Ebix Inc. (EBIX) profits from the insurance software business. It provides an array of software solutions for property/casualty insurers, brokerages, and individuals in Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America.

It operates an online auction house called EbixExchange where buyers and carriers can exchange bids for auto, home, health, life, and other types of insurance, while paying Ebix a fee on each transaction. Back office solutions include customer relationship management (CRM) capabilities. Ebix has been growing organically and by acquisitions.

No matter what happens in the elections today one outcome is for sure, politicians new and old will make our laws more convoluted at every opportunity. One stock I think is situated to deal with this inevitable outcome is Ebix Inc. (EBIX).

I last recommended the stock in August in the story Four Great Stocks -- Gov't Fears Savings Spiraling Out of Control. At the time the stock was trading at $19.39. This was a good call, as the stock closed today at $24.24, for a 25% gain in in 11 weeks, or 118% annualized.

Government debt is expanding -- again! At the same time corporate coffers are overflowing some $1.6 trillion with reserve capital, not counting financial institutions. In some instances they have more money than any state in the Union and most small countries. Chasing Value: Apple's Holding $48 Billion -- For What?

Here's a shocker -- personal savings continues to increase. When the (false) economy was booming valuations for everything were spiraling out of control, leverage was extreme, and the savings rate was next to nothing. Everyone wanted to join the party and most people stayed at the party to long, which did not end well. The savings rate has not been so high in a decade as people reduce their debt and streamline their personal budgets.

Yesterday I was shocked by the response to a poll I conducted in this very same column where I suggested that six out-of-favor stocks were a buy and would out perform the over all market. The results left me puzzled for several reasons.

For one thing I have been blogging for Aol. for over four years and I cannot remember an occasion that there was so much unanimity on anything before. I expected approximately equal votes for each of four possible responses to my question, and an appreciable number that might think I was off my rocker. Instead, I was jolted to a new reality when 84% of the respondents agreed that the six toxic stocks would outperform.

The six stocks are Bank of America (BAC), Citigroup (C), General Electric (GE), BP p.l.c. (BP), Goldman Sachs (GS) and Transocean (RIG). I thought I was taking a contrarian position and based on recent market activity that would seem to be the case. This raises another question. If my readers are any reflection of the market, how could the market move in the opposite direction of such overwhelming sentiment?

It has been a long time since I have suggested investors dabble in tech stocks, unless, like me, you consider Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) a tech stock. Today, that changes as I direct your attention to the rapidly growing small cap stock Ebix (EBIX), a software company that specializes in the needs of the insurance industry.

This Atlanta, GA-based company is up 113.30% in the last year, 450.72% over three years, and an incredible 1,092.74% in five years through March 2010.

Ebix (NASDAQ: EBIX) sells insurance industry software products and services in Asia, Australia, Europe and North America. This company is not your standard IT firm, however. The company's Ebix.com website acts as an online auction house for auto, home, health, life and other types of insurance -- and Ebix gets a fee on each transac­tion. It's cutting-edge applications like this that make Ebix an industry leader.

And the numbers prove it.

Ebix reported its best-ever net income and revenue for the first quarter of 2009. EBIX reported earnings of $8.34 million or 69 cents per share, which is 47% higher than last year's earnings of 47 cents per share. Total revenue rose from $16.64 million to a 33-year high of $20.67 million during the quarter. The company's expenses grew by 17%, but I want to also point out that Ebix's operating margins grew to 40%.

Small-cap stocks are a GREAT place to start if you're serious about rebuilding your wealth and securing your financial future.

But what makes small-cap stocks so spectacular?

The bear market stripped analysts from small stocks -- hardly anyone is covering them anymore. This creates wonderful pricing anomalies and gives the individual investor a significant edge.