During this five years and eight months period of time from March 6, 2009 through October 31, 2014, Bruce Braley represented Iowa in the US House and Democrat Tom Harkin was an Iowa US Senator.
I found 17 Iowa Headquartered Companies in Yahoo's or Google's superb Finance websites or from SEC filings with current Total Stock Market Capitalizations of more than $100 mil each and which also had their common stocks trading on each of the following three dates:
- On December 31, 2007 during President Bush's second term
- On March 6, 2009, very early in President Obama's first term, which was the lowest point for the US stock market due to the spillover effects resulting from the 2008 financial meltdown, and
- also on the most recent date October 31, 2014.
These 17 Iowa Companies had their average equal-company-weighted stock market prices decline by a huge 59% from December 31, 2007 during President Bush's second Presidential term, to March 6, 2009, very early in President Obama's first term, which was the very lowest point for the overall stock market due to the spillover effects resulting from the disastrous 2008 Financial Meltdown.
But in the five years and eight months since March 6, 2009 through October 31, 2014, the average stock market prices of these same 17 Iowa Companies have increased by an exceptional 469%.
This 469% average stock market price increase is substantially higher than that of just two weeks ago, where the average increase was a lower 428% from March 6, 2009 to October 17, 2014.
When I also include Ames, Iowa-based Sauer-Danfoss, which was sold in 2013, this 469% average stock price increase steps up markedly to 513%.
To illustrate the consistently high quality of these Iowa Companies, all 18 of them have stock market price increases since March 6, 2009, with the lowest increase being a very healthy 58%.
Below here are the stock market prices of each of these 18 Iowa Companies on October 31, 2014, on March 6, 2009, and on December 31, 2007, along with the related Stock Market Price Percentage Changes:
| Market | Market | Market | ||||||
| Price | Price | Price | ||||||
| % | % | % | ||||||
| Change | Change | Change | ||||||
| Market | Market | Market | 3-6-09 | 12-31-07 | 12-31-07 | |||
| Price | Price | Price | to | to | to | |||
| Iowa Company | HQs | 10-31-14 | 3-6-09 | 12-31-07 | 10-31-14 | 3-6-09 | 10-31-14 | |
| $ | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ | |||
| FBL Financial Group | West Des Moines | IA | 49.58 | 2.55 | 34.53 | 1844% | -93% | 44% |
| Lee Enterprises | Davenport | IA | 3.73 | 0.29 | 14.65 | 1186% | -98% | -75% |
| Principal Financial Group | Des Moines | IA | 52.37 | 6.08 | 68.84 | 761% | -91% | -24% |
| American Equity Investment Life | West Des Moines | IA | 25.81 | 3.19 | 8.29 | 709% | -62% | 211% |
| Flexsteel | Dubuque | IA | 34.31 | 5.17 | 12.00 | 564% | -57% | 186% |
| Winnebago Industries | Forest City | IA | 21.21 | 3.23 | 21.02 | 557% | -85% | 1% |
| HNI Corp | Muscatine | IA | 46.65 | 8.16 | 35.06 | 472% | -77% | 33% |
| Meredith Corp | Des Moines | IA | 52.14 | 11.28 | 54.98 | 362% | -79% | -5% |
| Casey's General Stores | Ankeny | IA | 81.87 | 18.81 | 29.61 | 335% | -36% | 176% |
| MidWest One Financial Group | Iowa City | IA | 26.68 | 7.00 | 16.99 | 281% | -59% | 57% |
| Heartland Financial USA | Dubuque | IA | 26.60 | 8.84 | 18.57 | 201% | -52% | 43% |
| Rockwell Collins | Cedar Rapids | IA | 84.15 | 28.35 | 71.97 | 197% | -61% | 17% |
| West Bancorporation | West Des Moines | IA | 16.58 | 5.64 | 13.04 | 194% | -57% | 27% |
| Heartland Express | North Liberty | IA | 25.14 | 12.19 | 14.18 | 106% | -14% | 77% |
| United Fire Group | Cedar Rapids | IA | 32.48 | 17.54 | 29.09 | 85% | -40% | 12% |
| EMC Insurance Group | Des Moines | IA | 32.04 | 19.03 | 23.67 | 68% | -20% | 35% |
| Ames National Corp | Ames | IA | 24.80 | 15.71 | 19.50 | 58% | -19% | 27% |
| Average % Change all 17 | 469% | -59% | 50% | |||||
| Sauer-Danfoss | Ames | IA | 58.49 | 4.31 | 25.05 | 1257% | -83% | 133% |
| Average % Change all 18 | 513% | -60% | 54% |
On the earnings front, Iowa Companies have performed exceptionally well since the 2008 financial meltdown. I found 19 Iowa Companies with Stock Market Capitalizations now of at least $100 mil each and also with annual audited financial statements filed with the SEC which included audited earnings amounts for all years from 2008 through 2013.
The Total Audited 2013 Net Income from Continuing Operations of these 19 Iowa Companies was $2.6 bil, an increase of a phenomenal 781% from the comparable earnings of $0.3 bil in 2008, which was the very last year of the George W Bush/Dick Cheney Presidency.
This very strong earnings recovery for these 19 Iowa Companies from 2008 to the most recent 2013 occurred when the Democrats controlled the US Senate, when President Obama was in office and when there were very effective US Fed Chairpersons.
Below here are the Audited Net Income (Loss) From Continuing Operations for each of these 19 Iowa Companies in each of the six years 2013, 2012, 2011, 2009, 2008 and 2007, along with the related Net Income (Loss) Percentage Changes:
| 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | |||
| Audited | Audited | Audited | Audited | Audited | Audited | |||
| Most | Net | Net | Net | Net | Net | Net | ||
| Recent | Income | Income | Income | Income | Income | Income | ||
| Iowa Company | HQs | FYE | (Loss) | (Loss) | (Loss) | (Loss) | (Loss) | (Loss) |
| $ mils | $ mils | $ mils | $ mils | $ mils | $ mils | |||
| Principal Financial Group | Des Moines | Dec 13 | 936 | 825 | 675 | 565 | 437 | 864 |
| Rockwell Collins | Cedar Rapids | Sep 13 | 632 | 609 | 615 | 594 | 678 | 585 |
| American Equity Investment Life | West Des Moines | Dec 13 | 253 | 58 | 86 | 69 | 16 | 26 |
| Renewable Energy Group | Ames | Dec 13 | 186 | 22 | 89 | (69) | (16) | 32 |
| Casey's General Stores | Ankeny | Apr 14 | 135 | 111 | 117 | 117 | 86 | 85 |
| Meredith Corp | Des Moines | Jun 14 | 114 | 124 | 104 | 104 | (103) | 133 |
| FBL Financial Group | West Des Moines | Dec 13 | 108 | 83 | 52 | 70 | (18) | 86 |
| United Fire Group | Cedar Rapids | Dec 13 | 76 | 40 | - | (10) | (13) | 111 |
| Heartland Express | North Liberty | Dec 13 | 71 | 62 | 70 | 57 | 70 | 76 |
| HNI Corp | Muscatine | Dec 13 | 63 | 48 | 46 | (6) | 46 | 119 |
| EMC Insurance Group | Des Moines | Dec 13 | 44 | 38 | (3) | 45 | (2) | 42 |
| Heartland Financial USA | Dubuque | Dec 13 | 37 | 50 | 28 | 6 | 11 | 24 |
| Winnebago Industries | Forest City | Aug 13 | 32 | 45 | 12 | (79) | 3 | 42 |
| MidWest One Financial Group | Iowa City | Dec 13 | 19 | 17 | 13 | (4) | (25) | 7 |
| West Bancorporation | West Des Moines | Dec 13 | 17 | 16 | 15 | (5) | 7 | 18 |
| Flexsteel | Dubuque | Jun 14 | 15 | 13 | 13 | 11 | (2) | 4 |
| Ames National Corp | Ames | Dec 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 9 | 6 | 11 |
| NewLink Genetics | Ames | Dec 13 | (31) | (23) | (18) | (10) | (9) | (8) |
| Lee Enterprises | Davenport | Sep 13 | (77) | (13) | (145) | (180) | (872) | 80 |
| Total all 19 Iowa Companies | 2,644 | 2,139 | 1,783 | 1,284 | 300 | 2,337 | ||
| Annual Earnings % Change | ||||||||
| …..2013 Over 2008 | 781% |
And on the Iowa Non-Profit Hospital front, the very well run UnityPoint Health generated a Total Bottom Line Profit of $262 mil in its year ended December 31, 2013, as compared with a Bottom Line Loss of $45 mil in 2008. UnityPoint Health's Net Assets.....the premier Financial Strength measure..... has increased from $1.067 bil at December 31, 2008 to $2.861 bil at the most recently reported June 30, 2014, an increase in financial strength of an incredible 168%. The Affordable Care Act has worked very well in Iowa.
