I was looking up a couple of the stocks we talk about a lot on this board and pulled up a few of their charts... Here's how Fico(FIC) and Equifax(EFX) have been doing over the years compared to the S&P...Quite well it appears... I believe Experian is based in England and TransUnion is privately held. http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=FIC&d=c&k=c1&c=efx,^gspc&a=v&p=s&t=my&l=on&z=l&q=l
Here's last Friday's analyst's commentary from Value Line on Equifax: The stock price of Equifax is down 20% since our June report. Equifax's top line has been hurt by a number of issues, most notably weaker demand for credit reports. Indeed, credit card use has not been as strong as usual, due to volatility in the retail sector. Too, the direct marketing business has struggled, as customers are unwilling to spend large amounts until some clarity appears in the overall economy. Moreover, Equifax's international business remains depressed. Going forward, top-line weakness is likely to persist, as U.S. economic output is not expected to be as robust in the second half of this year as it was in the first quarter. Equifax's cost-cutting efforts are beginning to take hold. These initiatives, which commenced in the fourth quarter of 2001, are expected to generate $40 million in annual cost savings by yearend. The bottom line benefited from a 6% year-over-year reduction in expenses during the second quarter. We expect the cost-reduction initiatives to gain momentum in the second half of the year, helping Equifax to deliver over a 20% earnings gain in 2002. Meanwhile, Equifax's long-term success will depend on the company's ability to leverage its consumer credit information business into new markets and products. Equifax recently announced four significant events. The company's Homeland Defense business was recently selected to facilitate the USA Patriot Act compliance, which identifies high-risk individuals, companies, and groups. Second, McKesson, a leading provider of healthcare information management, chose EFX's Decision Power technology to facilitate its patient registration process. Third, Equifax continues to expand its Small Business Financial Exchange, which enables financial institutions to assess the risk of their small-business customers. Last, EFX purchased Naviant, a provider of precision eMarketing solutions, for $135 million. It should be accretive by roughly $0.05 a share to earnings beginning in 2003. These four events should strengthen EFX's revenue stream, although the impact on overall revenue growth is still too early to predict. This equity has below-average appreciation potential out to 2005-2007. William G. Ferguson September 13, 2002
hmm the chart doesn't come up quite right because a comma in it throws it off(wrong time frame). Just cut and paste the link into your browser. Its really surprisisng how well Equifax and Fico have done over the long haul.
