HOME ZACKS RESEARCH FUNDS PORTFOLIO BROKER RESEARCH MARKETS SCREENING EDUCATION SERVICES
Zacks Rank    Equity Research    Obama Stocks    My Account    Help    
FREE winning picks
Quote:
Login
Search:

Commentary BETA - Give us your feedback
Analyst Blog

Delphi Financial Misses Slightly

By: Eric Rothmann
August 13, 2008 | Comments: 0
Recommended this article (0)
DFG
Print    Share

We maintain our Hold rating on the shares of Delphi Financial Group, Inc. (DFG - Analyst Report), a holding company whose subsidiaries provide non-medical insurance products and services.

The company’s second-quarter operating results missed our expectations by seven cents, mainly due to disappointing investment results. While the earnings were depressed for 2Q08 due to lower net investment income, Delphi’s premiums and fee income has been broadening over the last few quarters.

However, the company’s focus on small case markets, diversified product line, and customer base shields it from the recessionary market conditions. We believe that the recent share repurchases will boost its ROE [return on equity]. Even though the shares have retracted somewhat from their recent high, we think the positives have been generally factored into Delphi’s valuation multiples. Therefore, we believe shares will perform in-line with the overall market over the coming quarters.

Based on 2Q08 results and revised company guidance, we are lowering our 2008 and 2009 earnings expectation for this company to $3.05 per share and $3.65 per share, respectively, from $3.20 per share and $3.85 per share previously. At the current level, the shares of Delphi trade at 1.15 times its 2Q08 book value of $22.03 per share.

We are lowering our six-month price target to $27.10 per share down from $30.30 per share previously) which incorporates a price-to-book multiple of 1.15x to our estimated $23.55 per share at December 31, 2008.

Read the full analyst report on DFG



Email

Print

Share

RSS

Rate Pos

Rate Neg

Comment
Read/Post Comments (0) | Recommended this article (0)
 Posting Comment...
There was a problem posting this this comment. Please try back later.
[CLICK TO CLOSE X]
Comments (Limit 1000 Characters - Used: 0)
Display Name: Email Address:  
 Loading Comments...
Be the first to comment on this article!

More Zacks Resources

Market Summary Jul 04, 2009 14:31 pm ET
DJIA 8280.74  -223.32 -2.63%
NASD 1796.52  -49.20 -2.67%
S&P 500 896.42  -26.91 -2.91%
Sponsored Links
Commentary Beta
GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK