When I’m introduced to new people and they learn that I’m in the financial publishing business, it’s always interesting to see what their follow-up question or comment will be. Some ask me for a stock tip or want my take on the latest fad in the market. Others, assuming they’re interested, like to talk about Warren Buffett.  —Sponsored Link— Silicon Valley Exec: 3 Ways To Get Rich On Self-Driving Cars  Most investors don’t realize how quickly self-driving cars are advancing. In fact, by the end of 2017, fully self-driving cars could reach the mass market. Read More

When I’m introduced to new people and they learn that I’m in the financial publishing business, it’s always interesting to see what their follow-up question or comment will be. Some ask me for a stock tip or want my take on the latest fad in the market. Others, assuming they’re interested, like to talk about Warren Buffett.  —Sponsored Link— Silicon Valley Exec: 3 Ways To Get Rich On Self-Driving Cars  Most investors don’t realize how quickly self-driving cars are advancing. In fact, by the end of 2017, fully self-driving cars could reach the mass market. This is the hottest trend in technology right now. And if you act quickly, you could make a fortune. I’ve used my decades of experience as a Silicon Valley executive to identify three key self-driving stocks that could make you a fortune this year. I’m always glad when people want to talk about Buffett — especially novice investors. It’s a sign of wisdom to be sure.  It’s easy to like Buffett. You may not like his politics, you may think the annual shareholder meeting has turned into a circus, but I tend to think anybody who… Read More

Comments by President Trump rocked the municipal bond market last Wednesday after the President said that Puerto Rico’s $74 billion in bonds would have to be “wiped out.” The comments sent the island’s general obligation bonds plunging to a record low of $0.30 on the dollar, a 35% drop from trading at $0.46 a day earlier. That’s in a market where muni bonds are thought to be some of the safest investments available and rarely trade more than a few cents higher or lower in a session. The comments hit one industry particularly hard, an industry that has already had… Read More

Comments by President Trump rocked the municipal bond market last Wednesday after the President said that Puerto Rico’s $74 billion in bonds would have to be “wiped out.” The comments sent the island’s general obligation bonds plunging to a record low of $0.30 on the dollar, a 35% drop from trading at $0.46 a day earlier. That’s in a market where muni bonds are thought to be some of the safest investments available and rarely trade more than a few cents higher or lower in a session. The comments hit one industry particularly hard, an industry that has already had to face weakening investor sentiment for more than a year. But it could also mark a low for the industry, a buying opportunity in a normally very safe portion of the market. Shares of these financial companies are trading as low as half their book value and could be ready for a long-awaited rebound. #-ad_banner-#​Municipal Insurers Weather The Storm Companies insuring municipal bonds against default fell immediately after the President’s comments, with shares falling the most since Hurricane Irma threatened Puerto Rico in early September. The President told Sean Hannity that, “[Puerto Rico] owes a lot of money to… Read More

The S&P 500 is having a great year. The leading index is up 13% in the first three quarters of 2017. At this rate it’s is on pace to finish with an 18% total return in 2017.   By almost every measure this is great news for investors. However, in one way it creates a dilemma. U.S. stocks looks expensive right now compared to historical averages and international counterparts.   The S&P 500’s P/E ratio of 25 is at the higher end of its long-term range. Take a look below.   Source: www.multpl.com/   This P/E ratio is also a… Read More

The S&P 500 is having a great year. The leading index is up 13% in the first three quarters of 2017. At this rate it’s is on pace to finish with an 18% total return in 2017.   By almost every measure this is great news for investors. However, in one way it creates a dilemma. U.S. stocks looks expensive right now compared to historical averages and international counterparts.   The S&P 500’s P/E ratio of 25 is at the higher end of its long-term range. Take a look below.   Source: www.multpl.com/   This P/E ratio is also a sharp premium to its international counterparts. For example, the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets (NYSE: EEM), which broadly tracks emerging market equities, has a forward P/E ratio of 13. The Vanguard Total World Stock Index (NYSE: VT) has a forward P/E ratio of 17.5.   #-ad_banner-#This relatively high valuation is making a lot of investors nervous. Not only can it be intimidating for investors to buy stocks trading at an all-time high, but an overbought market makes it difficult to find value stocks.   According to historical data, this has important implications for potential returns. A recent study by Bank of… Read More

Is America over-malled?  That question has been posed by more than one financial pundit recently. And judging by a slew of headlines, the answer appears to have already been settled.  —Sponsored Link— Small Group Uncovers Millionaire’s Simple Stock-Picking Strategy With no Wall Street experience, a chemical engineer at DuPont accidentally uncovered a powerful pattern that often appears just before a stock’s share price doubles, triples, or even quadruples — seemingly out of nowhere. But not long ago, this unassuming engineer began sharing his discovery with a handful of “beta testers” to confirm his theory. This… Read More

Is America over-malled?  That question has been posed by more than one financial pundit recently. And judging by a slew of headlines, the answer appears to have already been settled.  —Sponsored Link— Small Group Uncovers Millionaire’s Simple Stock-Picking Strategy With no Wall Street experience, a chemical engineer at DuPont accidentally uncovered a powerful pattern that often appears just before a stock’s share price doubles, triples, or even quadruples — seemingly out of nowhere. But not long ago, this unassuming engineer began sharing his discovery with a handful of “beta testers” to confirm his theory. This year alone, his pattern has pinpointed 31 triple-digit windfalls. And now, he’s ready to unveil it to a whole new group of investors. Full story… “Malls are Doomed” — CNN  “America’s Malls are Dying Off” — Time  “The Death of the American Mall” — The Guardian  “Shopping Malls are Going Extinct” — Business Insider  There is plenty of evidence to support that argument. With anchor tenants like Sears, Macy’s and JC Penney shuttering stores across the country, the number of malls has decreased by a third. There are only about 1,000 left, down… Read More

Every investor feels the pain and pleasure of stock price moves. Even the smallest move up or down can lead otherwise rational people to trade based more on emotions than facts. While a few disciplined investors stick to objective rules, the vast majority impulsively react to market swings. The key to successful stock market investing is to be one of those disciplined investors.  Systematic investing is a time-proven method of extracting money from the stock market. Logical, established systems for making buy/sell decisions remove an investor’s emotions from the equation. Systems can range from simple calculations used by individuals to… Read More

Every investor feels the pain and pleasure of stock price moves. Even the smallest move up or down can lead otherwise rational people to trade based more on emotions than facts. While a few disciplined investors stick to objective rules, the vast majority impulsively react to market swings. The key to successful stock market investing is to be one of those disciplined investors.  Systematic investing is a time-proven method of extracting money from the stock market. Logical, established systems for making buy/sell decisions remove an investor’s emotions from the equation. Systems can range from simple calculations used by individuals to the ultra-complex, computer-driven algorithms employed by hedge funds, institutions, and professional traders. While financial advisors and other money managers have used algorithmic decision-making software for some time, it has only been since 2008 that regular individual investors have been able to access this software on their own. Known as robo-advisors, these automated investing platforms for the masses have become wildly popular over the last few years. Depending on your own susceptibility to impulsive trading, robo-advisors may make sense for a portion or even your entire portfolio.  Here are three things you need to know about robo-advisors. #-ad_banner-#​1. They Are Not… Read More

The further pending legalization of medical marijuana has stirred up an investor feeding frenzy. Like sharks smelling blood, investors have gone crazy over the upside potential of legal pot. And for good reason — early investors in the space are likely to earn handsome returns. Hundreds of companies have sprouted up to exploit the excitement surrounding the coming regulatory changes. However, most of these innovative new players are only suitable for risk-loving speculators. While substantial profits may be earned in the short term, many of these small-caps are one-trick ponies with questionable long-term prospects. Fortunately, there is a solution for… Read More

The further pending legalization of medical marijuana has stirred up an investor feeding frenzy. Like sharks smelling blood, investors have gone crazy over the upside potential of legal pot. And for good reason — early investors in the space are likely to earn handsome returns. Hundreds of companies have sprouted up to exploit the excitement surrounding the coming regulatory changes. However, most of these innovative new players are only suitable for risk-loving speculators. While substantial profits may be earned in the short term, many of these small-caps are one-trick ponies with questionable long-term prospects. Fortunately, there is a solution for cannabis investors who prefer relative security and a long-term outlook. Several large, established firms are actively adding legal medical marijuana-based products to their pharmaceutical lines. The Safest Stock In The Cannabis Space Believe it or not, the plant form of cannabis is not approved by the FDA for pharmaceutical use. This came as a surprise to me as I firmly thought that cannabis was approved as a pharmaceutical ingredient, given all the positive press hype. #-ad_banner-#The FDA has only approved the synthetic form of cannabis in three medications. These medications are Marinol, Syndros, and Cesamet. Marinol and Syndros are… Read More