As income investors, the goal for most of us is to find a solid stock with an above-average yield and stay for the long haul.  #-ad_banner-#Anyone who is familiar with my premium newsletter, The Daily Paycheck, knows we try to do just that by searching for securities that will do one of three things: maximize income, maximize growth or minimize risk. We consider these key traits the three interlocking gears of our retirement system’s engine. They work together to ensure our portfolio runs as smoothly and efficiently as possible.  But we’ve also found a way to turbocharge that engine. By… Read More

As income investors, the goal for most of us is to find a solid stock with an above-average yield and stay for the long haul.  #-ad_banner-#Anyone who is familiar with my premium newsletter, The Daily Paycheck, knows we try to do just that by searching for securities that will do one of three things: maximize income, maximize growth or minimize risk. We consider these key traits the three interlocking gears of our retirement system’s engine. They work together to ensure our portfolio runs as smoothly and efficiently as possible.  But we’ve also found a way to turbocharge that engine. By adding one simple feature, we’re able to greatly multiply our portfolio’s capacity to generate consistent income. I’m talking about reinvesting dividends.  Dividend reinvestment is a powerful strategy that too few investors take advantage of, largely because it rarely gets talked about by the financial community. Dividend reinvestment pays you more over the long haul because it puts your dividends to work. When you use your dividends to purchase more shares, those additional shares pay you higher dividends, which in turn buy you more shares. In a nutshell, dividend reinvestment compounds your growth and can increase your income potential exponentially.  But… Read More

We’re less than six weeks from the November elections, and election season usually has investors picking stocks based on the prospective policies of candidates, leading to a certain amount of market volatility. Uncertainty around the global economy and monetary policy has only helped to boost volatility this election season. But betting on stocks that win on one particular candidate is a crap shoot at best, especially in this election. Clinton and Trump differ so radically across nearly every talking point that betting on stocks favored by a particular party means the potential for massive losses if the other candidate wins. Read More

We’re less than six weeks from the November elections, and election season usually has investors picking stocks based on the prospective policies of candidates, leading to a certain amount of market volatility. Uncertainty around the global economy and monetary policy has only helped to boost volatility this election season. But betting on stocks that win on one particular candidate is a crap shoot at best, especially in this election. Clinton and Trump differ so radically across nearly every talking point that betting on stocks favored by a particular party means the potential for massive losses if the other candidate wins. #-ad_banner-#The Real Clear Politics aggregate of national polls puts Clinton’s lead at just 2.3%, close to the tightest the race has been for months. Nobody is able to call this one yet. Unbelievable as it may seem, the candidates actually do agree on one topic. They’ve both made one particular sector of the economy a key position of their platform. For that sector, the news after November could range from good to very good and a leader in the space is primed to takeoff. This Sector Is About To Get A Government Jumpstart While unprecedented monetary stimulus helped to… Read More

I consider myself an early adopter of technology, and when it comes to Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), I’d say I’m borderline obsessive. In fact, my obsession goes back to the early 1980s, when I first laid my hands on my Apple II home computer.  But it isn’t just about having the latest and greatest. Owning and testing Apple’s newest products helps me to keep tabs on the world’s largest company. This obsession with Apple and its stock is shared by millions of consumers and investors. At the start of 2016, there were more than 1 billion Apple devices in active use… Read More

I consider myself an early adopter of technology, and when it comes to Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), I’d say I’m borderline obsessive. In fact, my obsession goes back to the early 1980s, when I first laid my hands on my Apple II home computer.  But it isn’t just about having the latest and greatest. Owning and testing Apple’s newest products helps me to keep tabs on the world’s largest company. This obsession with Apple and its stock is shared by millions of consumers and investors. At the start of 2016, there were more than 1 billion Apple devices in active use around the world, and AAPL is one of the most heavily traded stocks in the world. #-ad_banner-#Apple’s cult-like popularity, unique products and sheer size make it a target for pundits, fanatics and haters alike. For the past year or so, it’s been the haters who’ve controlled the stock. The bears’ major argument is that Apple will struggle to grow in the future because it is a one-trick pony that lacks innovation now that Steve Jobs is gone. And it’s true that two-thirds of Apple’s revenue came solely from the iPhone in 2015, while new products have been slow to develop. … Read More

I can’t believe more people aren’t taking advantage of this… For the past few years, my colleague Amber Hestla and her readers have been “skimming” from Wall Street. And the best part: it’s all perfectly legal. In fact, it’s one of the safest methods of earning extra income to be found in any market environment. Allow me to explain… With bond yields near record lows and traditional income securities like savings accounts and certificates of deposit earning next to nothing, we’re regularly finding “instant yields” as high as 9.2%… 13.7%… and even some as much as 19.8%. In the past,… Read More

I can’t believe more people aren’t taking advantage of this… For the past few years, my colleague Amber Hestla and her readers have been “skimming” from Wall Street. And the best part: it’s all perfectly legal. In fact, it’s one of the safest methods of earning extra income to be found in any market environment. Allow me to explain… With bond yields near record lows and traditional income securities like savings accounts and certificates of deposit earning next to nothing, we’re regularly finding “instant yields” as high as 9.2%… 13.7%… and even some as much as 19.8%. In the past, our research is showing opportunities to collect a $1,575 cash payment from Visa (NYSE: V) for a 7.8% yield… a $980 cash payment from Starbucks (NYSE: SBUX) for a 12.8% yield… and, as I’ll show you today, we’ve even identified an opportunity to earn a $1,608 payment from International Business Machines (NYSE: IBM) for an 11.5% yield. —Sponsored Link— The Rare Chance to Build Unbelievable Wealth is About to Occur… ​When the stock market crashed in 1929, millions were devastated. But a savvy few used the crisis to catapult themselves into unprecedented wealth and fortune. Read More

Last week, investors apparently “bought the dip” to support at 2,121 in the S&P 500, which I discussed in the previous Market Outlook. However, the rally was led by the small-cap Russell 2000, which gained 2.4% and is now up 10.5% for the year compared to just 5.9% for the benchmark S&P 500.  In this new era of concerted monetary stimulus by central banks around the world, investors have been trained like Pavlov’s dog to fearlessly buy every minor stock market decline because they are confident that central banks — including our Federal Reserve — “have their back.”… Read More

Last week, investors apparently “bought the dip” to support at 2,121 in the S&P 500, which I discussed in the previous Market Outlook. However, the rally was led by the small-cap Russell 2000, which gained 2.4% and is now up 10.5% for the year compared to just 5.9% for the benchmark S&P 500.  In this new era of concerted monetary stimulus by central banks around the world, investors have been trained like Pavlov’s dog to fearlessly buy every minor stock market decline because they are confident that central banks — including our Federal Reserve — “have their back.” #-ad_banner-# This complacency in the marketplace has certainly kept stocks from going down over the past few months, but the lesser-known fact is that it has also capped the market’s upside. The S&P 500 finished last week at 2,165, almost exactly where it was two months ago.   Investor Complacency Cuts Both Ways This week’s first chart is one that I have brought out on several occasions this year to remind readers that too much complacency can be a bad thing.  The Volatility S&P 500 (VIX) index finished last week at 12.29, a… Read More

Its value has fallen 98% in the last 113 years. Yet, despite that incredible decline it remains one of the most valuable and sought after assets in the world. I’m talking about the U.S. dollar. #-ad_banner-#Since 1913, the value of the U.S. dollar has fallen more than 98%.  This is the reason gold is delivering its best return in five years and showing signs of a long-term reversal in 2016. After hitting a new all-time high above $1,900 in 2011, gold fell into a nasty bear market. From 2012 to the end of 2015, the price of gold fell almost… Read More

Its value has fallen 98% in the last 113 years. Yet, despite that incredible decline it remains one of the most valuable and sought after assets in the world. I’m talking about the U.S. dollar. #-ad_banner-#Since 1913, the value of the U.S. dollar has fallen more than 98%.  This is the reason gold is delivering its best return in five years and showing signs of a long-term reversal in 2016. After hitting a new all-time high above $1,900 in 2011, gold fell into a nasty bear market. From 2012 to the end of 2015, the price of gold fell almost 50%. In 2016, gold is on the rebound. The price of gold is up 26%, more than a 300% premium to the S&P 500’s 6% return. That puts gold on pace for its best return in more than five years. Gold’s sudden reversal is being driven by the same trend that’s driving the U.S. dollar. After surging in 2014 and 2015, the U.S. dollar is back to its losing ways in 2016, falling 4% on the year. Take a look below at the U.S. dollar’s big surge in 2014 and 2015 and decline in 2016. The… Read More

One of the major questions on investors’ minds — besides when the Federal Reserve will stop kicking the can down the road and who the next occupant of the White House will be — is whether oil has reached a bottom.  While we can’t be sure yet, it’s possible oil bottomed earlier this year and is now in a trading range with a lower boundary near $40 a barrel. But whether oil has bottomed is really more of an important question for futures traders who buy and sell the commodity. For stock market investors, a better question to ask is… Read More

One of the major questions on investors’ minds — besides when the Federal Reserve will stop kicking the can down the road and who the next occupant of the White House will be — is whether oil has reached a bottom.  While we can’t be sure yet, it’s possible oil bottomed earlier this year and is now in a trading range with a lower boundary near $40 a barrel. But whether oil has bottomed is really more of an important question for futures traders who buy and sell the commodity. For stock market investors, a better question to ask is whether an energy stock’s current price reflects oil’s decline or whether a company has adapted to lower oil prices. —Sponsored Link— This Stock Keeps Making Shareholders Triple-Digit Profits Every time this stock heats up — triple-digit gains soon follow. The first time AGHI started running, investors could have grabbed 243% returns. The second time? It shot up 390%. This time is could hit 1,775%. See why here. One name that gets a resounding “yes” to both of these questions is Tesoro (NYSE: TSO). The stock fell more than 40% from its… Read More

Shares of Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) jumped more than 12% last week after telecom carriers reported stronger than expected preorders for the iPhone 7. Apple has said that it will break with tradition by not reporting first weekend sales of the iPhone, so carrier comments have been crucial in gauging demand for the new phones. One telecom carrier reported preorders up 375%, compared to those of last year’s 6s series. Another carrier set a single day sales record across its network. Inventory of the larger Plus model iPhone 7 in all colors was sold out through pre-orders before Friday’s release.  #-ad_banner-#By… Read More

Shares of Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) jumped more than 12% last week after telecom carriers reported stronger than expected preorders for the iPhone 7. Apple has said that it will break with tradition by not reporting first weekend sales of the iPhone, so carrier comments have been crucial in gauging demand for the new phones. One telecom carrier reported preorders up 375%, compared to those of last year’s 6s series. Another carrier set a single day sales record across its network. Inventory of the larger Plus model iPhone 7 in all colors was sold out through pre-orders before Friday’s release.  #-ad_banner-#By most accounts, the release of the new phones should be a boon to wireless providers trying to get people back in their stores to renew contracts. But one carrier was noticeably more doubtful on its own preorder news, according to comments from an executive at a recent investor conference.  Weak iPhone sales may not be the company’s only problem, as costs to maintain its network escalate and its large fixed-line network continues to weigh on results.   The weakness in preorders may just be a turning point that takes this telecom leader lower, even if the market hasn’t… Read More

The $28 billion merger between Spectra Energy (NYSE: SE) and Enbridge (NYSE: ENB) may mark a turning point for master limited partnerships (MLPs). Over the past two years, asset prices in the sector have crumbled as oil prices plunged, but stabilization in energy prices and recent consolidation are breathing new life into the group. Most partnerships are at least marginally protected from falling energy prices through sales agreements based on the volume of products transported or stored. However, that doesn’t mean they’re entirely immune.  MLPs pay out almost all of their cash flow as distributions and must continuously issue partnership… Read More

The $28 billion merger between Spectra Energy (NYSE: SE) and Enbridge (NYSE: ENB) may mark a turning point for master limited partnerships (MLPs). Over the past two years, asset prices in the sector have crumbled as oil prices plunged, but stabilization in energy prices and recent consolidation are breathing new life into the group. Most partnerships are at least marginally protected from falling energy prices through sales agreements based on the volume of products transported or stored. However, that doesn’t mean they’re entirely immune.  MLPs pay out almost all of their cash flow as distributions and must continuously issue partnership units (stock) or debt to grow. Weakness in energy prices led to lower cash flows and increasing debt loads, scaring lenders for debt issues while investor sentiment fell faster than share prices. #-ad_banner-# Now energy prices are stabilizing and companies are positioning for the future. I’ve found a way to play this trend that can reduce the risk associated with individual names while providing a cash yield twice as large as other dividend plays. Buyers Coming Out As Energy Turns A Corner The deal between Spectra and Enbridge is the fourth… Read More