It’s a small sampling, but backyard barbecues can give you a pretty good idea of the sentiment surrounding the stock market and economy. At these sorts of functions, I’m frequently asked what stock people should buy, or what I think of the latest hot IPO, or cryptocurrencies. However, the attitudes (and questions) these days have been centered around the economy and more specifically if we are entering a recession, or when the next recession will hit. I, of course, have no idea when the next recession will start. But the sense is that folks are nervously waiting for the balloon… Read More

It’s a small sampling, but backyard barbecues can give you a pretty good idea of the sentiment surrounding the stock market and economy. At these sorts of functions, I’m frequently asked what stock people should buy, or what I think of the latest hot IPO, or cryptocurrencies. However, the attitudes (and questions) these days have been centered around the economy and more specifically if we are entering a recession, or when the next recession will hit. I, of course, have no idea when the next recession will start. But the sense is that folks are nervously waiting for the balloon to pop and the hot air to quickly evaporate from this decade-long bull market. Despite the recent volatility, the S&P 500 still near all-time highs, the economy is chugging along at a good clip (3.1% GDP growth in the first quarter) and unemployment is at historic lows. We did see homes sales decline 1.7% in June, marking the 16th straight year-on-year decline in homes sales, which only further exacerbates people’s uneasiness about the economy. We also had one of the most notorious (and reliable) indicators alert us that we could see a recession in the next year… Why The Yield… Read More

We just passed a major milestone. No, I’m not talking about the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing (although that is certainly worthy of recognition). But while we’re on the subject, it would be remiss of me to not cite a couple of examples of what the market has done for investors since that historic date in July 1969. #-ad_banner-#If you bought a few shares of Walt Disney Co (NYSE: DIS) back then, they would have since multiplied in value 400 times over. Better still, a stake in McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD) would have delivered an astronomical return of… Read More

We just passed a major milestone. No, I’m not talking about the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing (although that is certainly worthy of recognition). But while we’re on the subject, it would be remiss of me to not cite a couple of examples of what the market has done for investors since that historic date in July 1969. #-ad_banner-#If you bought a few shares of Walt Disney Co (NYSE: DIS) back then, they would have since multiplied in value 400 times over. Better still, a stake in McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD) would have delivered an astronomical return of 82,000%, including dividends. That’s what happens when you become a part-owner in iconic American businesses, reinvest your dividends dutifully, and harness the long-term power of compound interest – which brings us to the real milestone I was talking about. $150,000. That’s the cumulative distributions of dividends and interest we’ve collected in our Daily Paycheck portfolio since it was created in January 2010. The latest running tally through last month is 3,389 “paychecks” worth a total of $155,219. And while August looks to be somewhat of a slow month for dividends, we’re still scheduled to receive $1,313. That money… Read More

Spooked by the threat of trade war acceleration and despite the quarter-point interest rate cut Wednesday, the market sold off practically all off all week. Then, on Monday morning, we learned that the Chinese government had allowed its currency, the yuan, to slide to its lowest levels in more than a decade. The market sold off sharply as a result. Despite this slide though, large-cap indices still trade close to their all-time highs. The market is losing momentum, but the buyers can return as fast as they retreated if the market senses that the worst of the trade war is… Read More

Spooked by the threat of trade war acceleration and despite the quarter-point interest rate cut Wednesday, the market sold off practically all off all week. Then, on Monday morning, we learned that the Chinese government had allowed its currency, the yuan, to slide to its lowest levels in more than a decade. The market sold off sharply as a result. Despite this slide though, large-cap indices still trade close to their all-time highs. The market is losing momentum, but the buyers can return as fast as they retreated if the market senses that the worst of the trade war is over or if the Fed indicates more dovishness. In the meantime, investors have clearly become more cautious, booking profits on their best stocks of the year and taking losses on some of the laggards. —Recommended Link— The Real Reason Most Americans Can’t Retire by 65 If you’re following traditional retirement advice that made sense 50 years ago… You may be missing out on the most effective retirement strategy today. Here’s all you need to know to retire as early as this year. Let’s Go Hunting For Momentum In a normal… Read More

I’d like to start off today’s issue by asking you a simple question… If you discovered the key to making a fortune trading stocks, would you share it with the world? —Recommended Link— SECRET: Add $8,760 Extra to Any Retirement Account Finally revealed! This “long lost” secret turns a quick 3-minute phone call into the opportunity to collect $8,760 checks. Every payment is backed by the full authority of the U.S. Government… and over $1.75 billion will be delivered to income-seeking Americans. But your action is required TODAY while the enrollment window is open. Read More

I’d like to start off today’s issue by asking you a simple question… If you discovered the key to making a fortune trading stocks, would you share it with the world? —Recommended Link— SECRET: Add $8,760 Extra to Any Retirement Account Finally revealed! This “long lost” secret turns a quick 3-minute phone call into the opportunity to collect $8,760 checks. Every payment is backed by the full authority of the U.S. Government… and over $1.75 billion will be delivered to income-seeking Americans. But your action is required TODAY while the enrollment window is open. You must click here right now to get started. If history is any guide, you’d be a fool if you did. That’s because studies have shown the more well-known a market-beating strategy becomes, the less it becomes a market-beating strategy. Makes sense, doesn’t it? Why So-Called Market “Edges” Soon Disappear Back in 1981, an academic named Rolf Banz published a paper on something called the “small-firm effect.” It showed that buying small-cap stocks generated “abnormal returns,” even when adjusted for risk. At around the same time, researchers uncovered the “value effect,” which showed that buying stocks… Read More

Whenever a sinking share price pushes a dividend yield above 10%, the market is usually expressing some skepticism regarding dividend sustainability. That’s even more true at 15% and higher… With an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and a current share price below $4, WPG carries an extreme yield above 25%. Clearly, investors have some serious doubts. The market was expecting a dividend cut when the company released its second-quarter results a few ago. They didn’t get one. Washington Prime reaffirmed its policy of distributing $0.25 per share each quarter. And it earned $0.27 in funds from operation (FFO), enough… Read More

Whenever a sinking share price pushes a dividend yield above 10%, the market is usually expressing some skepticism regarding dividend sustainability. That’s even more true at 15% and higher… With an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and a current share price below $4, WPG carries an extreme yield above 25%. Clearly, investors have some serious doubts. The market was expecting a dividend cut when the company released its second-quarter results a few ago. They didn’t get one. Washington Prime reaffirmed its policy of distributing $0.25 per share each quarter. And it earned $0.27 in funds from operation (FFO), enough to cover the distribution with room to spare. Management forecast full-year FFO of $1.20 per share – providing a minimum coverage ratio of 120% on the $1.00 per share annual distribution. Unless that has changed over the past few days, the company is generating enough cash to continue paying its current dividend. But should it? That’s a better question to ask. I say no. Dividends are eating up most of the firm’s cash flow, leaving little for required maintenance expenditures. They run about $65 million annually, or $0.30 per share. But the bigger drain on capital is redevelopment costs needed… Read More