It started out as an experiment. It wound up being one of the greatest investment discoveries we’ve ever found. A little more than five years ago, StreetAuthority co-founder Paul Tracy approached me with an idea. He wanted me to build a portfolio of dividend stocks that would pay out more than 30 dividend checks a month — one for every day of the year. In order to show he was serious, he gave me $200,000 and a dedicated brokerage account to get started. I must admit, I was a little skeptical at first. The idea seemed too good to be… Read More

It started out as an experiment. It wound up being one of the greatest investment discoveries we’ve ever found. A little more than five years ago, StreetAuthority co-founder Paul Tracy approached me with an idea. He wanted me to build a portfolio of dividend stocks that would pay out more than 30 dividend checks a month — one for every day of the year. In order to show he was serious, he gave me $200,000 and a dedicated brokerage account to get started. I must admit, I was a little skeptical at first. The idea seemed too good to be true. But in just over five years, 1,889 dividends and $79,578 worth of dividend income later, the results have been far better than anyone could have imagined. Since I started my portfolio back in December 2009, my initial $200,000 investment has grown to more than $310,000, giving me a total return of more than 55% in a little more than five years. As of this month, the total dividends I’ve received amount to $79,578. In its first full year of operation, my portfolio generated an average of $809 in dividends a month. But my portfolio’s ability… Read More

The new year hasn’t been kind to investors. In the first two weeks of January, the S&P 500 Index dropped 2.3% and every trading day has been filled with drama. #-ad_banner-#What started as a precipitous drop in oil prices — primarily driven by increased supply, the increased relative value of the U.S. dollar and speculators’ margin calls — has morphed into uncertainty about the strength of the global economy. And the one thing that the market hates is uncertainty. It’s not easy to make decisions and take action in a pessimistic and uncertain market. Read More

The new year hasn’t been kind to investors. In the first two weeks of January, the S&P 500 Index dropped 2.3% and every trading day has been filled with drama. #-ad_banner-#What started as a precipitous drop in oil prices — primarily driven by increased supply, the increased relative value of the U.S. dollar and speculators’ margin calls — has morphed into uncertainty about the strength of the global economy. And the one thing that the market hates is uncertainty. It’s not easy to make decisions and take action in a pessimistic and uncertain market. But it’s often the tough decisions that allow us to sleep better at night. Here are some of the things I focus on in times like this: Evaluate Your Cash Balance As investors, we have been made to feel guilty about holding cash. It’s as if we’re shirking our responsibilities. We feel like we should always have our entire portfolio working for us. But cash does work for us. Cash holds up pretty darn well in a downturn. Cash helps us sleep better at night, no matter what the market throws at us. Cash allows… Read More

For those that don’t know, in addition to being the Chief Strategist behind StreetAuthority’s Stock of the Month newsletter, I’m also an avid poker player. #-ad_banner-#I first picked up poker about a decade ago, well before it was all over television. But I wasn’t after the big jackpot like most of the people who’ve taken up the game. I simply thought poker could make me a better investor. Poker has a lot in common with investing — and no, I’m not talking about luck. In poker, you get only one move at a time. Read More

For those that don’t know, in addition to being the Chief Strategist behind StreetAuthority’s Stock of the Month newsletter, I’m also an avid poker player. #-ad_banner-#I first picked up poker about a decade ago, well before it was all over television. But I wasn’t after the big jackpot like most of the people who’ve taken up the game. I simply thought poker could make me a better investor. Poker has a lot in common with investing — and no, I’m not talking about luck. In poker, you get only one move at a time. You don’t get the luxury of making your moves in a vacuum or without consideration for the dynamics other players bring to the game. It also takes patience and foresight to win consistently. And sometimes, it’s not about winning, but simply knowing when to cut your losses. When put in those terms, it’s easy to see how playing poker can make you a better investor. It’s easy to spot an inexperienced player at a poker table. He’ll be the guy who plays nearly every hand. He’s probably grown up watching televised poker, where folded… Read More