STOCK GRADE (ASG: 53.53)               

BUSINESS & FINANCIAL SUMMARY (Yahoo)
EXPANDED BUSINESS DESCRIPTION (Reuters)
STOCK INFO/RESEARCH (MSN)
OWNERSHIP (MSN)
KEY DEVELOPMENTS (MSN), RECENT NEWS (MSN) & HEADLINES  (Yahoo)
HISTORICAL PRICES (Yahoo) & PRICE CHART (IQChart)
COMPANY'S WEB SITE
STOCK'S CORE STRENGTHS (SEE: Table Below)   

Management's Effectiveness (12 Mo.)	. . .	Return on Equity:	58.61%
Profitability (12 Mo.)	. . .	Profit Margin:	10.22%
Stock's Growth Record (12 Mo.)	. . .	Revenue:	29.52%)
	. . .	EPS:	1,540.59%
	. . .	Price:	148.74%
	. . .	Dividend:	16.67%
PE & EPS (12 Mo.)	. . .	Price/Earnings:	15.63
	. . .	Earnings/Share:	3.59
Price / Share (Closing)	. . .	03/17/2006:	$56.19

ALLEGHENY TECHNOLOGIES INC. - EVALUATION

Allegheny's stock emerged as an  ACE'S selection based on the evaluation results of the criteria listed below. The evaluation results are encapsulated as one value in ASG (short for ACE'S Stock Grade). ASG is proprietary variable that was devised by ACE'S to measure the quality of a stock for investment. Allegheny's ASG value of 53.53 is VERY GOOD.

A. MANAGEMENTS EFFECTIVENESS - EXCELLENT 
B. PRODUCTS & SERVICES, SET OF - EXCELLENT 
C. SALES - EXCELLENT 
D. CASH FLOW, FREE - GOOD
E. PROFITABILITY -  BELOW AVERAGE 
F. PRICE-EARNINGS RATIO (P/E) -  AVERAGE (WITHIN MARKET'S AVERAGE PE RATIO) 
G. FINANCIAL HEALTH -  POOR (HIGHER DEBT RATIO THAN INDUSTRY'S AVERAGE). 
H. MARKET CAPITALIZATION - GOOD
I. TRADED VOLUME -  GOOD 
J. PRICE GROWTH - EXCELLENT 

A. MANAGEMENTS EFFECTIVENESS - EXCELLENT    

How well a company performs generally - in its business operations, controlling costs,  the success of its products and services in the market place, profitability, and the like - depends on its management's efficiency. Return on Equity ( ROE) is used by ACE'S as a general indication of the company's efficiency.

Allegheny's ROE (ttm) of 45.2% is higher (by about 35.33% and 179.01% correspondingly) than the Industry's ROE of 33.4% and the S&P 500's ROE of 16.2%. (Ref.: MSN Finance\Key Ratios).

  ACE'S gives a preferential rating to a company that has a comparable or relatively higher ROE than the Industry. ACE'S rating of Allegheny's Management's Effectiveness: EXCELLENT.

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- Carbon, alloy steel and non-ferrous forgings.   Markets served:  Transportation, Automotive, and Off-road.


  ACE'S  gives a preferential rating to a company who  have a variety of product and services  that have present and continued  utility in a broad and dynamic  market. An estimation of the latter products' utility, distinctive qualities and competitiveness would be subjective assessments. However, there is one objective data that indicates how well the subjective elements of Allegheny's products and services are assessed and used by its target market - the company's sales.

 ACE'S rating of Allegheny's line-up of Products & Services:  EXCELLENT

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C. SALES -  EXCELLENT 

Sales is an important indicator on how a company's products and services performs in its target market. Generally, a high sales figure is preferred than a lower figure. Also, a steady and appreciable growth in a company's total sales from one year to the next is a key indicator on how a company is able (or unable) to sustain and improve the utility of its products and services in the marketplace.

Allegheny's annual sales was $2,128.0M in 12/2001, $1,907.8M in 12/2002, $1,937.4M in 12/2003, $2,733.0M in 12/2004 and $3,539.9M in 12/2005. Relative to 12/2001, the Company's sales decreased 10.34% in 2002. Relative to 12/2002, Sales increased 1.55% in 2003, 43.25% in 2004 and 85.55% in 2005, (Ref.: MSN Money\Financials).  Allegheny's ttm annual sales of $3,539.9M was 0.54% more than the Industry's  sales of $3,520.9M.  Allegheny's ttm Sales growth rate of 29.50% was 23.3% points higher than the Industry's rate of 6.20%.   (Ref.: MSN Money\Research).

  ACE'S gives a preferential rating to a company that have demonstrated the ability to sustain a high and progressively increasing level of sales  from year-to-year. Allegheny's year-to-year annual sales - from 2001 to 2005 - decreased 10.34% in 2002. However, since 2002, the Company's sales have progressively increased: 1.55% in 2003, 43.25% in 2004 and 85.55% in 2005.  In terms of sales volume, the Companies past 12 month sales is 0.54% more than the Industry. In terms of growth rate, Allegheny's rate surpasses the Industry by 23.3% points.   ACE'S rating of Allegheny's Sales Growth Rate: EXCELLENT.

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D. CASH FLOW, FREE -  GOOD  

Cash flow is crucial to the operation and survival of companies. A company having ample ready cash ensures that creditors, employees, and others can be paid on time. Cash flow could be considered as a better measure of a business's profitability than earnings, because a company can show positive net earnings and have insufficient cash flow (that is, the company is not able to pay its debts). Cash Flow thus can be used as an indicator of a company's financial strength.

Allegheny's cash flow during the past 4 years: $122.8M in 12/2001; $204.2M in 12/2002; 82.0M in 12/2003; $24.1M in 12/2004; AND $222.6M in 12/2005. (Ref.: MSN Money\Financials).

 ACE'S gives a preferential rating to a company that have demonstrated the ability to sustain a positive and appreciable cash flow from year-to-year. Allegheny's year-to-year cash flow - from 2001 to 2005 - have been positive and appreciable, averaging $131.14M annually.  ACE'S rating of Allegheny's Cash Flow: GOOD.

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E. PROFITABILITY - BELOW AVERAGE  

Making a profit is the ultimate goal of every company. A useful gauge of a company's profitability is its net income (also referred to as "earnings").  Related to a company's outstanding shares of common stocks, the company's total earnings is transformed to "earnings per share" (or "EPS" for short). EPS is a very popular indicator of a company's profitability and a powerful variable that influences the price of a company's stock.

Allegheny's annual Net Income, for the past 12 months, of $361.8M is 26.39% less than the Industry's Income of $491.5M). For the past 5 years, Allegheny's  annual Net Income are: -$25.2M in 12/2001; -$65.8M in 12/2002; -$314.6M in 12/2003; $19.8M in 12/2004; and $359.8M in 12/2005.  In terms of growth, Allegheny's Net Income have grown 1,727.3% during the past 12 months (vs. the Industry's 3.40% growth rate). (Refs. MSN Money\Financials\Statements; MSN Money\Wizard)

F. PRICE-EARNINGS RATIO (P/E) - AVERAGE (WITHIN MARKET'S AVERAGE PE RATIO)  

A stock's Price-Earnings ratio tells us roughly how much investors are willing to pay per dollar of earnings. Price-Earnings is a ratio of a company's current share price compared to its per-share earnings. The P/E ratio is a much better indicator of the value of a stock than the market price alone.

In general, a high P/E means high projected earnings in the future. As such, the P/E ratio could be interpreted as the reflection of the market's optimism concerning a firm's growth prospects. To determine whether a particular P/E is high or low, take into account a company's growth rates; and the P/Es of other companies in the same industry. Historically, the average P/E ratio in the market has been around 15-25.

Allegheny has a P/E ratio of 15.85 (ttm) which is 5.09% points higher than the Industry's P/E of 10.76 (ttm), but within the market ratio of 15-25. (Ref.: Yahoo! Finance\Competitors)

G. FINANCIAL HEALTH - POOR  

The assumption of debt, i.e., financial leverage, are used by companies to finance its assets. The magnitude of the debt's expense component affects the company's net income.

A company with significantly more debt than equity is considered to be highly leveraged. A popular measure of financial leverage is the "debt/equity ratio". A higher debt/equity ratio generally means that a company has been aggressive in financing its growth with debt. This higher ratio can result in volatile or negative earnings as a result of the additional interest expense. Thus, the Debt/Equity Ratio is popularly used as a measure of a company's financial health.

Allegheny's 0.68 Debt/Equity Ratio (latest 12 months) is 100% higher than the Industry's Ratio of 0.34; but 34.62% lower than the S&P 500's Ratio 1.04, Allegheny has a poor debt ratio. (Refs.: MSN Money\Ratios)

ACE'S gives a preferential rating to a company that has a comparable or relatively lower debt ratio than the Industry.  ACE'S rating of Allegheny's  Debt Ratio: POOR (HIGHER RATIO THAN INDUSTRY AVERAGE).

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H. MARKET CAPITALIZATION -  GOOD  

Market Capitalization (or market cap for short) is a measure of a company's size. The market cap provides a broad gauge of the growth-versus-risk potential of a company. Historically, large caps have experienced slower growth with lower risk; whereas small caps have experienced higher growth potential, but with higher risk.

The market cap of a company is calculated by multiplying the number of its outstanding shares by the shares' current market price. There are presently six classes of Market Cap: Mega Cap, Big/Large Cap, Mid Cap, Small Cap, Micro Cap and Nano Cap. ACE'S assigns an Excellent rating to Small Cap stocks; Good to Mid Caps; Average to Big/Large Caps; and Below Average to Mega Caps.  ACE'S excludes Micro and Nano Caps in its stock picks.

Allegheny is classified as a mid cap value  company with a market capitalization of $5,583.83M and with outstanding shares of 99.37M. (Ref.: Reuters)

 ACE'S gives a preferential rating to small and mid cap companies.  ACE'S rating of Allegheny's  Market Cap:  EXCELLENT.

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I. TRADED VOLUME -  GOOD  

A stock's price goes up or down based on the laws of supply and demand. Simply stated, when a stock's price goes up, there must be significant buying demand for the stock. Volume is the actual number of shares traded daily. Traded volume could be used as a gauge of the demand for a stock.

Allegheny has an 3-month Average Daily Volume of 504,390 shares; and a 10-day Average Daily Volume of 477,357 shares.  (Refs.: Yahoo! Finance\Statistics).  ACE'S assigns an Excellent rating for +1,000,000 trading volumes; Good for 500,001-999,999 volumes; Average for 100,000 - 500,000 volumes; and Below Average for -100,000 volumes.

 ACE'S gives a preferential rating to a company that sustains a lively trade volume from week-to-week and month-to-month.  ACE'S rating of Allegheny's  Traded Volume: GOOD.

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J. PRICE GROWTH - EXCELLENT  

Price growth  is the 12-month increase in the price of a stock (displayed as a percentage). As of 03/17/06, Allegheny had a 3-month growth rate  of 64.8% (vs. the Industry's 29.5% rate), a 6-month rate of 93.8% (vs. the Industry's 28.6% rate), and  a 12-month rate of 148.7% (vs. the Industry's 28.8% rate).  (Refs.: MSN Money\Research).

ACE'S gives a preferential rating to a company that have demonstrated a solid capacity for high price growth and outperforming other stocks in the Industry.  ACE'S rating of Allegheny's  Price Growth: EXCELLENT.

  Last modified: 10/12/14