To most investors, what we do here at Maximum Profit doesn’t make sense… That’s because our investing strategy goes against nearly everything you’ve been told about becoming a successful investor: diversify your portfolio and buy low, sell high. That strategy simply doesn’t work for the vast majority of investors. How do I know? Market research from Dalbar — a company that’s been looking into investors’ buy and sell decisions since 1994 — found that investors have averaged a paltry 2.1% annualized return over the last 20 years… greatly lagging the broader market’s 8.2% return over that same time period. So… Read More

To most investors, what we do here at Maximum Profit doesn’t make sense… That’s because our investing strategy goes against nearly everything you’ve been told about becoming a successful investor: diversify your portfolio and buy low, sell high. That strategy simply doesn’t work for the vast majority of investors. How do I know? Market research from Dalbar — a company that’s been looking into investors’ buy and sell decisions since 1994 — found that investors have averaged a paltry 2.1% annualized return over the last 20 years… greatly lagging the broader market’s 8.2% return over that same time period. So it’s clear that beating the same old investing drum hasn’t worked for investors. So what does work? Buy high and sell higher… That’s the basic premise of momentum investing. Contrary to conventional wisdom, we want to be buying stocks that are near their 52-week highs, and selling them when the upward momentum runs out of steam. As I told my subscribers in an past issue: Often, new highs create uncertainty among investors. They tend to think that when a stock or the overall market reaches new highs, it’s time to take money off the table. Similarly, most investors would scoff… Read More

This is BIG… For the first time since 1933, the SEC is now allowing regular people like you and me to invest in brand-new explosive-growth companies BEFORE THEY GO PUBLIC. Imagine getting in on the next Facebook for 33 cents a share or the next Apple at 78 cents. In StreetAuthority’s Pre-IPO Millionaire, I vet six to eight deals like this one, and offer my exclusive in-depth analysis of a single opportunity that I believe could return 1,000% or more. Click here for more information. — Joseph Hogue, CFA For that half of the population who maybe didn’t already realize… Read More

This is BIG… For the first time since 1933, the SEC is now allowing regular people like you and me to invest in brand-new explosive-growth companies BEFORE THEY GO PUBLIC. Imagine getting in on the next Facebook for 33 cents a share or the next Apple at 78 cents. In StreetAuthority’s Pre-IPO Millionaire, I vet six to eight deals like this one, and offer my exclusive in-depth analysis of a single opportunity that I believe could return 1,000% or more. Click here for more information. — Joseph Hogue, CFA For that half of the population who maybe didn’t already realize this, let it be known that women’s fashion is not inexpensive. Luxury fashion prices have shot up 60% over the last decade, nearly twice the rate of overall consumer inflation. A single dress can cost several thousand dollars. To make matters worse, the rise of social media has shortened the season for luxury fashion. Whereas many designers used to produce a spring and fall season, now many are launching four product lines a year to keep up with changing tastes. #-ad_banner-#A 2015 survey of 1,500 women by Barnardo’s, a British charity, found that respondents considered an item ‘old’ after wearing… Read More

The technology sector isn’t known for paying out juicy dividends. Companies from the high-growth sector tend to re invest their cash into expanding instead of returning it to investors. However, 17 years after the dot-com bubble popped in March of 2000, a group of former tech highflyers is quietly evolving into some of the best dividend payers in the S&P 500. #-ad_banner-#Apple, Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) is a great example. Apple began paying a dividend in 2012, and now offers a 1.6% yield after growing its dividend by 27% in the last three years. With more than $200 billion in cash,… Read More

The technology sector isn’t known for paying out juicy dividends. Companies from the high-growth sector tend to re invest their cash into expanding instead of returning it to investors. However, 17 years after the dot-com bubble popped in March of 2000, a group of former tech highflyers is quietly evolving into some of the best dividend payers in the S&P 500. #-ad_banner-#Apple, Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) is a great example. Apple began paying a dividend in 2012, and now offers a 1.6% yield after growing its dividend by 27% in the last three years. With more than $200 billion in cash, I expect Apple to continue growing its dividend for years to come. While those stats are impressive, another legendary tech stock offers a better dividend yield and growth. This global leader pays out a 2.4% yield, a 50% premium to Apple’s 1.6% yield. It has grown its dividend by 44% in the last three years, a 63% premium to Apple. And finally, with just over $100 billion in cash on its balance sheet, I am expecting its dividend payment to grow more than 100% in the next five years. The company, Microsoft, (Nasdaq: MSFT) is one of the greatest growth… Read More

Rockwell-Collins (NYSE: COL) might not be as popular as Boeing (NYSE: BA) or Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), but the company’s roots can be traced back to WWII and the venerable P-51 Mustang. In the ’60s, it produced the Apollo spacecraft that put Neil Armstrong on the moon. By the late ’70s, it was commissioned to spearhead NASA’s Space Shuttle program, starting with “Challenger,” and eventually building four other orbiters that made hundreds of trips into outer space. #-ad_banner-#The GPS systems used by so many of our electronic, automotive and aviation products might not even exist without Rockwell-Collins. Its “Navstar” GPS… Read More

Rockwell-Collins (NYSE: COL) might not be as popular as Boeing (NYSE: BA) or Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), but the company’s roots can be traced back to WWII and the venerable P-51 Mustang. In the ’60s, it produced the Apollo spacecraft that put Neil Armstrong on the moon. By the late ’70s, it was commissioned to spearhead NASA’s Space Shuttle program, starting with “Challenger,” and eventually building four other orbiters that made hundreds of trips into outer space. #-ad_banner-#The GPS systems used by so many of our electronic, automotive and aviation products might not even exist without Rockwell-Collins. Its “Navstar” GPS satellites were among the first commissioned by the Pentagon. By many measures, it has produced some of the most impressive and influential aerospace and communications technology of the 20th century. And even after several mergers and acquisitions, and an eventual spinoff in 2001, Rockwell-Collins is still an aviation, defense and technological force to be reckoned with. But this is more than just a company with an impressive lineage. It is the “best-in-breed” for its sector, heavily integrated into aerospace, defense, infrastructure and even rail. Growth in these sectors equals earnings growth for COL. Given President Trump’s effect on consumer and… Read More

In May 2013, then Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke hinted to Congress that the Fed would consider tapering its $70 billion monthly bond-buying program. The markets reacted swiftly and violently to the news. Investors immediately began pulling money from the bond markets. Bond yield pushed significantly higher as money outflows scared investors. The event became known as the “taper tantrum.” #-ad_banner-#The reaction in the U.S. REIT market was just as swift. The total returns of the FTSE NAREIT All REIT Index fell sharply, ending the month down 6.6%. The index lost another 8.5% over the next six months. The volatility… Read More

In May 2013, then Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke hinted to Congress that the Fed would consider tapering its $70 billion monthly bond-buying program. The markets reacted swiftly and violently to the news. Investors immediately began pulling money from the bond markets. Bond yield pushed significantly higher as money outflows scared investors. The event became known as the “taper tantrum.” #-ad_banner-#The reaction in the U.S. REIT market was just as swift. The total returns of the FTSE NAREIT All REIT Index fell sharply, ending the month down 6.6%. The index lost another 8.5% over the next six months. The volatility in the REIT sector illustrated the conventional wisdom among investors about REIT prices and interest rates. REIT prices usually decline when interest rates rise. This is because higher interest rates reduce the present value of future cash flows. As such, asset prices must come down — all other things being equal. And that’s exactly what happened. But that doesn’t mean some economic law is in place here. Nor does it mean that all REITs should experience declines equally. Residential and office REITs can actually rise with interest rates, thanks to the higher demand and rising rents that come with economic… Read More

As stocks start to wobble after a nine-year bull market, one industry looks like it could break higher over the next few years. This industry missed out on the spectacular bull market gains because of overbuilding, but last year’s collapse in prices could bring a rebound off multi-decade lows. An ETF tracking the industry plunged 63% to its low last year from a high in 2011, but has since rebounded 20% as early evidence of a recovery becomes clear. The selloff was so drastic that even the largest players in the space are now small-cap companies. But now industry is… Read More

As stocks start to wobble after a nine-year bull market, one industry looks like it could break higher over the next few years. This industry missed out on the spectacular bull market gains because of overbuilding, but last year’s collapse in prices could bring a rebound off multi-decade lows. An ETF tracking the industry plunged 63% to its low last year from a high in 2011, but has since rebounded 20% as early evidence of a recovery becomes clear. The selloff was so drastic that even the largest players in the space are now small-cap companies. But now industry is clearing its overcapacity issues and demand fundamentals are picking up. This confluence of events could just make it one of the biggest investing themes of the year. Shakeout In Shipping Helps Fuel A Recovery The boom in commodity prices just after the Great Recession drove many in the shipping industry to rapidly expand their fleets. Fleet growth exploded from 2009 through 2012, with the industry increasing the number of ships in service by an average of 14% a year. The oversupply in shipping caused the Baltic Dry Index (BDI), an assessment of the price to move major raw materials… Read More

Liquor with half the calories, and a “connected” motorbike. Those are two of the potential game changers in this month’s installment of Disruptor Deals & Cool Concepts — a compilation of all the crowdfunding deals that were posted the last four… Read More

Market observers like to refer to companies involved in mature or dying industries as “buggy whip” companies. What is commonly overlooked is that many of these companies, despite their old-fashioned brand image and reliance on dated technology, have been quietly transforming themselves into high-tech, cutting-edge enterprises. And the stocks are usually a bargain. One of my favorite names in this situation is Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI). I’ve written extensively about the company in years past but have been out of the stock for quite a while. It’s time to get back in. Here’s why. The stock has given… Read More

Market observers like to refer to companies involved in mature or dying industries as “buggy whip” companies. What is commonly overlooked is that many of these companies, despite their old-fashioned brand image and reliance on dated technology, have been quietly transforming themselves into high-tech, cutting-edge enterprises. And the stocks are usually a bargain. One of my favorite names in this situation is Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI). I’ve written extensively about the company in years past but have been out of the stock for quite a while. It’s time to get back in. Here’s why. The stock has given back 35% of its value over the past year. The readjustment has created an extremely cheap forward P/E of 7.6 with an attractive dividend yield of 5.60%. But is the stock a value or a value trap? PBI Is Adapting To The Changing Market You don’t have to convince me that physical mail is a declining business. At the same time it’s important to realize that it will still be around in some form or fashion for quite a few years if not decades to come. You can’t send a guitar you sold on eBay (Nasdaq: EBAY) via e-mail. Read More

Earnings season is virtually over, and with 99% of the companies in the S&P 500 reporting, results are a little better than expected. About two-thirds of companies beat analysts’ expectations, in line with the long-term average rate. Earnings per share (EPS) came in about 4.9% higher than they were a year ago, the first time we’ve seen year-over-year growth in earnings for two consecutive quarters in two years. It seems as if the earnings outlook should be bullish for the stock market based on the growth in EPS, but many analysts are warning that the market is overvalued. Such warnings… Read More

Earnings season is virtually over, and with 99% of the companies in the S&P 500 reporting, results are a little better than expected. About two-thirds of companies beat analysts’ expectations, in line with the long-term average rate. Earnings per share (EPS) came in about 4.9% higher than they were a year ago, the first time we’ve seen year-over-year growth in earnings for two consecutive quarters in two years. It seems as if the earnings outlook should be bullish for the stock market based on the growth in EPS, but many analysts are warning that the market is overvalued. Such warnings are often based on charts like the one below, which shows the price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio is higher than average. This chart looks back at the past 10 years. Interestingly, to me, the P/E ratio reached its high in the first quarter of 2010, as the stock market was bottoming. Bears were arguing the market was overvalued when it was at the beginning of what would prove to be an extended bull market. #-ad_banner-#You could argue that the recession was an extraordinary time for the economy and no one could forecast what would happen next. The president, Congress, the… Read More