CHRISTMAS BONUS BUY FOR MY IRA ACCOUNT

I know I said I wasn't buying any new stocks in the near future, but I came across one I couldn't resist.  I put in an order to purchase MFC for my IRA account.  While their price to book is a little higher than I like (15.4x) they have a dividend yield of 2.58% and earnings per share of $1.26.  Earnings per share leave plenty of room for growth or raising dividends, so I think this will be a good addition to my retirement account.

I came across MFC after reviewing a post I wrote in 2007 about another insurance company.  That company (AEL) went from $8.70 per share at the time of my post to a current price of $23.80.  As I recall, I traded in and out of the stock in less than one year for a nice capital gain.  Had I had the foresight to hold on to the stock, not only would I have collected 6 years worth of dividends but I would have more than doubled my investment during the same 6 years due to price appreciation.