Stock markets jumped after the unemployment rate rose on hopes that the Fed will continue pumping up the… Read More

Warren Buffett‘s incredible success in the stock market has been built on two principles. The first is his long-term buy-and-hold mentality. Buffett likes to invest in companies with strong fundamentals and staying power that operate in industries with high barriers to entrance. That enables Buffett to hold on to shares for the long haul without having to worry about new players disrupting the competitive… Read More

Warren Buffett‘s incredible success in the stock market has been built on two principles. The first is his long-term buy-and-hold mentality. Buffett likes to invest in companies with strong fundamentals and staying power that operate in industries with high barriers to entrance. That enables Buffett to hold on to shares for the long haul without having to worry about new players disrupting the competitive landscape.#-ad_banner-# Owning stocks for the long haul has produced some of Buffett’s biggest gains. Take The Washington Post Co. (NYSE: WPO), for example. Buffett first began buying shares in 1973, recognizing the company’s long-term potential in the highly insulated media business. Forty years later, Buffett still owns those shares and is now sitting on a 6,800% gain, with his $11 million investment ballooning to $820 million in spite of shares falling… Read More

I have a friend named Tom who was fortunate enough to obtain a great-paying job out of college. He worked for a few years, saved some money with the employer’s retirement plan and slowly started climbing the corporate ladder. Tom lived in a one-bedroom… Read More

As the editor of two natural resources newsletters, I stay closely attuned to various industry costs: the average cost to mine an ounce of gold, the cost to refine a barrel of oil into gasoline, the cost to produce and ship a ton of coal from Australia to China. It goes without saying that fluctuations in these costs have a direct impact on the bottom line (and thus the share prices) of the companies involved. And in most cases, expenses are trending higher. Labor costs climb with each passing… Read More

As the editor of two natural resources newsletters, I stay closely attuned to various industry costs: the average cost to mine an ounce of gold, the cost to refine a barrel of oil into gasoline, the cost to produce and ship a ton of coal from Australia to China. It goes without saying that fluctuations in these costs have a direct impact on the bottom line (and thus the share prices) of the companies involved. And in most cases, expenses are trending higher. Labor costs climb with each passing year as workers receive salary bumps. Businesses that lease property and equipment usually see annual rent increases. And, of course, the raw materials needed to make finished products have grown more expensive. Many of these businesses aren’t in a position to raise prices, so they simply have to absorb the higher operating expenses and watch their profit margins get squeezed. Trust me, the market hates margin contraction. But there’s one small group of… Read More

I sheepishly raised my hand to ask the real estate guru a simple question during a “no money down”-type investment seminar in Florida back in the 1990s. “What happens when real estate prices stop appreciating and banks refuse to lend to support your investments?” The guru literally jumped backward, visibly disturbed someone would even think in such a way. “Impossible!” he exclaimed. “That… Read More

I sheepishly raised my hand to ask the real estate guru a simple question during a “no money down”-type investment seminar in Florida back in the 1990s. “What happens when real estate prices stop appreciating and banks refuse to lend to support your investments?” The guru literally jumped backward, visibly disturbed someone would even think in such a way. “Impossible!” he exclaimed. “That will never happen!” Well, the guru couldn’t have been more wrong. The overheated real estate market collapsed in 2008, bringing down the house-of-cards mortgage market along with it. The largest casualty was the quasi-governmental mortgage giant Fannie Mae (OTC: FNMA).#-ad_banner-# The U.S. government had to take the once-thriving entity into conservatorship for its very survival. This allowed Fannie Mae to use Treasury funds to support… Read More

For many investors, 2013 has been a good year. On May 7, the Dow Jones industrial average broke 15,000 for the first time ever. Since Jan. 1, the S&P 500 is up more than 15%. Microsoft, a company whose share price has been relatively flat for years, is up more than 30%. But there is one market sector that never got invited to the party. In fact, many of the companies that make up this unique market niche have seen their share prices plummet over the past three… Read More

For many investors, 2013 has been a good year. On May 7, the Dow Jones industrial average broke 15,000 for the first time ever. Since Jan. 1, the S&P 500 is up more than 15%. Microsoft, a company whose share price has been relatively flat for years, is up more than 30%. But there is one market sector that never got invited to the party. In fact, many of the companies that make up this unique market niche have seen their share prices plummet over the past three months, falling by as much as 20%. Share prices have fallen so far that many of these high-yielders are now trading below book value. In other words, investors are now able to snap up shares of companies yielding up to 19% for less than the company would be worth if it were to liquidate its assets and pay back its liabilities.  If you haven’t guessed, I’m talking about mortgage REITs (… Read More

The land of the rising sun’s economic fortunes are turning around. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s aggressive monetary policies, known as “Abenomics,” are starting to work their magic on the economy, creating an opportunity for forward-thinking stock investors.#-ad_banner-# First-quarter results indicate Japan’s gross domestic product grew 3.5%, sparking hopes that a recovery is underway. Exports grew 3.8%, driven by strong auto sales and the weaker yen, which has fallen 20% against the U.S. dollar since… Read More

The land of the rising sun’s economic fortunes are turning around. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s aggressive monetary policies, known as “Abenomics,” are starting to work their magic on the economy, creating an opportunity for forward-thinking stock investors.#-ad_banner-# First-quarter results indicate Japan’s gross domestic product grew 3.5%, sparking hopes that a recovery is underway. Exports grew 3.8%, driven by strong auto sales and the weaker yen, which has fallen 20% against the U.S. dollar since November. Abe’s policy of weakening the yen, major fiscal spending and generating 2% inflation by 2014 has sent the Japanese stock markets soaring higher. The Nikkei has jumped 46% since Abe took office. Leading Japanese economists are projecting strong growth for the next three years thanks to Abe’s policies. I think these changes are strong signals for investors to look for opportunity within Japan. My eyes are on this pair of leading Japanese companies. Canon (NYSE: CAJ) Boasting a… Read More

I want to show you a surprising statistic. It’s nothing tricky or complicated. In fact, it’s really simple and straightforward. My long-time readers know that I’m always on the lookout for “secrets of the pros.” I love to look at the wealth rich people have accumulated, and figure out how they did it. So a few months ago, I dug into Forbes’ list of the 400 wealthiest people on Earth. I wanted to see if anything jumped out… if there were any patterns.#-ad_banner-# Sure enough,… Read More

I want to show you a surprising statistic. It’s nothing tricky or complicated. In fact, it’s really simple and straightforward. My long-time readers know that I’m always on the lookout for “secrets of the pros.” I love to look at the wealth rich people have accumulated, and figure out how they did it. So a few months ago, I dug into Forbes’ list of the 400 wealthiest people on Earth. I wanted to see if anything jumped out… if there were any patterns.#-ad_banner-# Sure enough, there were. I found something that I think applies to every single one of us. It’s something that could help any investor — no matter their age or income level — earn a significant amount of money in the stock market. What I found was this: Approximately one-third of the people on Forbes’ top 400 list all made their money thanks to the same simple secret. Read More

Four years ago, anxious policymakers in Washington threw automakers a badly-needed life line. The “cash for clunkers” program, which bribed people into buying new cars, helped stave off a death spiral that had beset the auto industry.#-ad_banner-# Yet just four years later, few people even think about “cash for clunkers” anymore. Sales trends for the major automakers (and their parts suppliers) are now booming, and it’s easy to see how trends will get even stronger from here. Within a… Read More

Four years ago, anxious policymakers in Washington threw automakers a badly-needed life line. The “cash for clunkers” program, which bribed people into buying new cars, helped stave off a death spiral that had beset the auto industry.#-ad_banner-# Yet just four years later, few people even think about “cash for clunkers” anymore. Sales trends for the major automakers (and their parts suppliers) are now booming, and it’s easy to see how trends will get even stronger from here. Within a few years, sales trends are likely to meet or exceed the previous annual peaks, and share prices in this sector now have upward of 50% upside. The Long Climb Back In the middle of the past decade, the auto industry sold roughly 16 million to 17 million cars and trucks annually in North America. That figure slumped to just 10.4 million in 2009 but had rebounded to 14.4 million in 2012. This year, that figure is expected to be about 15.4 million. Read More

I want to show you a surprising statistic. It’s nothing tricky or complicated. In fact, it’s really simple and straightforward. My long-time readers know that I’m always on the lookout for “secrets of the pros.” I love to look at the wealth rich people have accumulated, and figure out how they did it. So a few months ago, I dug into Forbes’ list of the 400 wealthiest people on Earth. I wanted to see if anything jumped out… if there were any patterns.#-ad_banner-# Sure enough,… Read More

I want to show you a surprising statistic. It’s nothing tricky or complicated. In fact, it’s really simple and straightforward. My long-time readers know that I’m always on the lookout for “secrets of the pros.” I love to look at the wealth rich people have accumulated, and figure out how they did it. So a few months ago, I dug into Forbes’ list of the 400 wealthiest people on Earth. I wanted to see if anything jumped out… if there were any patterns.#-ad_banner-# Sure enough, there were. I found something that I think applies to every single one of us. It’s something that could help any investor — no matter their age or income level — earn a significant amount of money in the stock market. What I found was this: Approximately one-third of the people on Forbes’ top 400 list all made their money thanks to the same simple secret. Read More