I hate doing this but while I was looking for stocks to post, I found AHMH....American Home Mortgage and the stock looked SOOO GOOOD to me, I went ahead and bought some...about 300 shares. So let me tell you about this company, and you can see if you would like to buy some as well.
We have seen a lot of these mortgage companies popping up on our lists....stocks like New Century Financial (NCEN), and UFM....stocks we have already discussed here and have been doing quite well.
AHMH "is an independent retail mortgage banking company that sells loans and related servicing rights to institutional buyers. AHMH also operates a mortgage website at MortgageSelect.com." (per CNN.Money)
On April 23, 2003, AHMH reported earnings for the first quarter of 2003. Per NYTimes on the Web, 2003 earnings rose 143% (!) to $16.3 million from $6.7 million. Revenue rose 179% (!) to $94.6 million for the first quarter from $33.9 million for the same perior in 2002. They also announced an increase in their dividend.
The company DID warn that if interest rates rose, their revenue/earnings would most likely drop accordingly. However, if you follow the interest rate scene....rates are hardly rising.
The company is small but growing quickly. Revenue growth, according to Morningstar.com, was $11.3 million in 1997 going to $20.2 million in 1998, $24.9 million in 1999, $58.3 million in 2000, $128.1 million in 2001, and $189.8 million in the trailing twelve months.
Free cash flow DOES appear to be negative and the assets-liabilities statement is incomplete on Morningstar.com.
Currently, the stock is trading at $19.49, up 11.18% on the day. They have a reasonable (!) p/e of 7.35, and yield 1.25% in dividends.
Anyhow, I bought before I posted so I apologize....but I liked the explosive growth in revenue/earnings on this little one which coupled with a low p/e sounds like a recipe for a continued price appreciation.
Have a great day...and please drop me a note at bobsadviceforstocks@lycos.com and let me know if you find this site useful!
Bob