"Business has been good in recent years, and the firm expanded rapidly by acquisition around the globe. It is paid a fee by the companies it provides services to. Thanks to its specialized software, Computershare is highly competitive in handling shareholder rolls.

"Then in the wake of the Lehman bankruptcy, Computershare's stock price collapsed as stocks around the world started to shrink in value. It dropped far more precipitously than the Australian market overall. Part of this is a misconception.

"Just because markets are down, paperwork does not simply stop being generated. Moreover, Computershare will gain business share as single-country competitors without its deep pockets run into difficulties.

"As of this writing, the stock trades at under 8.5 times earnings. Computershare's yield is 3.5% and since most of its business is in America, its foreign exchange risk is hedged based on strategy rather than its homeland.

"If the savvy managers think Australian currency is rising, they will bank more of their fee income in Oz dollars; if they feel the U.S. is on the uptrend, they will keep more money here. Because its business is so close to the stock markets, they are more likely to get it right than I am but you should be aware of the risk.

"There is a newly-created unsponsored 1:1 American Depository Receipt which trades on the pink sheets as CMSQY. You can also buy the Australian stock in the U.S., because of course Computershare itself has created the trading facility.

"That is also 1:1 and is more liquid, with ticker symbol CMSQF, also on the pink sheets. About 5,000 of the directly listed shares trade daily in the U.S.

"Computershare is a powerhouse in global share operations, not a pink sheet fly-by-night operator, even though its price is now well under $5."

Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers a daily look at the latest market commentary and favorite stock picks and investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.