If I had to name the biggest game-changing trend of the past decade — a trend that has disturbed the most companies, made the biggest organizational impact, changed the way businesses are structured, and impacted the most lives — it would be cloud computing. Nothing short of a paradigm change, the advent of the cloud has truly transformed the way most technology companies do business. Even consumer companies have been significantly affected by the shift. #-ad_banner-#The premise behind the cloud computing is simple: When technology — from simple applications to complete data centers — is delivered over the internet, it… Read More

If I had to name the biggest game-changing trend of the past decade — a trend that has disturbed the most companies, made the biggest organizational impact, changed the way businesses are structured, and impacted the most lives — it would be cloud computing. Nothing short of a paradigm change, the advent of the cloud has truly transformed the way most technology companies do business. Even consumer companies have been significantly affected by the shift. #-ad_banner-#The premise behind the cloud computing is simple: When technology — from simple applications to complete data centers — is delivered over the internet, it can be delivered as-needed, or on-demand. This on-demand business is now known as the cloud. The on-demand feature makes everything easier. Companies have found that signing up for on-demand services is the easiest way to meet their future needs; the cloud-based model can easily get you more (or less), depending on how those needs change. It also turns out that consuming technology over the internet is less expensive than doing it the traditional way: Basically, you pay for what you use — no more, no less. It requires much less hardware, too: All the hard work is done somewhere off-site… Read More

I had a manager at a firm I used work with. This guy had been in the investment racket for what seems like forever. He was always available to give young brokers advice on stock selection. He would refer to stocks that carried too much risk as “chocolate covered hand grenades.” They looked enticing but sooner or later were guaranteed to blow up in your face. #-ad_banner-#Coming of age in the business during the Tech Bubble of the mid-1990s, I learned a lot about ridiculous valuations. Stock prices and investor expectations can get a little over their skis if the… Read More

I had a manager at a firm I used work with. This guy had been in the investment racket for what seems like forever. He was always available to give young brokers advice on stock selection. He would refer to stocks that carried too much risk as “chocolate covered hand grenades.” They looked enticing but sooner or later were guaranteed to blow up in your face. #-ad_banner-#Coming of age in the business during the Tech Bubble of the mid-1990s, I learned a lot about ridiculous valuations. Stock prices and investor expectations can get a little over their skis if the right conditions are present in the market. The S&P 500 index has delivered around a 5.5% return year-to-date, sparking the pundits to wring their hands and wonder aloud if the market is overvalued. The S&P 500 is currently trading at about 18 times expected earnings. If you’re a value-oriented investor, then that may seem a little expensive, especially if forward P/E is one of your primary valuation metrics. Otherwise, there’s not really cause for widespread concern about the market. However, I’ve identified three widely traded stocks that I would categorize as chocolate covered hand grenades. At their current levels, I’m… Read More

Prior to 1913, cashing a check in the United States was a hit-or-miss proposition. Many larger banks refused to clear checks from smaller, less well-known banks for fear that the originating bank might not be solvent. This was especially true in times of economic distress, such as the financial panic of 1907. #-ad_banner-#The refusal of some banks to cash the checks of other banks was one of the reasons the Federal Reserve was established in 1913. But it wasn’t until 1918 that Congress ordered the Fed to create a nationwide check-clearing system. For this, the Federal Reserve Banks created a… Read More

Prior to 1913, cashing a check in the United States was a hit-or-miss proposition. Many larger banks refused to clear checks from smaller, less well-known banks for fear that the originating bank might not be solvent. This was especially true in times of economic distress, such as the financial panic of 1907. #-ad_banner-#The refusal of some banks to cash the checks of other banks was one of the reasons the Federal Reserve was established in 1913. But it wasn’t until 1918 that Congress ordered the Fed to create a nationwide check-clearing system. For this, the Federal Reserve Banks created a telegraph network to transfer funds between member banks. Many Americans would be surprised to know that the check-clearing system created in 1918 is still in use today. It’s called the Federal Reserve Wire Network (Fedwire, for short). And it’s truly massive. Fedwire processed more than $835 trillion worth of transactions in 2015. In 2016, the value of the transactions dipped by 8.1% to $767 trillion due to a slow economy. Even so, that’s still more money changing hands every nine days than the entire GDP of the United States. But Change Is Coming Fedwire’s telegraph lines lasted into the… Read More

No matter how much we think we know what to expect, there are always surprises. As an investor, I know this means I have to look at all the information available, rather than assume I know what the data says. That’s what led me to find an investment opportunity in an unexpected place: retail. This is a sector filled with bad news. According to CNBC, “Retail bankruptcies march toward [a] post-recession high.” So far this year, we have seen nine major retailers file bankruptcy, including Limited Stores and the parent of Radio Shack, which already went bankrupt once before. Analysts… Read More

No matter how much we think we know what to expect, there are always surprises. As an investor, I know this means I have to look at all the information available, rather than assume I know what the data says. That’s what led me to find an investment opportunity in an unexpected place: retail. This is a sector filled with bad news. According to CNBC, “Retail bankruptcies march toward [a] post-recession high.” So far this year, we have seen nine major retailers file bankruptcy, including Limited Stores and the parent of Radio Shack, which already went bankrupt once before. Analysts believe other will follow. Moody’s Investors Service says that 19 retailers are distressed and may not survive the year. Their list includes 99 Cents Stores, Payless, Claire’s, David’s Bridal and, of course, Sears. Some investors may want to avoid the entire sector, but there must be some winners hidden among all the struggling stores because retailing can’t disappear completely. While looking over relative strength screens of the market, I was surprised to see one company doing well in one of the more beaten-down sectors. Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) has been a market leader for the past six months, the only… Read More

Alcoa (NYSE: AA) kicks off first-quarter earnings season on April 24. Analysts surveyed by FactSet Research expect S&P 500 companies to report 9.1% annual earnings growth. That’s down from the 12.5% growth expected when the first quarter began, but would still represent the strongest move in five years. Sales growth, expected at 7.2% for the market index, is also expected to post the strongest year-over-year growth since 2011. #-ad_banner-#On top of strong earnings growth, U.S. companies get a near-term boost from recent weakness in the dollar as they translate foreign earnings. Loosening regulations could also lift specific sectors. Against this… Read More

Alcoa (NYSE: AA) kicks off first-quarter earnings season on April 24. Analysts surveyed by FactSet Research expect S&P 500 companies to report 9.1% annual earnings growth. That’s down from the 12.5% growth expected when the first quarter began, but would still represent the strongest move in five years. Sales growth, expected at 7.2% for the market index, is also expected to post the strongest year-over-year growth since 2011. #-ad_banner-#On top of strong earnings growth, U.S. companies get a near-term boost from recent weakness in the dollar as they translate foreign earnings. Loosening regulations could also lift specific sectors. Against this strength in fundamentals we find a market that has stalled near record highs and investors hesitant to buy in at lofty valuations. After jumping 3.9% in February, the S&P 500 has flatlined as investors wait for earnings confirmation to push higher. The next few weeks could give us that confirmation — or it could bring the long overdue correction for which the bears have been waiting. I’ve found three sectors and three leaders in each with the potential to surprise to the upside, providing investors with a reason to send shares higher for the rest of the year. Three Value… Read More

There are few things that can light a fire under a stock like a positive earnings surprise. When a company beats expectations it sends a powerful message to the Street that business is good. #-ad_banner-#For example, Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) jumped almost 10% in one day on January 31 after reporting record first-quarter results and a 5% positive earnings surprise. However, it is difficult to predict which stocks will beat and which will disappoint. It’s kind of like throwing darts in the dark. Today, I am going to reveal a better way to profit from an earnings surprise with one of… Read More

There are few things that can light a fire under a stock like a positive earnings surprise. When a company beats expectations it sends a powerful message to the Street that business is good. #-ad_banner-#For example, Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) jumped almost 10% in one day on January 31 after reporting record first-quarter results and a 5% positive earnings surprise. However, it is difficult to predict which stocks will beat and which will disappoint. It’s kind of like throwing darts in the dark. Today, I am going to reveal a better way to profit from an earnings surprise with one of Wall Street’s best kept secrets. Even better, this is the perfect time to capitalize. Let me explain… First Quarter Earnings Season Is About To Kick Off This is a pivotal quarter for S&P 500 earnings. After being trapped in an earnings recession for a year and a half, S&P 500 earnings are finally returning to sustained growth. First-quarter earnings are expected to grow 6.5% and then steadily accelerate from there. Take a look below. I am expecting the S&P 500’s return to earnings growth to fuel some very nice positive earnings surprises this season. But don’t worry… Read More

Many investors spend their time trying to find a dark horse stock that will come out of nowhere to provide monster gains. While this can yield spectacular results for a lucky few, the majority of investors fail most of the time. I take the exact opposite approach to investing. In my premium newsletter, Maximum Profit, I look for stocks that have already proven themselves to be winners, waiting till they have a big lead before placing my bet. To most investors, especially those considered value investors, this probably sounds ludicrous. We have all been taught we need to… Read More

Many investors spend their time trying to find a dark horse stock that will come out of nowhere to provide monster gains. While this can yield spectacular results for a lucky few, the majority of investors fail most of the time. I take the exact opposite approach to investing. In my premium newsletter, Maximum Profit, I look for stocks that have already proven themselves to be winners, waiting till they have a big lead before placing my bet. To most investors, especially those considered value investors, this probably sounds ludicrous. We have all been taught we need to “buy low, sell high.” So how can buying “high” possibly make for a sound investing strategy? #-ad_banner-#Well, I’ve never been a big gambler, but I do know a thing or two about odds. And I’d like to explain my strategy using a horse racing analogy.  Imagine you’re at a horse race, and while everyone else is placing their bets before the race, you get to bet after the race has already begun. In fact, you get to place your bet when there’s already a clear leader who looks likely to win the race. After all, experienced bettors know horses that… Read More

This may sound obvious (or not), but my Maximum Profit system profits from what’s working in the market at any given time — stocks that are already winning. After all, who would you rather pick in a straight-up contest, the hot team with the 10-game winning streak or the opponent who hasn’t won a game in the last four tries? The two picks I’m about to reveal come from the S&P 500’s strongest sector year-to-date: technology. Now, there’s a lot that goes into the system and its algorithms, but in simplest terms it finds winning trades by using two of… Read More

This may sound obvious (or not), but my Maximum Profit system profits from what’s working in the market at any given time — stocks that are already winning. After all, who would you rather pick in a straight-up contest, the hot team with the 10-game winning streak or the opponent who hasn’t won a game in the last four tries? The two picks I’m about to reveal come from the S&P 500’s strongest sector year-to-date: technology. Now, there’s a lot that goes into the system and its algorithms, but in simplest terms it finds winning trades by using two of the most powerful indicators from the worlds of technical and fundamental analysis. The first of these is known as relative strength. Relative strength (RS) — not to be confused with the relative strength index (RSI) — forms the foundation of my system. Relative strength is one of the few true edges available in the investing world. Even Eugene Fama, father of the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH) — which says that markets efficiently price stocks using all available information — called relative strength an “anomaly” (in a good way!). It’s been proven that stocks with high RS scores — stocks that… Read More