Value Investing News

Not many companies fortunes are as closely tied to the stock market as those in the insurance industry. When the market is climbing, insurers will often soar beyond the market, and will fall harder when the market declines. With the market upturn is now a good time to consider insurance companies?

The last thing you want to see is a letter from the government. It is never good news. Either you are being drafted, they want more money from you or you are under investigation. In the case of Manulife Financial Corp. (MFC), Canada’s largest insurance company, it was the latter.

Last week there were several companies that cut or suspended their dividend payments. As part of my studies to uncover market inefficiencies pertaining to dividend stocks I am measuring the performance of those dividend suspenders or cutters. As part of my sample I am measuring stocks which trade at least several hundred thousand shares per day.