With all the talk of stocks being overvalued due to the massive rally we've seen since March, you'd think there'd be almost no dirt cheap stocks. You know what I'm talking about. I mean really cheap. Stocks with single digit P/Es and price-to-book ratios well under 1.0.

But what if I told you that there's one sector where there's not just one dirt cheap stock, but many of them. And as an added bonus, these dirt cheap stocks also have a Zacks Rank of #1 or #2, which means they have rising earnings estimates.

Too good to be true?

Nah. You just have to know where to look.

Dirt Cheap Stocks are Not the Techs

To find the dirt cheap stocks in this market you have to get over your obsession with tech stocks, energy plays and, as hard as it is, even the drybulk shippers.

Because our dirt

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Lincoln National Corp. (LNC) reported operating earnings of 84 cents in the third quarter, which was ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 80 cents. The company had earned $1.16 per share on an operating basis in the year-ago quarter.   The company experienced lower average variable account values compared to the prior-year period. Also, there were some modest losses on its alternative investments.   Lincoln reported a net income of $153 million or 44 cents per share compared with $148 million or 58 cents in the year-ago quarter. We note that there were fewer shares outstanding in the prior-year quarter.   The company managed to report better operating results on a quarter-over-quarter basis due to the appreciation in the equity market. Consolidated deposits increased 10% sequentially but were down 2% year over year to $5.3 billion. Net flows were up 25% sequentially and 34% year over year ...

Ebix (EBIX), which provides software and e-commerce services to the insurance industry, announced today that its board of directors has approved a three-for-one stock split. Owners of the company’s... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

According to a report released today by the American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI), there have now been 1.046 million personal bankruptcies since the start of the year. This is the highest since the first nine months of 2005 when people were rushing to file before the draconian new bankruptcy act of 2005 took effect (still better than the Victorian days of debtor prisons, but not much).   The institute expects to see the total for the year top 1.4 million. I think they are being conservative, especially given the rise in the unemployed, particularly the long-term unemployed. In September, there were 124,709 consumer bankruptcies, up 41% from a year ago. The graph below (from http://www.calculatedriskblog.com/) shows the history of bankruptcy filings since 1996 by quarter. The third quarter numbers come from the monthly ABI numbers; the quarterly numbers are from the administrative office of the U.S. courts.   If ...

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Monday September 28, 2009

DrStockPick.com Stock Report!

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Micromem Technologies Inc. (OTC BB: MMTIF), and its wholly owned subsidiary, Micromem Applied Sensor Technologies, Inc. (MASTInc), has received an initial purchase order for its sensors from Life Medical Technologies, Inc. (LMTI), which upon completion, will total US$30 million. Micromem anticipates delivery to begin in 2009 with the bulk expected in 2010, in accordance with fulfilling LMTI client orders.

Ebix, Inc. (NASDAQ:EBIX), a leading international supplier of On-Demand software and E-commerce services to the insurance industry announced today

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CHICAGO, Sept. 16 /PRNewswire/ — As was announced on July 28th, 2009, The Wyncrest Group, Inc. (Pink Sheets: WNCG) a niche insurance consortium today reaffirms that its pending acquisition of Florida Insurance Consulting Inc. is moving forward towards an agreement on the terms for the acquisition. Wyncrest has been provided with (FIC) financials and is in the process of its due diligence. The acquisition is still targeted for completion in the 4th quarter. Once again, this acquisition is an important key to our growth in the Latin American markets. With the huge growth of the Spanish speaking population in the US, many markets are underrepresented and many families and businesses need an insurance and financial services provider.

Wyncrest plans to acquire insurance and financial services businesses and capitalize their most valuable asset of interest being the customer database with servicing contracts. These acquired customers and agent relationships provide immediate

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LKQ Corp., the largest nationwide provider of automobile aftermarket collision replacement parts, today announced that Terry M. Fortner has joined the company as VP of Industry Relations & Market Development. His responsibilities will include the development, implementation, and coordination of LKQ’s product and service offerings to the automobile insurance and collision repair industries.

Mr. Fortner brings with him 32 years of experience with Ohio-based Nationwide Insurance, one of the biggest insurance and financial service companies in the world, where he was VP of Material Damage Claims. His extensive knowledge of automobile damage insurance includes involvement with a number of related industry organizations, such as CCC Insurance Advisory Council, COPART Advisory Council, ABPA Award, and CIECA. He was also a member of the I-Car International Board of Directors, and currently serves on the executive committee of the I-Car Educational Foundation Board of Trustees.

Outside of the industry, Mr. Fortner is a

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The mounting cost of health care may end up being the biggest single financial challenge faced this century, not only by America, but by most of the industrialized world. In spite of the many and varied approaches tried, it’s clear that no country has the issue fully resolved. Every mix of government and private administration, every attempt to balance the needs of the people with the needs of the medical industry, including doctors, hospitals, insurers, and biotechnology providers, comes up short.

Another thing is clear. By virtually any measure, the United States spends more on healthcare than any other country, over $2 trillion each year, roughly $10,000 per person. Moreover, there is no consensus on the reason for this, or what can be done about it. In the ongoing search for an answer, analysts and politicians have pointed the finger at a range of possible causes, including:

• The duplication of administrative

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Niall Ferguson’s book, The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of the World, is now available in a full-length four-part documentary. Known for his intellectual firepower, Ferguson is an historian who specializes in financial and economic history and teaches at Harvard.

The Ascent of Money is well researched and especially relevant for putting the current financial crisis in historical context. As Ferguson said, “Money’s rise has never been a smooth upward ride … Financial history has repeatedly been interrupted by gut-wrenching crises, of which today’s is just the latest.”

Each of the parts lasts for about an hour, but is conveniently broken up into chapters should one only wish to view certain sections.

Part 1: From bullion to bubbles Ferguson examines the current global financial crisis in the context of the financial history of the West. Topics in this part include: the beginnings of money

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – July 14, 2009 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: Hartford Financial Services Group Inc (HIG), Lincoln Financial Group (LNC), Allstate Corp. (ALL), Prudential Financial Inc. (PRU) and Ameriprise Financial Inc. (AMP).

Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter: http://at.zacks.com/?id=5513

Here are highlights from Monday’s Analyst Blog:

Insurers Eye TARP Funds

The Treasury had stated that some of the life insurers may qualify for TARP because of their Bank Holding Company status. As of now, considering the repayments from banks, Treasury has approved six life insurers for capital infusion under

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