Saturday, August 6, 2011

Investopedia: HSBC On A Faster Track To Recovery

With Europe still spasming over the debt problems in Greece, Ireland and Spain, the U.S. still trying to digest billions in bad debt and foreclosed houses, China trying to slow down inflation and Japan trying to rebuild, these are not easy days to be a bank. No surprise, then, that names like Citigroup (NYSE:C) and Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) look cheap compared to historical price-book metrics. But the situation is a little different at HSBC (NYSE:HBC). This is not a perfect bank, but it looks like it's further down the road to recovery than its valuation would suggest. 

More Progress in the First Half
Admittedly, HSBC's numbers are not the easiest fodder for casual analysis, as plenty of "items" have to be backed out. Going by the reported results, pre-tax profits were up 3% on an annual comparison, with net interest income up 2%. An alternative look at the numbers shows core revenue down about 2%, with weakness in the U.S. and Europe offset by excellent results in Hong Kong and emerging markets.




To read the full piece, click below:
http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2011/HSBC-On-A-Faster-Track-To-Recovery-HBC-C-BAC-FNFG-BCS-MTB-STD0806.aspx

No comments: