About the only point of agreement between the two Presidential candidates last year was the need for a massive infrastructure plan to repair America’s crumbling roads and bridges. Then-candidate Trump used a $1 trillion infrastructure plan as a cornerstone of his plan to “make America great again.” Investors responded by going all-in on infrastructure stocks, pushing the iShares Global Infrastructure ETF (Nasdaq: IGF) up 14.5% in the year through October 2016.  Against the push to replace the Affordable Care Act and reform the tax code, infrastructure spending seems to have been put on the backburner in 2017. President-elect Trump… Read More

About the only point of agreement between the two Presidential candidates last year was the need for a massive infrastructure plan to repair America’s crumbling roads and bridges. Then-candidate Trump used a $1 trillion infrastructure plan as a cornerstone of his plan to “make America great again.” Investors responded by going all-in on infrastructure stocks, pushing the iShares Global Infrastructure ETF (Nasdaq: IGF) up 14.5% in the year through October 2016.  Against the push to replace the Affordable Care Act and reform the tax code, infrastructure spending seems to have been put on the backburner in 2017. President-elect Trump told The New York Times in December that infrastructure would not be a “core” part of the first few years of his administration. A policy statement released in June was light on specifics and we haven’t heard much since. As it turns out, investors may not need an infrastructure plan to see a boom in infrastructure spending over the next year. In fact, recent events could mean years of rebuilding and increased revenue at infrastructure and related companies. #-ad_banner-#​A Year Of Unprecedented Natural Disasters On August 11, I warned investors about the potential for a blowout… Read More

Warren Buffett is by far the most successful long-term stock investor of all time. His value-centric approach has returned an astounding 1.9 million percent since taking control of Berkshire Hathaway in the mid-1960s.  Although Buffett’s portfolio has recently suffered a little, investors are still handsomely rewarded for following his advice and stock picks. Here are five of Buffett’s holdings that can set you up for an easier retirement.  1. Synchrony Financial (NYSE: SYF) This consumer finance company was spun out of GE Financial back in 2015. It currently comprises about 0.30% of Berkshire Hathaway’s stock portfolio. Buffett loves credit… Read More

Warren Buffett is by far the most successful long-term stock investor of all time. His value-centric approach has returned an astounding 1.9 million percent since taking control of Berkshire Hathaway in the mid-1960s.  Although Buffett’s portfolio has recently suffered a little, investors are still handsomely rewarded for following his advice and stock picks. Here are five of Buffett’s holdings that can set you up for an easier retirement.  1. Synchrony Financial (NYSE: SYF) This consumer finance company was spun out of GE Financial back in 2015. It currently comprises about 0.30% of Berkshire Hathaway’s stock portfolio. Buffett loves credit card and consumer finance companies — he also owns stakes in American Express (NYSE: AXP) and Mastercard (NYSE: MA). However, I firmly believe the best investment results, going forward, will be gleaned from Synchrony Financial. Here’s why: Synchrony is the largest issuer of private label credit cards in the United States. This means that retailers like Walmart, Amazon, and Lowes, among many others, utilize Synchrony to manage their credit services. I love the fact that company profits are retailer-agnostic, meaning that regardless of who is winning the retail battle, Synchrony will continue to benefit from transactions. #-ad_banner-#Companies like Synchrony profit… Read More

With family, friends and financial interests in both Texas and Florida, it’s been a tough couple of weeks watching both states get pummeled with back-to-back natural disasters. While Irma was tearing through Florida, my parents and grandparents were hunkered down in a house just north of West Palm Beach… and like so many Americans, I was unsure of the outcome and prepared to do just about anything. The unpredictability of these storms and the average American’s hesitance to prepare can lead to chaotic situations just ahead of landfall. Many of us witnessed (or experienced firsthand) the frenzied runs on gas… Read More

With family, friends and financial interests in both Texas and Florida, it’s been a tough couple of weeks watching both states get pummeled with back-to-back natural disasters. While Irma was tearing through Florida, my parents and grandparents were hunkered down in a house just north of West Palm Beach… and like so many Americans, I was unsure of the outcome and prepared to do just about anything. The unpredictability of these storms and the average American’s hesitance to prepare can lead to chaotic situations just ahead of landfall. Many of us witnessed (or experienced firsthand) the frenzied runs on gas and gas cans, generators, food and other home goods ahead of the storm.  —Sponsored Link— New App Could Create World’s Largest Company A wealthy PhD predicts that a radical new technology (now used by 900 million people) will soon create the world’s biggest company. Learn more. But while the hurricanes battered our shores and the media helped push already frightened Americans into panic mode, investors loaded up on any company they thought would benefit from these horrible tragedies. Call it heartless if you want, but it’s just how markets work.  #-ad_banner-#Many… Read More

Over the course of two decades in the professional investment business, I’ve stumbled onto stock ideas purely by accident maybe a couple dozen times. Sometimes I’m looking for one thing and find another. More than once, I’ve typed in the wrong symbol. That happened again recently. And after some digging, I decided that I had had to write about my find. There’s a better than decent chance that at some point, while growing up in the United States, your mom probably used Scott’s Liquid Gold furniture polish at least once. Here’s a television commercial from the… Read More

Over the course of two decades in the professional investment business, I’ve stumbled onto stock ideas purely by accident maybe a couple dozen times. Sometimes I’m looking for one thing and find another. More than once, I’ve typed in the wrong symbol. That happened again recently. And after some digging, I decided that I had had to write about my find. There’s a better than decent chance that at some point, while growing up in the United States, your mom probably used Scott’s Liquid Gold furniture polish at least once. Here’s a television commercial from the 1970s to jog your memory.  Think the brand is dead? Nope. Owned by some gigantic consumer products mega-cap like Procter and Gamble (NYSE: PG)? Nope. It’s still made in Denver, CO where it was invented at the turn of the 20th century. The company is still owned by the family that bought the original formula from inventor Lee Scott for $350 (not a misprint) in 1951.  #-ad_banner-#Even more remarkable, the company, Scott’s Liquid Gold, Inc. is publicly traded (OTC: SLGD). It’s a tiny company with a consolidated market cap of barely $25 million. Typically, I don’t dive into the extremely… Read More

Guns, cash and his entire coin collection — including his Indian Head Gold Quarter Eagle — were gone. Stolen. The perpetrator had taken an oxygen-acetylene torch to the door of his Fort Knox safe and snatched his precious belongings.  Of course, my grandfather was bummed that his stuff was taken, but what unsettled him most about the entire ordeal was the feeling of intrusion — someone invading his privacy.  New guns can be bought, Fort Knox replaced the vault for free, but what can’t be restored is that feeling that your privacy has been violated — knowing that a stranger… Read More

Guns, cash and his entire coin collection — including his Indian Head Gold Quarter Eagle — were gone. Stolen. The perpetrator had taken an oxygen-acetylene torch to the door of his Fort Knox safe and snatched his precious belongings.  Of course, my grandfather was bummed that his stuff was taken, but what unsettled him most about the entire ordeal was the feeling of intrusion — someone invading his privacy.  New guns can be bought, Fort Knox replaced the vault for free, but what can’t be restored is that feeling that your privacy has been violated — knowing that a stranger forced his way into your home and stole your property.  These sorts of intrusions, however, are happening more frequently than ever. But not in the traditional sense… #-ad_banner-#These new perps aren’t coming through your window or your back door and they’re not stealing cash or rare coins. You see, there is something more valuable to these new thieves than the things in your home. Instead of cash, collectibles and jewelry these thieves want your name, date of birth, Social Security number, credit card information and your driver’s license…  They want your identity.  By now, you’ve likely heard about the massive… Read More