time for the brave to dive in??

ILU, the "market darling" as she is known, has had a stellar run as we all know. But like the rest of the market, especially the resource majors , she has had a setback since 1st aug. You look at all the charts of the big resource companies,it is literally a mirror image .. Hard dump 1/8., kick back up , and last week again, the same thing.. Some will say, it is a necessary correction.

These are crazy times, I admit. But despite the challenging climate, one must steady oneself and go back on the ILU story and look at the fundamentals of this company.. It has all the markings of a success story and has huge promise. Believe me, it will recover upwards in no time as soon as this panic settles.. For the brave, it presents a good entry point, like many others currently on the market. I have read many times that fortunes are made in those times when panic prevails and dump good stock, giving others an entry point they thought they had long missed.

For those considering entry, take the time to go back on the Iluka story. The top mineral sands producer in Australia , it can boast a comforting story of high demand & low supply. The zircon production for half year had ended up higher than whole year guidance. Rutile production is higher vs 2010 for 6 months. ILU will now rerun the SR4 Kiln in 3rd quarter. It has locked in contract prices for 2nd half 2011. The restart of eneabba will further add to zircon production. The company is currently evaluating a number of options to increase production over next few years - and as we have seen, they mean business : they are restarting eneabba and have just now locked in a 3.5 year mining contract with Watpac to work in the Victoria Murray Basin. 8 brokers have rated it recommending it as a buy and target the price upwards of $19.00 - $21.00 onwards . I for one,would be quite happy to see it just regain its balance, along with the rest of the market. Bring it on!

Over 86% of the stock is held by major shareholders..

In 2009, it posted a loss of 166.8 mill and had a debt of 382m. By end 2010, it was able to deliver a profit before tax of $39 million and reduce its debt to 312 mill. Yet, in April, just 4 months after it had yet again, managed to whittle its debt down to 247m! and paid a dividend. Don't we all wish we could whittle our debts as fast as this?

Europe and US may be rocky currently in the short time frame , but with over 44% of our major client base being in Asia, I can see a bright picture for Iluka ahead.