3 Top Stocks at Half-Price Stock | CAPS Rating (out of 5) | % Off 12-Month High | Bank of Ireland (NYSE: IRE) | **** | 74% | Conn's (Nasdaq: CONN) | ***** | 55% | Sunesis Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: SNSS) | ***** | 69% |
Taking the reins of Ireland's financial sector with both hands, the government-run National Asset Management Agency assumed $94 billion in bad loans from Bank of Ireland, Allied Irish Banks (NYSE: AIB), Anglo Irish, and several building societies, and there are more purchases coming soon. After effectively seizing control of Allied Irish Banks with a $5 billion infusion of cash, the government is poised to nationalize the rest of the industry if it can't raise money privately. Bank of Ireland has until February to raise 1.5 billion euros and if it can't, the government will step in. The government already owns more than a third of the bank, and the finance minister has said it's willing to take control of the entire sector if need be. While investors have been heartened by the government taking control -- Bank of Ireland's stock is up more than 50% in the past month -- depositors are fleeing in droves, as 5 billion euros' worth of deposits left Irish banks in November. Bank of Ireland alone saw 10 billion euros leave between August and September. All-Star CAPS member ml6086 thinks the worst is over for Bank of Ireland. DontSellMeShort2 says that may be likely, but it's too risky to invest in its salvation: Yikes stay away for now. I did gamble when it was more volatile and made a quick 20%, but I was nervous the entire time. The more I hear from EU, the more apprehensive I get. I think [Bank of Ireland] can be salvaged and may pull a story similar to [Citigroup], but I'm not planning on investing anytime soon. http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2010/12/31/3-top-stocks-at-half-price.aspx |