Stock to avoid #4 -- Capital One (COF)


Capital One stock, COFSince bottoming in March, Capital One (NYSE: COF) rocketed to $30 by early May. The stock gave back some of those gains, but still trades for approximately more than 100% of the cover price.

The reason for the big gain is directly correlated to TARP and a belief that credit card companies will do better than most expect.

I'm still skeptical.

While it may be true that a collapse comparable to last fall's banking crisis is unlikely, the entire credit card industry is still in difficult territory. The world is changing, and consumer spending habits reflect that change. Rather than defaults being the big issue here, I would worry about usage instead.

Credit card shredding parties may become vogue as consumers repair personal balance sheets. And that's bad news for companies like COF. I would sell Capital One at these prices.

Next: Stock to Avoid #5

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Last updated: February 12, 2012: 04:32 PM

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