We all make mistakes, especially in the investment racket. But one great thing about this business, thanks to a fluid marketplace we often get second, sometimes third, even fourth chances. So, many times, it all works out. #-ad_banner-#Three years ago I sold all of my positions in AbbVie, Inc. (NYSE: ABBV) shortly after the company was spun off from Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT). I had held Abbott Labs for many years. It was one of the most revered, steady, dividend growers out there. The stock performed consistently in my clients’ portfolios.  But the company decided to, basically, split in two. Read More

We all make mistakes, especially in the investment racket. But one great thing about this business, thanks to a fluid marketplace we often get second, sometimes third, even fourth chances. So, many times, it all works out. #-ad_banner-#Three years ago I sold all of my positions in AbbVie, Inc. (NYSE: ABBV) shortly after the company was spun off from Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT). I had held Abbott Labs for many years. It was one of the most revered, steady, dividend growers out there. The stock performed consistently in my clients’ portfolios.  But the company decided to, basically, split in two. Abbott focuses on nutritionals, diagnostics, generic drugs, and medical devices while AbbVie is the research driven pharmaceuticals business. I was used to having all of those things in one bundle and, honestly, I didn’t understand the reasoning for the split or the complexion of the two new companies. I decided it was best to wait till the smoke cleared. So I sold my positions. Don’t get me wrong, I still made money. But I ended up leaving a lot of money on the table. Three years is long enough for the smoke to clear and I… Read More

If you’re anything like the average StreetAuthority reader, you worked hard, put food on the table, own a home, put kids through college — and still managed to put something away for your golden years. And now most of you are probably hoping that between your savings, investments and either a pension or Social Security, you’ll have what you need. #-ad_banner-#But you’re just not sure. It doesn’t take a PhD in economics to understand why you should be concerned, either. Central banks around the world are devaluing their currencies and pushing… Read More

If you’re anything like the average StreetAuthority reader, you worked hard, put food on the table, own a home, put kids through college — and still managed to put something away for your golden years. And now most of you are probably hoping that between your savings, investments and either a pension or Social Security, you’ll have what you need. #-ad_banner-#But you’re just not sure. It doesn’t take a PhD in economics to understand why you should be concerned, either. Central banks around the world are devaluing their currencies and pushing interest rates through the floor. As I write this, the 10-year German “bund” (or bond) yields just 0.13%. Shorter durations (ranging from one year to nine) actually have negative yields. And that’s from one of the stronger members of the Eurozone. On the other hand, a 10-year Swiss bond will get you just -0.37%. And Japan, meanwhile, offers a 10-year at about -0.1%. The list goes on and on…   Global Bond Yields At A Glance Bond Name and Duration Yield U.S. 1-Year Treasury 0.51% U.S. 10-Year Treasury 1.75% German 1-Year -0.51% German 10-Year 0.13% Japan… Read More

Anyone following the market via their broker’s recommendations would understandably not think very highly of energy stocks. Fortunately, we have charts to follow what the market, not the analysts, has to say. And right now, the charts of numerous oil refiners look to be on the verge of upside breakouts. Despite a pair of major analyst downgrades this month, my favorite refiner right now is Valero Energy (NYSE: VLO). Admittedly, it took more than a quick glance to conclude this stock was worthy of our trading capital. After all, it is still trading below its key 200-day moving average, which… Read More

Anyone following the market via their broker’s recommendations would understandably not think very highly of energy stocks. Fortunately, we have charts to follow what the market, not the analysts, has to say. And right now, the charts of numerous oil refiners look to be on the verge of upside breakouts. Despite a pair of major analyst downgrades this month, my favorite refiner right now is Valero Energy (NYSE: VLO). Admittedly, it took more than a quick glance to conclude this stock was worthy of our trading capital. After all, it is still trading below its key 200-day moving average, which is a metric that many institutions and trend followers use to distinguish between bullish and bearish trends. #-ad_banner-# But that is just one indicator, and it usually lags the market. The shorter-term 50-day moving average, which lags less, has already turned higher and is closing the gap between itself and the 200-day.  Still, that is not enough to get bullish, even though bull markets do have to start from a low place. What I like even more is how volume has played out… Read More

Recently I’ve noticed a disconnect in hotel stocks. Although the sector’s leading companies are performing admirably, their stocks fell sharply in 2015 and haven’t yet recovered in 2016. That’s creating a buying opportunity for on-the-ball investors today. The market has discounted hotel stocks for two main reasons. First, concern about economic growth in China and Europe has made many observers fearful that business travel will decline precipitously in the coming quarters, cutting into hotel companies’ profit margins. Second, the “sharing economy” — whose most famous exemplar, Uber, is transforming the taxi industry — has extended a prominent tendril into the… Read More

Recently I’ve noticed a disconnect in hotel stocks. Although the sector’s leading companies are performing admirably, their stocks fell sharply in 2015 and haven’t yet recovered in 2016. That’s creating a buying opportunity for on-the-ball investors today. The market has discounted hotel stocks for two main reasons. First, concern about economic growth in China and Europe has made many observers fearful that business travel will decline precipitously in the coming quarters, cutting into hotel companies’ profit margins. Second, the “sharing economy” — whose most famous exemplar, Uber, is transforming the taxi industry — has extended a prominent tendril into the lodging sector. Airbnb and other online home-rental services allow travelers to bypass hotels for homier, and often less expensive, lodgings. Some investors worry that Airbnb will disrupt the hotel business as much as Uber has rewritten the rules for taxis. #-ad_banner-#Both problems seem overblown. It’s true that China and Europe may not be growing as rapidly as the United States — which itself is hardly breaking economic growth records — but there’s no sign that hotel demand is slackening; instead, the long-term trend is still for growing business and leisure travel as emerging economies continue to grow the global middle… Read More

We’ve all heard the trading adage, “Sell in May and go away.” This annual warning tells investors to pull all of their money out of stocks on May 1 and keep it out until Nov. 1. “Sell in May” isn’t a cliche or an old traders’ tale; it’s supported by data. According to the Stock Trader’s Almanac:       After decades of historical research, we discovered that most market gains occur during the months November through April. Investing in the Dow Jones Industrial Average between November 1st and April 30th each year and… Read More

We’ve all heard the trading adage, “Sell in May and go away.” This annual warning tells investors to pull all of their money out of stocks on May 1 and keep it out until Nov. 1. “Sell in May” isn’t a cliche or an old traders’ tale; it’s supported by data. According to the Stock Trader’s Almanac:       After decades of historical research, we discovered that most market gains occur during the months November through April. Investing in the Dow Jones Industrial Average between November 1st and April 30th each year and then switching into fixed income for the other six months has produced reliable returns with reduced risk since 1950. That being said, I know many traders, myself included, aren’t content to sit on the sidelines for half the year. So, to make money in these trickier summer months, they need an edge. #-ad_banner-#I have uncovered just such an edge that can help you land big winners year round, and I plan to share it with you. But first, I promised to alert you to four big-name stocks you most definitely should sell… Read More

Few companies have suffered a faster rise and fall lately than Theranos, Inc. The company got tons of attention in recent years based on a seemingly innovative technology: a hand-held blood-testing device that promised to replace dozens of traditional blood tests by analyzing a few drops of blood obtained via pinprick rather than using vials of blood drawn with a needle. Noninvasive blood tests are a holy grail of the medical lab industry, so it’s not surprising that the privately held company attracted investors — its valuation hit $9 billion in 2014 based on hundreds of millions raised from investors. Read More

Few companies have suffered a faster rise and fall lately than Theranos, Inc. The company got tons of attention in recent years based on a seemingly innovative technology: a hand-held blood-testing device that promised to replace dozens of traditional blood tests by analyzing a few drops of blood obtained via pinprick rather than using vials of blood drawn with a needle. Noninvasive blood tests are a holy grail of the medical lab industry, so it’s not surprising that the privately held company attracted investors — its valuation hit $9 billion in 2014 based on hundreds of millions raised from investors. A partnership with Walgreens (Nasdaq: WBA) that same year seemed likely to make Theranos a household name. But starting last fall, Theranos’ credibility was damaged by a series of negative reports about the effectiveness and accuracy of its device. Federal officials at more than one agency reportedly are probing the company, including a potential criminal investigation, and Walgreens has threatened to drop its relationship. Some analysts predict the company won’t survive.  #-ad_banner-#If this episode casts a pall over other medical lab testing companies, it will only obscure the investment potential of that rare gem: a surefire growth industry. Medical lab… Read More

It was never supposed to be this daunting. At least that’s what we were told. But according to a recent study by the National Institute on Retirement Security, 85% of Americans are either “concerned” or “very concerned” about their ability to achieve a secure retirement. My guess is you might be one of them. #-ad_banner-#In fact, we did a little internal polling among StreetAuthority readers recently. Despite the fact that nearly half of respondents who were aged 55 and older reported having investment portfolios worth $500,000 or more, only 54% of… Read More

It was never supposed to be this daunting. At least that’s what we were told. But according to a recent study by the National Institute on Retirement Security, 85% of Americans are either “concerned” or “very concerned” about their ability to achieve a secure retirement. My guess is you might be one of them. #-ad_banner-#In fact, we did a little internal polling among StreetAuthority readers recently. Despite the fact that nearly half of respondents who were aged 55 and older reported having investment portfolios worth $500,000 or more, only 54% of those surveyed answered “yes” when asked “Are you confident you will have enough money for retirement?” Now you can read into that 54% response however you would like, but I think it’s pretty good. Just not good enough. And here’s the thing: I’m willing to bet that number is actually high when compared with the general population. If you find yourself in the camp of those with portfolios of $500,000 or more, then congratulations are in order. But I wouldn’t blame you if you still felt like you were on shaky ground. After all,… Read More

All major U.S. stock indices posted gains last week except for the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100, which fell 1.5%. The losses in this typically market-leading index were driven in large part by the 3.8% drop in Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL). Although the trend in the market is clearly positive, the recent weakness in technology may become problematic if it persists for more than a week or two. From a sector standpoint, last week’s overall market strength was driven by energy, which gained 5.5%. The weakest sectors were utilities (down 3.2%) and — you guessed it — technology (down 2%). Read More

All major U.S. stock indices posted gains last week except for the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100, which fell 1.5%. The losses in this typically market-leading index were driven in large part by the 3.8% drop in Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL). Although the trend in the market is clearly positive, the recent weakness in technology may become problematic if it persists for more than a week or two. From a sector standpoint, last week’s overall market strength was driven by energy, which gained 5.5%. The weakest sectors were utilities (down 3.2%) and — you guessed it — technology (down 2%). #-ad_banner-# Asbury Research’s ETF asset flows-based metric shows the biggest positive percent change in sector bet-related investor assets over the past one-week and three-month periods occurred in energy, which is precisely what fueled the recent gains. This strength has resulted in an emerging bullish trend in the oil services sector, which I will discuss in more detail later in the report.   Bearish Chart Pattern In Key Tech Index I have been pointing out a growing list of metrics that collectively warn of a… Read More