I’m a strong believer in following the big money when it comes to stock investing. Most of the time, when I need an investment idea, I look for the stocks hedge funds are buying. The good thing is that the reversal… Read More

I want to show you one of the most interesting charts of the past few weeks. Two weeks ago, fears over the “fiscal cliff” sent stocks tumbling. In the six trading days following the election, the S&P 500 fell more than 5%. Stocks of… Read More

I’ll bet you’ve heard of this company many times… But I doubt you are aware of how important it is. I learned long ago to have this stock on my radar at all times. And after you hear what I have to say about it, I think you… Read More

Takeovers and takeover rumors can fuel large stock moves, often with the company being acquired going up and the company completing the acquisition falling. These price moves are logical. Takeover targets tend to be undervalued and the… Read More

“Black Friday” is considered the most important day of the year for many retailers. But if the current trend continues, then it’s only a matter of time before a new champion sits atop the throne.#-ad_banner-# In the past few years, consumers have increasingly turned to online shopping so they can avoid the madness of deal-thirsty shoppers lining up outside traditional brick-and-mortar operations. That was on full display recently, with e-retail sales jumping 29.3% on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday, while store sales were virtually unchanged, according to Internet intelligence firm comScore (Nasdaq: SCOR) and payment processor Chase Paymentech. And… Read More

“Black Friday” is considered the most important day of the year for many retailers. But if the current trend continues, then it’s only a matter of time before a new champion sits atop the throne.#-ad_banner-# In the past few years, consumers have increasingly turned to online shopping so they can avoid the madness of deal-thirsty shoppers lining up outside traditional brick-and-mortar operations. That was on full display recently, with e-retail sales jumping 29.3% on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday, while store sales were virtually unchanged, according to Internet intelligence firm comScore (Nasdaq: SCOR) and payment processor Chase Paymentech. And that’s not including Cyber Monday, the Monday after Thanksgiving, which many online retailers use to unleash great deals and drive sales growth. Total sales on Cyber Monday reached $1.98 billion, a 17% increase from last year, according to a report from Adobe Systems (Nasdaq: ADBE).  But bullish online sales on Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are just a glimpse of a larger trend changing the way consumers shop. About 66% of consumers prefer Web retailers while 73% of survey participants complete almost 50% of their shopping online, according to a recent survey conducted… Read More

If every era of investing can be characterized by a few select themes, then the current one can surely be noted by a stunning rise in corporate cash balances. Many companies have spent the past few years in cash-generating mode, yet they have seen few opportunities to invest that cash… Read More

Expiring patents are usually bad news for major pharmaceutical companies, especially if the patents are for popular “blockbuster” medications generating $1 billion or more of annual revenue. When those patents expire, the patent… Read More

Without realizing it, our everyday rants about housing, grocery prices and car loans are sprinkled with Federal Reserve influences. Even if you don’t actually utter the words “the Fed” in such conversations, you are touched in numerous ways by our nation’s… Read More

Gold has exploded higher during the past several years. The bullishness has been ignited by massive global fiscal stimulus programs, slowing production growth and aggressive purchasing of the yellow metal by several central banks. It’s no wonder gold prices are up nearly 100% during the past five years.  Take a… Read More

Blue chips aren’t known for cranking out big market-beating gains. But that’s exactly what has happened in the first nine months of 2012, with the group surging higher as investors fled volatility and slow economic growth in favor of… Read More