Hi Petunia,Sorry I have just got onto this thread and your...

Hi Petunia,

Sorry I have just got onto this thread and your comments after being away for my first overseas trip in approx 3 years to the highlands of Sri Lanka. Wow this is an old thread. Sorry about your hx with good old QBE and your losses - I had to read your comment a couple of times, I first though you meant averaging down from $20, but you actually wrote averaging down to $20 - ouch.

Some general comments - Yes, been quiet here for a while and I have been more excited about other stocks / sectors, Ive had some success with the ranges of MND recently. Despite some bullish price targets around $14 - $15 after the FY21 results I think the lack of activity here is a pretty good indicator that its fairly valued at present.

I am still holding a small parcel of QBE after selling a lot of my <$8 holdings I picked up in the early days of the covid panic. I am hopeful and waiting for a pullback to increase my holdings. $10 has previously been the trigger to load up but overall I think the insurance sector and QBE is looking more positive than it has in a number of years, so I will probably grab some parcels in the mid $10's if/ when it gets back there.

Horton remains a bit of a mystery, but he seems intent on simplifying the business and steering clear of risky/ volatile sectors. If he continues to do this and maintains a conservative dividend, than the changing big picture forces (increasing interest rates / bond yields, increasing demand and cost of premiums) can finally get this stock moving sustained in a NE direction again.

I will be interested to see the impact of the latest bout of natural disasters have on the combined operating ratio. Off the top of my head I think in the last report it was about 93%. In the time that I have been following QBE (14 odd years) I think it has been as high as 104%. I dont expect it to get that high but it sure is going to be a lot closer to a 100% in the next report. Other worries include the rising AUS $ and the increasing expenses quoted in the last report.