Not so fast, Chevron. Last month, Chevron (NYSE: CVX) unveiled plans to acquire Anadarko Petroleum (NYSE: APC) for $33 billion in cash and stock. Anadarko execs signed on the dotted line, agreeing to a $1 billion breakup fee should the deal be scuttled for any reason. That was a mistake, particularly knowing there was another interested suitor. A few days ago, a Gulfstream corporate jet owned by Occidental Petroleum (NYSE: OXY) touched down in Omaha, Nebraska, home of Warren Buffett. It could have been a mere coincidence — but it wasn’t. Behind the scenes, Buffett was orchestrating a financial package… Read More

Not so fast, Chevron. Last month, Chevron (NYSE: CVX) unveiled plans to acquire Anadarko Petroleum (NYSE: APC) for $33 billion in cash and stock. Anadarko execs signed on the dotted line, agreeing to a $1 billion breakup fee should the deal be scuttled for any reason. That was a mistake, particularly knowing there was another interested suitor. A few days ago, a Gulfstream corporate jet owned by Occidental Petroleum (NYSE: OXY) touched down in Omaha, Nebraska, home of Warren Buffett. It could have been a mere coincidence — but it wasn’t. Behind the scenes, Buffett was orchestrating a financial package to help Occidental outbid Chevron for Anadarko. Occidental, one of the portfolio holdings in my High-Yield Investing premium newsletter, has since come forward with an offer of $76 per share, or $38 billion. That’s not only more generous than Chevron’s $65 bid, but it also has a higher cash component (50% versus 25%). While Anadarko has rebuffed previous advances from Occidental, in part because of concerns that OXY shareholders might balk, it has no choice but to seriously consider this offer. So how does Warren Buffett fit in? Well, Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-A) has agreed to bankroll $10 billion toward the cost. Read More

It’s quite possibly the most controversial holding in the Daily Paycheck portfolio. But it’s not my job to pass judgment — you’re on your own for that.  My job is to point my subscribers to the best opportunities for income and portfolio growth. And after nine years (and currently paying a robust 5% yield), tobacco giant Altria (NYSE: MO) has done just that. In fact, it’s rewarded us with a gain of roughly 334% during this time. And while we make a habit of reinvesting our dividends as part of our strategy over at my premium newsletter, you can see… Read More

It’s quite possibly the most controversial holding in the Daily Paycheck portfolio. But it’s not my job to pass judgment — you’re on your own for that.  My job is to point my subscribers to the best opportunities for income and portfolio growth. And after nine years (and currently paying a robust 5% yield), tobacco giant Altria (NYSE: MO) has done just that. In fact, it’s rewarded us with a gain of roughly 334% during this time. And while we make a habit of reinvesting our dividends as part of our strategy over at my premium newsletter, you can see how the stock’s total return has absolutely crushed that of the S&P 500… There’s just one problem… Or, a few, in fact. #-ad_banner-#The company just posted soft first-quarter results that fell short of expectations on both the top and bottom lines. Revenues for the period dipped by 6% to $4.4 billion, while earnings dropped by a similar percentage to $0.90 per share. While there were some extenuating inventory issues, they couldn’t disguise the fact that domestic cigarette shipment volume plunged 14% from a year ago. Worse still for the company, Altria’s market share slid below the 50% mark as more… Read More

Back in the early 2000s, I used to write a column called “The Gaming Investor” for Casino Player magazine. As a result, I had a front-row seat to the gradual transformation that’s taken place in the casino business over the years.  The days of cheap drinks and 99-cent shrimp cocktails are sadly gone for the most part. Once considered loss-leaders just to lure in gamblers, property owners have invested heavily to renovate and update their lounges, showrooms and buffets. These ancillary areas of operation now take in more cash than the casinos. As a result, Las Vegas isn’t the Vegas… Read More

Back in the early 2000s, I used to write a column called “The Gaming Investor” for Casino Player magazine. As a result, I had a front-row seat to the gradual transformation that’s taken place in the casino business over the years.  The days of cheap drinks and 99-cent shrimp cocktails are sadly gone for the most part. Once considered loss-leaders just to lure in gamblers, property owners have invested heavily to renovate and update their lounges, showrooms and buffets. These ancillary areas of operation now take in more cash than the casinos. As a result, Las Vegas isn’t the Vegas Frank Sinatra knew — or even the one that I marveled at for the first time in the late 1990s. Alongside high-rollers at the baccarat tables are affluent partygoers at swanky clubs who aren’t shy about forking over $10,000 for a private VIP table. This diversification of the revenue stream means more ways to separate visitors from their dollars — and less reliance on Lady Luck (although we know the house always wins).  And the Las Vegas desert isn’t the only place where players are handing over their chips. From Gulf Coast towns like Biloxi, Mississippi, to the Chicago suburb… Read More

It’s no secret that dividend yields aren’t what they used to be. The average payout among S&P 500 stocks has sunk to around 2%. Even on a decent-sized $500,000 portfolio, that still amounts to just $10,000 in annual payments — or $833 per month. That doesn’t exactly add up to a lavish retirement lifestyle.  Fortunately, there are alternatives. As the Chief Strategist for High-Yield Investing, I’ve spent most of my career scouring obscure corners of the market for hidden yields of 8%, 10% or even more. One of my favorite hunting grounds to bag these big payouts is within an… Read More

It’s no secret that dividend yields aren’t what they used to be. The average payout among S&P 500 stocks has sunk to around 2%. Even on a decent-sized $500,000 portfolio, that still amounts to just $10,000 in annual payments — or $833 per month. That doesn’t exactly add up to a lavish retirement lifestyle.  Fortunately, there are alternatives. As the Chief Strategist for High-Yield Investing, I’ve spent most of my career scouring obscure corners of the market for hidden yields of 8%, 10% or even more. One of my favorite hunting grounds to bag these big payouts is within an incredibly safe asset class you may not even know exists.  —Recommended Link— This Could Create An Enormous Wave Of Wealth If you’ve been looking for a way to make money from the booming legal marijuana market. but don’t want to roll the dice on a penny stock or figure out how to buy shares of a grower on some Canadian exchange. there’s good news. We’ve discovered a unique marijuana profit-sharing plan that’s paying a small group of regular people up to $55,563 a year. Read More

Robust job creation and rising take-home pay are good for just about every business (except maybe pawn shops and loan sharks). But this company benefits more than most…  In fact, that’s what led us to recommend this stock to our Daily Paycheck subscribers back in 2012. And all it’s done since then is reward readers with one of the fastest-growing dividends you’ll find in the market — and a total return of 253% at last count. Paychex (Nasdaq: PAYX) handles the payroll for 650,000 clients, mostly small businesses with 10 to 50 employees — the economy’s growth engine. These payroll… Read More

Robust job creation and rising take-home pay are good for just about every business (except maybe pawn shops and loan sharks). But this company benefits more than most…  In fact, that’s what led us to recommend this stock to our Daily Paycheck subscribers back in 2012. And all it’s done since then is reward readers with one of the fastest-growing dividends you’ll find in the market — and a total return of 253% at last count. Paychex (Nasdaq: PAYX) handles the payroll for 650,000 clients, mostly small businesses with 10 to 50 employees — the economy’s growth engine. These payroll customers generally pay a flat service fee, as well as an additional fee for each worker enrolled. Thus, Paychex likes to see businesses hiring new employees. And after a soft February report, the labor market is roaring once again. There were 196,000 new jobs created in March, about 20,000 more than expected. Meanwhile, the number of unemployment claims fell to the lowest level since 1969 (and the workforce is much larger today than it was 50 years ago). #-ad_banner-#Payroll administration is a lucrative business. Paychex produced $1.1 billion in revenues last quarter, a healthy increase of 14%. Half of that… Read More

One of the main strategies employed by my premium newsletter, The Daily Paycheck, is dividend reinvestment.  Thanks to the power of compounding, every dollar of income we reinvest back into the securities that pay them accumulates our money faster. Even one reinvested dividend makes your position bigger and its income generation potential larger.  In the simplest terms, dividend reinvestment can make you richer quicker.  The beauty of this strategy is in its simplicity. When you reinvest dividends, you put more money into the security, and this larger position pays you more the next time its dividend is due. This cycle continues… Read More

One of the main strategies employed by my premium newsletter, The Daily Paycheck, is dividend reinvestment.  Thanks to the power of compounding, every dollar of income we reinvest back into the securities that pay them accumulates our money faster. Even one reinvested dividend makes your position bigger and its income generation potential larger.  In the simplest terms, dividend reinvestment can make you richer quicker.  The beauty of this strategy is in its simplicity. When you reinvest dividends, you put more money into the security, and this larger position pays you more the next time its dividend is due. This cycle continues for as long as you are willing to hold the security and delay pocketing the income.  Easy enough, right?   But there is more to this strategy than you might realize at first. For instance, when you reinvest dividends, the frequency of the payments matters.  Let me explain… —Recommended Link— This $1,003-a-Month Income Boost Is Available to Everyone There’s a way for you to collect extra government cash. And it isn’t some “file and suspend” Social Security trick that only makes sense for a few people. This obscure opportunity allows you to collect government cash no… Read More

As many of you know, I make it a regular habit to pinpoint three or four stocks that are primed for a dividend hike in the coming month.  #-ad_banner-#Keep in mind, I’m not projecting these hikes within the next 6 to 12 months, but often within the next 6 to 12 days — so this is information you can act on immediately if you so choose. Even still, my premium High-Yield Investing readers get this information even sooner than when you’re reading this, giving them an extra jump.  Why do I point this out? Well, I have profiled 16 candidates… Read More

As many of you know, I make it a regular habit to pinpoint three or four stocks that are primed for a dividend hike in the coming month.  #-ad_banner-#Keep in mind, I’m not projecting these hikes within the next 6 to 12 months, but often within the next 6 to 12 days — so this is information you can act on immediately if you so choose. Even still, my premium High-Yield Investing readers get this information even sooner than when you’re reading this, giving them an extra jump.  Why do I point this out? Well, I have profiled 16 candidates so far this year. And as expected, nearly all of them have lifted their distributions.  Most have delivered sizeable gains as well. Genuine Parts (NYSE: GPC) (profiled here) is up 18.3% for the year; Air Products & Chemicals (NYSE: APD) has rallied 21.9%; and Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) (profiled here) has surged an impressive 39.3%.  Let’s keep that streak going.  Here are three more dividend payers to watch in the coming weeks…  1. American Water Works (NYSE: AWK) — Founded more than a century ago, American Water Works is the nation’s largest publicly-traded water utility. The company owns 600 treatment plants,… Read More