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Letter to the Editor

Let the Sun Shine - PLEASE

The rays of sunshine I was hoping to see last month are hiding behind the U.S. economy’s clouds, at least for my July article today. Both the Dow and our U.S. Collision Supplier Index are up just under three percent YTD. For the Dow, investors are a bit relieved, considering the rough month.

Wall Street gave everyone a pretty bumpy ride during this last month, so I think many investors have been sighing with relief that the Dow ended up on a positive note, especially since both the Dow and NASDAQ hit their lowest points so far this year in early June.

Our paint manufacturers lost some of last month’s shine. BASF and DuPont were off their start of the year spots by a hair or two. Akzo Nobel’s per share stock price, while still up YTD, dropped $5 down from last month’s posting. PPG, Sherwin-Williams, and Valspar per share prices were still higher than they were on January 1, but down a dollar or two since May 15.

I am still pleasantly surprised to close out the first half of 2006 with our industry-related stocks in an okay, positive light despite the rises in raw materials and shipping costs.

Aftermarket parts distributors Keystone Automotive and LKQ Corporation saw a few clouds on the horizon this past month, but both of these companies continue to achieve per share prices that are almost 20 percent above their New Year’s Day marks.

Our car dealership stocks have had just a bit of fair weather on Wall Street. AutoNation is down just a bit, but CarMax, Sonic Automotive, and the United Auto Group are all still up at least a few percentage points from their January per share stock prices.

For the first time in recent memory (and my short-term memory is still as sharp as ever, if I do say so myself!), All five of our insurer stocks’ per share stock prices are down YTD. Progressive may just be experiencing a little blip after its recent stock split. So far, the tropical storm that was poised to attain hurricane force as it approached Florida blew off to sea, but hurricane season has barely started, and I have to think that insurers are really hoping for sunny skies and calm seas after last year’s costly devastation.

The gloomiest weather in our stock chart seems to be hanging over our neighbor to the north, The Boyd Group. The Canadian and U.S. auto body facility consolidator has been sinking lower each month in its per share stock price at Toronto’s Stock Exchange. Will Boyd management be able to climb up from an over 40 percent decrease in its per share price before the close of 2006? It seems unlikely at this point.

-Charles Baker-

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