HAIN is Celestial

Hain Celestial (HAIN) delivered a great report after the bell last night. The company earned 30 cents versus consensus of 28 cents for 4q07. For FY07 HAIN earned $1.17. Add to that good report a boost in FY08 guidance to a range of $1.38 - $1.42 versus current consensus estimates of $1.38. At the midpoint this implies 20% YOY growth. I am willing to pay 25 times earnings for HAIN. The merger of Whole Foods (WFMI) and Wild Oats (OATS) will draw more attention to HAIN from potential suitors. I am raising my price target for HAIN to $35 - $36 based on operations. On a takeover, the stock is worth $40 or more.

At the time of this Blog entry Scott Rothbort, his family and or clients of LakeView Asset Management, LLC were long shares of HAIN --- although positions can change at any time.

We Need The SEC To Act In Order To Protect Shareholder Rights and Ensure Investor Confidence.

So where is the SEC these days? They are busy checking how the big investment banks are marking their mortgage and other asset backed positions. While that is going on here is what the SEC is also doing:

• Eliminating the short sale up-tick rule to allow short raids on stocks. This rule was put in place in response to the 1929 crash. For what reason was it lifted now?
• Standing aside while slum dunking of options on ETFs and stocks related to ETFs takes place.
• Allowing unsubstantiated rumors to be spread to the financial media despite lack of validity or corroboration.

I fully respect the SEC’s role in the financial markets. What I am saying is that there are many other issues which that regulatory body needs to address in very short order to protect shareholder rights and ensure investor confidence.