2017 may well go down in history as the best year the stock market has ever witnessed. But it could also be remembered as the year the roaring bull market ended and the economy plunges into dark days. While no one knows which outcome the rest of the year will bring, investors can prepare for any situation by investing in the major themes of this year. #-ad_banner-#The biggest theme dictating which stocks to watch in 2017 is uncertainty. Despite the massive bull market of 2016, many investors believe the major index ceiling has been set. Should this prove to be… Read More

2017 may well go down in history as the best year the stock market has ever witnessed. But it could also be remembered as the year the roaring bull market ended and the economy plunges into dark days. While no one knows which outcome the rest of the year will bring, investors can prepare for any situation by investing in the major themes of this year. #-ad_banner-#The biggest theme dictating which stocks to watch in 2017 is uncertainty. Despite the massive bull market of 2016, many investors believe the major index ceiling has been set. Should this prove to be the case, consumer staple stocks make sense. Even if the market continues higher, these stocks can make a great addition to your portfolio. Next, regulatory changes are on the forefront. 2017 has proven to be a year of transition, both in the world of taxation and the social space. One of the most dramatic changes is the acceptance of and decriminalization of marijuana in the medical sector, and some places for recreational use. An ongoing megatrend that will very likely to continue in 2017 is pet ownership. Not only do consumers own more pets, but they are also spending more… Read More

From humble beginnings as an online book retailer, few companies have had more of an effect on the retail sector — indeed, the daily lives of all of us — than Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN). Today, it’s a $438 billion behemoth, selling just about any product imaginable. That’s the cover story. But Amazon is much more than an online retailer. #-ad_banner-#We’re talking about a company with the analytical capabilities to know what its customers likely want even before they begin searching its website. We’re talking about warehouses strategically placed across the country, carefully stocked with inventory based on its vast databases… Read More

From humble beginnings as an online book retailer, few companies have had more of an effect on the retail sector — indeed, the daily lives of all of us — than Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN). Today, it’s a $438 billion behemoth, selling just about any product imaginable. That’s the cover story. But Amazon is much more than an online retailer. #-ad_banner-#We’re talking about a company with the analytical capabilities to know what its customers likely want even before they begin searching its website. We’re talking about warehouses strategically placed across the country, carefully stocked with inventory based on its vast databases — with workers increasingly replaced by more efficient robots — to ensure rapid fulfilment. (Soon, drones may replace delivery drivers.) Its innovations in logistics alone are enough to fill a doctoral thesis. And that’s just half the story. Amazon is also a game-changer in the media business… The advertising business… The cloud business… The list goes on and on. It’s for this reason I call Amazon one of the “World’s Greatest Businesses.” There’s just one problem. For years, Amazon has defied traditional investing logic. Think about it… It’s one of the few “internet” companies that survived the dot-com crash relatively… Read More

The French are funny. They smoke cigarettes while riding bicycles. They hail Jerry Lewis as a filmmaking genius. My favorite scene in Monty Python and the Holy Grail is when King Arthur and his men encounter the insulting French knight. And throughout the rise of western civilization, they’ve ALWAYS been a lynchpin in global affairs where continental Europe is concerned. #-ad_banner-#We’ve been reminded of that for the last few weeks as the world and markets have been biting their collective nails over the French presidential election. And it’s no surprise; the nervousness follows the UK Brexit vote and Donald Trump’s… Read More

The French are funny. They smoke cigarettes while riding bicycles. They hail Jerry Lewis as a filmmaking genius. My favorite scene in Monty Python and the Holy Grail is when King Arthur and his men encounter the insulting French knight. And throughout the rise of western civilization, they’ve ALWAYS been a lynchpin in global affairs where continental Europe is concerned. #-ad_banner-#We’ve been reminded of that for the last few weeks as the world and markets have been biting their collective nails over the French presidential election. And it’s no surprise; the nervousness follows the UK Brexit vote and Donald Trump’s populist-tilted upset in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. In France, the contest has pitted ultra-right wing, anti-EU Marine Le Pen versus, basically, everyone else, but mainly center-left candidate, pro-EU Emmanuel Macron. After the first round, Macron has emerged as the frontrunner and, although he faces Le Pen in the run-off, indications tell us that the French are leaning towards the more moderate Macron. Markets have breathed a sigh of relief with encouraging rallies and pundit-talk of, at long last, real growth in European equities. Here are three growth stocks for 2017 investors should look at. 1. Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:… Read More

We cover a lot of different topics in my premium income newsletter, High-Yield Investing. One thing I make a point to feature in each issue is a detailed screen of some sort for interesting income opportunities. Sometimes I run straightforward, simple screens, like last month’s search for low-cost, high-yield equity income funds. Other months we might track down potential short squeeze candidates, talk about ways to combat inflation or hunt for highly efficient businesses that generate the most revenue per employee. This month, I wanted to get back to basics and pinpoint a few stocks that are poised for meaningful… Read More

We cover a lot of different topics in my premium income newsletter, High-Yield Investing. One thing I make a point to feature in each issue is a detailed screen of some sort for interesting income opportunities. Sometimes I run straightforward, simple screens, like last month’s search for low-cost, high-yield equity income funds. Other months we might track down potential short squeeze candidates, talk about ways to combat inflation or hunt for highly efficient businesses that generate the most revenue per employee. This month, I wanted to get back to basics and pinpoint a few stocks that are poised for meaningful dividend hikes in the near future. According to FactSet Research, dividend distributions among S&P 500 companies have increased for 11 straight quarters. Over the past year, aggregate payments are up 4.8% to $431 billion. That’s the good news. The bad news is that many companies have reached the upper limits of what they can afford to distribute relative to current profits. #-ad_banner-#In fact, 44 members of the S&P (almost 10%) have unsustainable payout ratios above 100%, meaning they aren’t earning enough to cover their dividend payments. Many of these companies may have trouble maintaining their current… Read More

Anyone who knows me knows that one of my favorite investing techniques is to find a trend to follow. Once found, I stay with it as long as possible. Of course it helps to find the trend early, too. But finding an early trend can be difficult. For example, finding an actionable trend in natural gas seems almost impossible. As you can see from the chart below, the median price of natural gas has trended around the $2.50 range for the past 18-months. And this lack of positive momentum in the price of natural gas makes gas stocks… Read More

Anyone who knows me knows that one of my favorite investing techniques is to find a trend to follow. Once found, I stay with it as long as possible. Of course it helps to find the trend early, too. But finding an early trend can be difficult. For example, finding an actionable trend in natural gas seems almost impossible. As you can see from the chart below, the median price of natural gas has trended around the $2.50 range for the past 18-months. And this lack of positive momentum in the price of natural gas makes gas stocks unattractive. But here’s the thing: Natural gas prices are at the beginning stages of a long-term trend that will prevent them from staying this way. Here’s Why While natural gas averaged $2.51 in 2016, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates average prices will rise to $3.55 in 2017. This bodes well for natural gas companies as well as companies moving product across the United States and the globe. EIA predicts that commercial use of natural gas will rise by 6 percent in 2017. Even so, those kinds of numbers are not a trend that… Read More

There’s a growing concern percolating beneath the surface of the stock market. And, no, I’m not talking about a looming correction or anything like that. It’s a problem that’s making it even tougher for individual investors to find market-beating stocks. It’s a problem that will require investors to have a system, like Maximum Profit, to have any hope… This predicament became even more glaring on April 19 when the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) reported quarterly earnings. #-ad_banner-#BlackRock’s report included an astonishing achievement, even by its own standards. The company’s assets under management (AUM) reached… Read More

There’s a growing concern percolating beneath the surface of the stock market. And, no, I’m not talking about a looming correction or anything like that. It’s a problem that’s making it even tougher for individual investors to find market-beating stocks. It’s a problem that will require investors to have a system, like Maximum Profit, to have any hope… This predicament became even more glaring on April 19 when the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) reported quarterly earnings. #-ad_banner-#BlackRock’s report included an astonishing achievement, even by its own standards. The company’s assets under management (AUM) reached an all-time record of $5.4 trillion. That’s bigger than JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM), Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) combined. They accomplished this impressive feat, in large part, by leading a trend that’s radically changing the investment world. You see, fewer and fewer investors are picking individual stocks. Instead, they are opting for index funds, and BlackRock has become a leader in low-cost index funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), as opposed to actively managed funds. Now, index funds can play a vital role in portfolio management, and I like the fact that they allow investors easy… Read More

Income investors have it pretty bad right now. Despite a recent spike, the 10-year Treasury note yield of 2.3% is near an all-time low. Those low bond yields have pushed income-starved investors into the S&P 500 in search of reliable dividend stocks. Unfortunately, their options are slim… After a 70% gain in five years, the S&P 500’s dividend yield has compressed to 1.92%, also near an all-time low. Take a look below. Source: Multpl.com If you’re one of those investors banging your head against the wall trying to find better yields, I have the solution for you. Read More

Income investors have it pretty bad right now. Despite a recent spike, the 10-year Treasury note yield of 2.3% is near an all-time low. Those low bond yields have pushed income-starved investors into the S&P 500 in search of reliable dividend stocks. Unfortunately, their options are slim… After a 70% gain in five years, the S&P 500’s dividend yield has compressed to 1.92%, also near an all-time low. Take a look below. Source: Multpl.com If you’re one of those investors banging your head against the wall trying to find better yields, I have the solution for you. You might be surprised to learn that a huge collection of high-yield stocks is right at your fingertips. However, in order to capitalize on this opportunity, you have to be willing to overcome one of the biggest investor biases. The Bias Keeping U.S. Investors From The Best Yields In The World Home Bias is the tendency for investors to invest heavily in domestic stocks despite the potential benefits of diversifying into international equities. According to research from mutual fund company Oppenheimer, U.S. stocks make up over 70% of U.S. investors’ equity portfolios. Not only is… Read More

Dividend-focused investing, while on the surface designed for producing income, is also one of the best ways to build wealth in the stock market. The trick is identifying top-paying dividend stocks and then consistently reinvesting the dividends. Dividend reinvestment allows the power of compound interest to work in your favor. Even in 2017’s volatile market, I’ve located seven top-paying dividend stocks that can make a great addition to your portfolio. They are also a smart way to start to build a diversified income portfolio if you are just starting out. What I haven’t included are the crazies — you know,… Read More

Dividend-focused investing, while on the surface designed for producing income, is also one of the best ways to build wealth in the stock market. The trick is identifying top-paying dividend stocks and then consistently reinvesting the dividends. Dividend reinvestment allows the power of compound interest to work in your favor. Even in 2017’s volatile market, I’ve located seven top-paying dividend stocks that can make a great addition to your portfolio. They are also a smart way to start to build a diversified income portfolio if you are just starting out. What I haven’t included are the crazies — you know, the ultra-high dividend payers with yields that are unsustainable, often due to a plunging stock price. While buzz-worthy and temporarily profitable, these investments are hardly suitable for a reliable portfolio. These seven top-paying dividend stocks have proven, justifiable yields. Even better, I fully expect them to provide better than average price performance over the next 12 months. The 7 Top-Paying Dividend Stocks You Need To Know 1. Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE: EPD) EPD is a master limited partnership-structured company in the natural gas sector. The Houston-based pipeline operator pays nearly 6% and is America’s largest company in its niche. Read More