores
(ANN)
as a company that looks better on a free cash flow basis than its P/E would suggest.
The company's fiscal 1997 earnings were $8.7 million, while free cash flow for the year was $30 million. While its P/E of 26 does not look particularly attractive next to the
S&P
average of 22, the stock is trading at only 11 times free cash flow versus a rough market average of 24, Yoshida says.
Running a screen for other stocks with low price-to-free-cash-flow measures, she turned up four worth further investigation:
SPS Transaction Services
(PAY)
, a transaction processor for retailers,
American Media
(ENQ)
, publisher of the
National Enquirer
and
Star
tabloids, and two rent-to-own stores,
Rent-Way
(RWAY)
and
Renters Choice
(RCII) - Get Report
.
More information can be found at:
http://text.morningstar.net
Teco Energy
Gary Hovis
Diversification has been a quagmire for some utilities, but not for
Teco Energy
(TE)
, the holding company for
Tampa Electric
, says Gary Hovis of
Argus Research
. Teco's diversified operations, which include coal mining, oil and gas and oceangoing barge operations, should contribute to above-average earnings through the end of the decade, he says.
Other good news for the stock: Fuel expenses are likely to remain stable, the regional economy is growing stronger, cash flow is healthy and proposed amendments to the
1990 Clean Air Act
should not prove troublesome.
More information can be found at:
www.investools.com