There’s a growing concern percolating beneath the surface of the stock market. And, no, I’m not talking about a looming correction or anything like that. It’s a problem that’s making it even tougher for individual investors to find market-beating stocks. It’s a problem that will require investors to have a system, like Maximum Profit, to have any hope… This predicament became even more glaring on April 19 when the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) reported quarterly earnings. #-ad_banner-#BlackRock’s report included an astonishing achievement, even by its own standards. The company’s assets under management (AUM) reached… Read More

There’s a growing concern percolating beneath the surface of the stock market. And, no, I’m not talking about a looming correction or anything like that. It’s a problem that’s making it even tougher for individual investors to find market-beating stocks. It’s a problem that will require investors to have a system, like Maximum Profit, to have any hope… This predicament became even more glaring on April 19 when the world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock (NYSE: BLK) reported quarterly earnings. #-ad_banner-#BlackRock’s report included an astonishing achievement, even by its own standards. The company’s assets under management (AUM) reached an all-time record of $5.4 trillion. That’s bigger than JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM), Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) combined. They accomplished this impressive feat, in large part, by leading a trend that’s radically changing the investment world. You see, fewer and fewer investors are picking individual stocks. Instead, they are opting for index funds, and BlackRock has become a leader in low-cost index funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), as opposed to actively managed funds. Now, index funds can play a vital role in portfolio management, and I like the fact that they allow investors easy… Read More

Income investors have it pretty bad right now. Despite a recent spike, the 10-year Treasury note yield of 2.3% is near an all-time low. Those low bond yields have pushed income-starved investors into the S&P 500 in search of reliable dividend stocks. Unfortunately, their options are slim… After a 70% gain in five years, the S&P 500’s dividend yield has compressed to 1.92%, also near an all-time low. Take a look below. Source: Multpl.com If you’re one of those investors banging your head against the wall trying to find better yields, I have the solution for you. Read More

Income investors have it pretty bad right now. Despite a recent spike, the 10-year Treasury note yield of 2.3% is near an all-time low. Those low bond yields have pushed income-starved investors into the S&P 500 in search of reliable dividend stocks. Unfortunately, their options are slim… After a 70% gain in five years, the S&P 500’s dividend yield has compressed to 1.92%, also near an all-time low. Take a look below. Source: Multpl.com If you’re one of those investors banging your head against the wall trying to find better yields, I have the solution for you. You might be surprised to learn that a huge collection of high-yield stocks is right at your fingertips. However, in order to capitalize on this opportunity, you have to be willing to overcome one of the biggest investor biases. The Bias Keeping U.S. Investors From The Best Yields In The World Home Bias is the tendency for investors to invest heavily in domestic stocks despite the potential benefits of diversifying into international equities. According to research from mutual fund company Oppenheimer, U.S. stocks make up over 70% of U.S. investors’ equity portfolios. Not only is… Read More

Dividend-focused investing, while on the surface designed for producing income, is also one of the best ways to build wealth in the stock market. The trick is identifying top-paying dividend stocks and then consistently reinvesting the dividends. Dividend reinvestment allows the power of compound interest to work in your favor. Even in 2017’s volatile market, I’ve located seven top-paying dividend stocks that can make a great addition to your portfolio. They are also a smart way to start to build a diversified income portfolio if you are just starting out. What I haven’t included are the crazies — you know,… Read More

Dividend-focused investing, while on the surface designed for producing income, is also one of the best ways to build wealth in the stock market. The trick is identifying top-paying dividend stocks and then consistently reinvesting the dividends. Dividend reinvestment allows the power of compound interest to work in your favor. Even in 2017’s volatile market, I’ve located seven top-paying dividend stocks that can make a great addition to your portfolio. They are also a smart way to start to build a diversified income portfolio if you are just starting out. What I haven’t included are the crazies — you know, the ultra-high dividend payers with yields that are unsustainable, often due to a plunging stock price. While buzz-worthy and temporarily profitable, these investments are hardly suitable for a reliable portfolio. These seven top-paying dividend stocks have proven, justifiable yields. Even better, I fully expect them to provide better than average price performance over the next 12 months. The 7 Top-Paying Dividend Stocks You Need To Know 1. Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE: EPD) EPD is a master limited partnership-structured company in the natural gas sector. The Houston-based pipeline operator pays nearly 6% and is America’s largest company in its niche. Read More

An old trader once told me, “Trading is the hardest easy money you’ll ever make.” In theory, trading is easy enough — all you have to do is buy low and sell high, right? After all, there are thousands of books claiming to have all the information we’ll ever need. #-ad_banner-#In practice, however, trading is among the most difficult activities in the financial world. Despite the availability of a wealth of information, few do it well. In fact, all that accessible information actually makes it harder to trade successfully. Think about that for a moment. If you could really win… Read More

An old trader once told me, “Trading is the hardest easy money you’ll ever make.” In theory, trading is easy enough — all you have to do is buy low and sell high, right? After all, there are thousands of books claiming to have all the information we’ll ever need. #-ad_banner-#In practice, however, trading is among the most difficult activities in the financial world. Despite the availability of a wealth of information, few do it well. In fact, all that accessible information actually makes it harder to trade successfully. Think about that for a moment. If you could really win in the markets by simply buying stocks with low price-to-earnings (P/E) ratios, then we would all be successful. As an old trader also once told me, “To know what everyone knows is to know nothing.” If everyone has the same tools, it’s difficult to use them to gain an advantage over everyone else. The secret to beating the market — and your fellow investors — is to use little-known indicators, which act like secret weapons for trading. That’s why I developed my own indicator, which I call the Income Trader Volatility (ITV) indicator. ITV is similar to the Volatility S&P… Read More

The S&P500 has gone nowhere since mid-February as investors start to wonder how much farther the bull can run. Fears over geopolitical issues, weakening expectations for earnings and the economy, and doubts on tax reform have all put investors on edge. The VIX volatility index, also known as the “Fear Gauge,” jumped 29% to 15.9 over the first two weeks of April to reach its highest point this year. A total of 527 companies cut their dividend payments at the height of the financial crisis in 2009 and only the most stalwart dividend-payers survived. Even bellwether names like General Electric,… Read More

The S&P500 has gone nowhere since mid-February as investors start to wonder how much farther the bull can run. Fears over geopolitical issues, weakening expectations for earnings and the economy, and doubts on tax reform have all put investors on edge. The VIX volatility index, also known as the “Fear Gauge,” jumped 29% to 15.9 over the first two weeks of April to reach its highest point this year. A total of 527 companies cut their dividend payments at the height of the financial crisis in 2009 and only the most stalwart dividend-payers survived. Even bellwether names like General Electric, Dow Chemical, and JP Morgan cut their payments to investors. Protecting your portfolio from falling stock prices and dividend cuts today means finding companies with sustainable dividends from strong cash flows and a best-of-breed brand. When looking for which stocks have the highest dividends, I use four fundamental factors to find the companies with the commitment and cash flow to keep putting money in my pocket. Seeking Sustainable Dividends Against Market Stress First-quarter earnings are slowly starting to come in and the results are a mixed bag. The S&P 500 closed flat last week as investors started to question… Read More

The list of global events keeps piling up: A recent U.S. airstrike in Syria and bombing of ISIS in Afghanistan, increasing tensions with North Korea, a pivotal election in France that could determine the future of the European Union, talk of a renewed healthcare push in Congress (and tax reform in the works), the list goes on… But the world keeps turning and money never sleeps. And in today’s article, I’d like to do something a little different and tell you about how one of my fellow StreetAuthority experts developed one of the most reliable indicators I’ve ever seen. I’m… Read More

The list of global events keeps piling up: A recent U.S. airstrike in Syria and bombing of ISIS in Afghanistan, increasing tensions with North Korea, a pivotal election in France that could determine the future of the European Union, talk of a renewed healthcare push in Congress (and tax reform in the works), the list goes on… But the world keeps turning and money never sleeps. And in today’s article, I’d like to do something a little different and tell you about how one of my fellow StreetAuthority experts developed one of the most reliable indicators I’ve ever seen. I’m talking about Amber Hestla, Chief Strategist of Income Trader. I’d like to give you a little background on Amber and how she developed this indicator — which has delivered winning trades 93% of the time — and then tomorrow, you’ll have a chance to hear Amber talk about this indicator in more detail herself. Introducing Amber Hestla For those who aren’t familiar, Amber is one of the most well-respected options experts in the United States. But in her former life, she was a military intelligence operative. I’m not kidding. The transition from that to a… Read More

The financial sector was on fire in 2016. Immense annual gains of 50%, 60%, and greater were pocketed by investors who caught the trend. Don’t worry, I’m not talking about speculative fintech or other risky high-tech financial names. Believe it or not, the outsized gains were made in solid, multi- billion dollar companies like JP Morgan (NYSE: JPM) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC). Hopefully, your portfolio captured some or all of this historic upside. But It’s Not Too Late If you missed riding the uptrend higher, or simply want to have a chance to pocket additional gains, it’s… Read More

The financial sector was on fire in 2016. Immense annual gains of 50%, 60%, and greater were pocketed by investors who caught the trend. Don’t worry, I’m not talking about speculative fintech or other risky high-tech financial names. Believe it or not, the outsized gains were made in solid, multi- billion dollar companies like JP Morgan (NYSE: JPM) and Bank of America (NYSE: BAC). Hopefully, your portfolio captured some or all of this historic upside. But It’s Not Too Late If you missed riding the uptrend higher, or simply want to have a chance to pocket additional gains, it’s not too late. I have identified five solid financial stocks that still have tremendous upside potential and pay hefty dividends. #-ad_banner-#Amazingly, these stocks trade in a market that has never had a financial calamity since the 19th century. This industry remained stable during both the Great Depression and the global banking crisis of 2008. This market, the Canadian banking industry, never experienced a financial crisis due to a myriad of reasons that are beyond the scope of this article. Suffice to say; the Canadian banking system is widely considered to be a bastion of stability. In comparison, the United States… Read More

Let’s not beat around the bush… You’re probably not going to like what I have to say in today’s issue.  But that’s OK. Many of you need to hear it.  #-ad_banner-#It’s time for a little tough love in today’s issue. If you’ve been thinking to yourself lately that you could use a good pep talk, then today is your lucky day. As for everyone else, feel free to tune out.  Even ‘Perfect’ Portfolios Experience Painful Losses I’d like you to consider for a moment an interesting find made by the folks at AlphaArchitect, a prominent “robo-advisor”… Read More

Let’s not beat around the bush… You’re probably not going to like what I have to say in today’s issue.  But that’s OK. Many of you need to hear it.  #-ad_banner-#It’s time for a little tough love in today’s issue. If you’ve been thinking to yourself lately that you could use a good pep talk, then today is your lucky day. As for everyone else, feel free to tune out.  Even ‘Perfect’ Portfolios Experience Painful Losses I’d like you to consider for a moment an interesting find made by the folks at AlphaArchitect, a prominent “robo-advisor” firm. (A robo-advisor is an online wealth management firm that uses complex algorithms to custom design portfolios for clients.) The question: If you were God, could you create a hedge fund so good that you would never get fired? The study assumes you are able to know the returns for all stocks in the S&P 500 for the next five years ahead of time. This level of omniscience comes with a catch, though. You have to hold your positions for the entire five-year duration. Only then can you rebalance the portfolio by selling those… Read More