Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Australia Stocks: Companies from Down Under

Facts about Australia:
1. It was ranked third in the United Nations' 2006 Human Development Index.
2. It was ranked sixth in The Economist worldwide quality-of-life index 2005.
3. It has a per capita GDP higher than the UK, Germany and France.
4. It has continued privatization of state-owned businesses.
5. Over the last 10 years, inflation has generally ranged from 2% to 3%.
6. 69% of GDP comes from the service sector which includes tourism, education, and financial services.
7. Australia's largest export markets are China, Japan, the US, South Korea and New Zealand.

Are you looking for stocks down under? Here are a few worth taking a gander at, that trade mostly on either on the New York Stock Exchange or the NASDAQ. Some are very large and some are very small which should be considered very speculative.

Alumina Ltd. (AWC) is a large mining company which is involved in bauxite mining, alumina refining, and aluminum smelting. They have operations in Texas, Suriname, Jamaica, Brazil, Spain, and Guinea. The P/E is 18, the PEG is .66, and the stock has a yield of 2.8%.

Amcor Ltd. (AMCRY.PK) is packaging and paper company. The P/E is 93 and the P/S is 2.35.

Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. (ANZ) is the third largest bank in Australia. The P/E is 14, the PEG is 1.5, and the stock generates a yield of 4.2%.

BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP) and BHP Billiton plc (BBL) is the world's largest mining company, iron ore, diamonds, manganese, coal, copper, nickel, petroleum and bauxite. The Australian BHP Billiton Limited and the British BHP Billiton Plc trade separately with separate shareholders but they operate as one business with the same boards of directors and one management structure. The P/E is 14.5, the PEG is 1.5, and the yield is 2.2%.

Coca Cola Amatil Ltd. (CCLAY.PK) is Australia's largest soft drink bottler. It has a forward P/E 16.6, a PEG of 2, and a yield of 3.2%.

Genetic Technologies Ltd. (GENE) is a genetics and genomics company which licenses patents for the use of non-coding DNA, and provides genetic testing services. The stock has had negative earnings with a price sales ratio of 7.9.

Metal Storm Ltd. (MTSX) is a Brisbane based technology defense company which manufactures and markets electronically initiated ballistics systems. Earnings have been negative with a price sales ratio of 30.4.

Pharmaxis Ltd. (PXSL) develops therapeutic products for the treatment of chronic respiratory and inflammatory/autoimmune diseases. Earnings have been negative with an extremely high P/S of 3,962.

Prana Biotechnology Ltd. (PRAN) is a biotech company involved in the research and development of drugs to treat patients with Alzheimer's disease. Earnings have been negative with a P/S ratio of 91.

Psivida Ltd. (PSDV) a biotech company based in Perth which develops nanotechnology products for ophthalmology and oncology uses. Earnings have been negative with a P/S ratio of 24.

Rinker Group Ltd. (RIN) manufactures heavy building materials. It has a P/E of 18 and a P/S of 2.65, with a yield of 3.6%.

Telstra Corporation ADS (TLSYY.PK) is a large Australian telecommunications company. The forward P/E is 19.5 and the PEG is 8. It has a yield of 5.4%.

Westpac Banking Corp. (WBK) is the fourth largest bank in Australia. It is the most sustainable bank in the world for five years in a row according to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index. The P/E is 14.8 and the PEG is 1.5. It pays a yield of 4.8%.

Another option is the CurrencyShares Australian Dollar Trust (FXA) which tracks the price of the Australian Dollar.

Author owns CCLAY.PK.

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