Since December 24, when the S&P 500 registered its lowest mark of 2018 (and a near 20% pullback from its September highs) we’ve seen a robust rebound. The index has rallied more than 12% since then.  I don’t know whether we’re out of the woods just yet… but between a couple of bullish indicators that I’ll discuss below, and my Maximum Profit system signaling four new buys last week, I’d say that the outlook at the moment is positive.  —Recommended Link— What would YOU do with an extra $3,080 every month for the rest of your life? Never worry… Read More

Since December 24, when the S&P 500 registered its lowest mark of 2018 (and a near 20% pullback from its September highs) we’ve seen a robust rebound. The index has rallied more than 12% since then.  I don’t know whether we’re out of the woods just yet… but between a couple of bullish indicators that I’ll discuss below, and my Maximum Profit system signaling four new buys last week, I’d say that the outlook at the moment is positive.  —Recommended Link— What would YOU do with an extra $3,080 every month for the rest of your life? Never worry about cash again. Be free to live how YOU want… go on a lavish vacation… or build up a college fund for the grandkids–it’s up to you.  Get your share here… Indicator #1 The first bullish indicator is one that I touched on previously, and that’s the Advance-Decline Line (AD Line). This is a breadth indicator that shows us how many stocks in the underlying index — the NYSE Composite Index in this case — are advancing and how many are declining. The purpose of looking at a breadth indicator is to gauge market sentiment, whether it’s leaning… Read More

It’s been hard not to notice how slow this year has been when it comes to bringing new companies to the market via initial public offerings (IPOs).  Last quarter’s market selloff plus government shutdown-related staffing issues at regulatory agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission are largely to blame. As of last Friday, Jan. 18, only three companies had gone public so far this year, with another expected to make its debut on Jan. 25. In January 2018, by contrast, 20 companies had IPO-ed. This pace puts the IPO market of 2019 well behind the rate needed to match… Read More

It’s been hard not to notice how slow this year has been when it comes to bringing new companies to the market via initial public offerings (IPOs).  Last quarter’s market selloff plus government shutdown-related staffing issues at regulatory agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission are largely to blame. As of last Friday, Jan. 18, only three companies had gone public so far this year, with another expected to make its debut on Jan. 25. In January 2018, by contrast, 20 companies had IPO-ed. This pace puts the IPO market of 2019 well behind the rate needed to match or exceed the breakneck activity of 2018 when 190 companies went public.  But this does not mean we cannot learn or benefit from the IPO market — these 190 recently-minted public companies offer a lot of new ideas and fresh profit opportunities.  Because of the sheer number of these fledgling companies, I had to first narrow down my area of interest. At this time, I’m focusing on the consumer discretionary sector. With numerous innovations hitting the consumer market, I thought it would be interesting to see how well these companies are being received by the investing public.  Hence, today’s… Read More

I’ve never shopped at Macy’s (NYSE: M), nor have I followed it closely as an investment candidate. Like many, I know the iconic department store best from its prominent role in the classic Christmas film, Miracle on 34th Street. But Macy’s investors may remember January 10 as the Massacre on 34th Street. The stock fell off a cliff that day, tumbling nearly 19%, the sharpest decline in its storied history. It was a bad day for many retailers. JC Penney (NYSE: JCP) dropped 4.4%. Kohl’s tumbled more than 10% at one point. But the harshest punishment was reserved for Macy’s,… Read More

I’ve never shopped at Macy’s (NYSE: M), nor have I followed it closely as an investment candidate. Like many, I know the iconic department store best from its prominent role in the classic Christmas film, Miracle on 34th Street. But Macy’s investors may remember January 10 as the Massacre on 34th Street. The stock fell off a cliff that day, tumbling nearly 19%, the sharpest decline in its storied history. It was a bad day for many retailers. JC Penney (NYSE: JCP) dropped 4.4%. Kohl’s tumbled more than 10% at one point. But the harshest punishment was reserved for Macy’s, which lost $1.8 billion in market value in a single session. —Recommended Link— 9 Investment Revelations For 2019 From toppling the titans of Monday night entertainment to robotic heart surgery… 2019 will be a very interesting year for investors. Want to know where the smart money will be in 2019? Click here to discover the tickers now. So what terrible transgression did the company commit to bring down this wrath? Well, management said that revenues would be flat in 2018. Let’s be honest — nobody expected Macy’s to deliver sizzling growth. The prior outlook called for sales to inch… Read More

As my High-Yield Investing premium subscribers know, I make it a point to keep readers abreast of potential dividend increases on the horizon in the coming weeks. Considering many stocks pop on a dividend hike, I prefer to give my readers actionable ideas before the announcement, not after. (Although if there is a noteworthy increase that has already just been confirmed, I sometimes share those as well.) February brings a fresh batch of prospects. When narrowing down the field, I look for several traits such as superior dividend growth and proven longevity. By those measures, we’ve got a good group… Read More

As my High-Yield Investing premium subscribers know, I make it a point to keep readers abreast of potential dividend increases on the horizon in the coming weeks. Considering many stocks pop on a dividend hike, I prefer to give my readers actionable ideas before the announcement, not after. (Although if there is a noteworthy increase that has already just been confirmed, I sometimes share those as well.) February brings a fresh batch of prospects. When narrowing down the field, I look for several traits such as superior dividend growth and proven longevity. By those measures, we’ve got a good group this month. 1. Coca Cola (NYSE: KO) — Some investors think of Coca-Cola as a one-trick pony, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Yes, the flagship product is still one of the world’s most popular and widely-distributed beverages, sold in 200 countries around the globe. But it’s just one of a growing portfolio of 21 billion-dollar brands, including Dasani water, Powerade sports drinks, Gold Peak sweet tea, and Simply Orange fruit juice. The company has also just made a leap into the hot beverage market with the $5 billion acquisition of Costa, the top coffee brand in the… Read More

Stock prices ended last week slightly above the important resistance levels I outlined last week. You can see this in the daily S&P 500 chart below.  ​ After two days of trading this week, prices still had not cleared that level.  As I noted last week, resistance is a level where a price advance is expected to stall. I identified three specific factors — the March lows, the 50-day moving average (MA) and the 50% retracement of the October-to-December decline. On Friday, the S&P 500 had closed above each of those levels… which would have been a strong signal… Read More

Stock prices ended last week slightly above the important resistance levels I outlined last week. You can see this in the daily S&P 500 chart below.  ​ After two days of trading this week, prices still had not cleared that level.  As I noted last week, resistance is a level where a price advance is expected to stall. I identified three specific factors — the March lows, the 50-day moving average (MA) and the 50% retracement of the October-to-December decline. On Friday, the S&P 500 had closed above each of those levels… which would have been a strong signal that the bear market was ending.  But when the market opened Tuesday morning, things got off to a rough start. Over the course of the day, the S&P 500 gave back some of the prior week’s gains and closed below 50-day MA and 50% retracement level.  So, does this mean we’re in for another round of gains… or does it signal further losses to come?  —Recommended Link— 3 Shots At Making 1,000% Or More. Jim Fink’s new stock picking system just hit on three companies that could put up to $330,000 in your pocket. And… Read More

As the stock market enters earnings season, I’m feeling concerned… and it seems like I’m not the only one.  My bet is that we can expect volatility in the coming weeks. Our trading strategy over at Profit Amplifier focuses on avoiding risk, and one way we can do that is by adding exposure to utility stocks — a defensive sector that traders turn to when they are looking for low-risk trades.  Time To Get Defensive While looking through my screens, I found a very attractive call option trade in Southern (NYSE: SO), a gas and… Read More

As the stock market enters earnings season, I’m feeling concerned… and it seems like I’m not the only one.  My bet is that we can expect volatility in the coming weeks. Our trading strategy over at Profit Amplifier focuses on avoiding risk, and one way we can do that is by adding exposure to utility stocks — a defensive sector that traders turn to when they are looking for low-risk trades.  Time To Get Defensive While looking through my screens, I found a very attractive call option trade in Southern (NYSE: SO), a gas and electric company (and the second-largest utility stock in the United States, in terms of customer base).  #-ad_banner-#Southern’s fundamentals are solid, with cash flow from operations growing steadily. The company is headquartered in Atlanta and serves a part of the country that enjoys relatively stable weather at this time of year, which reduces the risk of a natural disaster disrupting operations. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings around February 21, so picking a call option that expires before then further decreases risk.  The chart confirms my bullish outlook. After recently breaking above its 200-day moving average (MA) — the solid… Read More