Editor's Note: Any reference to TheStreet Ratings and its underlying recommendation does not reflect the opinion of TheStreet, Inc. or any of its contributors including Jim Cramer or Stephanie Link. NEW YORK ( TheStreet) -- Fortegra Financial (NYSE: FRF) has been upgraded by TheStreet Ratings from hold to buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures, attractive valuation levels, growth in earnings per share and compelling growth in net income. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had somewhat disappointing return on equity.
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- FRF's revenue growth has slightly outpaced the industry average of 7.5%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues rose by 12.9%. This growth in revenue appears to have trickled down to the company's bottom line, improving the earnings per share.
- Although FRF's debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29 is very low, it is currently higher than that of the industry average.
- FORTEGRA FINANCIAL CORP reported significant earnings per share improvement in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. 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, FORTEGRA FINANCIAL CORP reported lower earnings of $0.51 versus $0.73 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($0.69 versus $0.51).
- The net income growth from the same quarter one year ago has exceeded that of the S&P 500, but is less than that of the Insurance industry average. The net income increased by 16.2% when compared to the same quarter one year prior, going from $2.49 million to $2.90 million.
