To comfortably live in an online world, we need to make sure our actions and devices are secure. When dealing with our bank, for instance, we want to know the transactions are secure. We want to rest assured that information in our smartphones is safe, and that we can login quickly and securely into our tablets and laptops. One obvious and widely used means of protecting data is by locking your device, thereby restricting unauthorized access. And modern “locks” are increasingly using our unique human features to establish our identification, a technology known as biometrics.   #-ad_banner-#And when it comes… Read More

To comfortably live in an online world, we need to make sure our actions and devices are secure. When dealing with our bank, for instance, we want to know the transactions are secure. We want to rest assured that information in our smartphones is safe, and that we can login quickly and securely into our tablets and laptops. One obvious and widely used means of protecting data is by locking your device, thereby restricting unauthorized access. And modern “locks” are increasingly using our unique human features to establish our identification, a technology known as biometrics.   #-ad_banner-#And when it comes to utilizing unique human features, what is easier and more convenient than your own fingerprints?   Many iPhone owners would agree that their feeling of security significantly improved after Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) introduced a fingerprint recognition feature in 2013. The adoption of Touch ID has proceeded smoothly, and improvements in the technology itself have proceeded apace —  today’s second-generation sensor is up to twice as fast as the original version. Driven by the increasingly urgent need for security, as well as consumers’ smooth adoption of such sensors in mobile devices, the market for fingerprint sensors is on fire. According to… Read More

Even giants can fall in the stock market. History is full of companies once thought to be bulletproof that are now relegated to the dustbin of history. Even the great Warren Buffett is not immune to economic forces. Right now, Buffett’s third largest holding, the Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) company is setting up for a sell-off. Despite its size, dividends, past performance, and investor interest, Coca-Cola stock is not beyond entering a downward period. And this could have wide-reaching implications. Not only is Coca-Cola a huge holding for the Oracle of Omaha, but it is also a major part… Read More

Even giants can fall in the stock market. History is full of companies once thought to be bulletproof that are now relegated to the dustbin of history. Even the great Warren Buffett is not immune to economic forces. Right now, Buffett’s third largest holding, the Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) company is setting up for a sell-off. Despite its size, dividends, past performance, and investor interest, Coca-Cola stock is not beyond entering a downward period. And this could have wide-reaching implications. Not only is Coca-Cola a huge holding for the Oracle of Omaha, but it is also a major part of the majority of diversified stock portfolios and a Dow component. This means that many giant index funds and ETFs are heavily invested in the stock. But this is nothing to be afraid of. In fact, savvy investors can use the expected down period to profit handsomely on the short side. How Can I Profit From Coke’s Decline? The coolest thing about active trading is that money can always be made, whether the stock is going up or going down. Unlike the majority of buy-and-hold investors, the active investor does not care what direction the stock moves. The secret… Read More

Nobody likes to be wrong. And it’s that sentiment that causes many investors to lose their shirt — taking a loss is proving exactly that… that you’re wrong. It’s been proven that investors tend to sell their winners too early, satisfying their desire to be right, and hold on to their losers too long, hoping that they will not have to take a loss and be wrong. The simple fact is that we as investors will be wrong from time to time. But it’s whether you admit your mistake and move on that will determine whether you’re an average investor… Read More

Nobody likes to be wrong. And it’s that sentiment that causes many investors to lose their shirt — taking a loss is proving exactly that… that you’re wrong. It’s been proven that investors tend to sell their winners too early, satisfying their desire to be right, and hold on to their losers too long, hoping that they will not have to take a loss and be wrong. The simple fact is that we as investors will be wrong from time to time. But it’s whether you admit your mistake and move on that will determine whether you’re an average investor (generating only 2% per year) or an extraordinary investor. Or as investing legend George Soros once said, “It’s not about being right or wrong, rather, it’s about how much money you make when you’re right and how much you don’t lose when you’re wrong.” #-ad_banner-#Investors have a hard time controlling their emotions, which often leads to small losses turning into large ones. When a holding is down 25%, most investors tell themselves either that A) they’re not going to take any action because they’re in it for the long haul, or B) they’ll sell once the price gets back to… Read More

At no other time in modern U.S. history has a new administration intervened so directly in the business environment. Whether you agree with President Trump’s policies or not, it’s difficult to ignore that the new administration is reshaping the American economy. Any time you get such a dramatic shift in policy and the business environment, there are bound to be industries that benefit. #-ad_banner-#Positioning in those industries before the good times begin could be one of the strongest investment themes over the next four years. President Trump reiterated his call for a $1 trillion infrastructure plan in his… Read More

At no other time in modern U.S. history has a new administration intervened so directly in the business environment. Whether you agree with President Trump’s policies or not, it’s difficult to ignore that the new administration is reshaping the American economy. Any time you get such a dramatic shift in policy and the business environment, there are bound to be industries that benefit. #-ad_banner-#Positioning in those industries before the good times begin could be one of the strongest investment themes over the next four years. President Trump reiterated his call for a $1 trillion infrastructure plan in his recent speech to Congress. He also reinforced his pledge to boost American manufacturing with a mandate that requires new energy pipelines to be made with domestically-produced U.S. steel. In that mandate, the President may have signaled one of the best investments of the year and made one group some of the top stocks of 2017. Steel Benefits From Increased Demand And Decreased Competition Not only could U.S. steel producers get a sales boost from pipeline projects already approved, but any major infrastructure improvement could mean a surge in non-residential and construction steel. Steel gets a further boost… Read More

Last week, I wrote about Buffett’s bet with the hedge fund industry (for more on that, go here). I also advised readers to check out Buffett’s letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, which was released last weekend. I hope you took the time to follow my advice. Despite amassing a $76 billion fortune, Buffett remains as folksy and accessible as ever. He’s not perfect — but then again, he’s also rarely wrong. #-ad_banner-#A few years ago, the Wall Street Journal reported that Buffett made an absolutely stunning $10 billion on investments he made at the height of… Read More

Last week, I wrote about Buffett’s bet with the hedge fund industry (for more on that, go here). I also advised readers to check out Buffett’s letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, which was released last weekend. I hope you took the time to follow my advice. Despite amassing a $76 billion fortune, Buffett remains as folksy and accessible as ever. He’s not perfect — but then again, he’s also rarely wrong. #-ad_banner-#A few years ago, the Wall Street Journal reported that Buffett made an absolutely stunning $10 billion on investments he made at the height of the financial crisis. True to form, Buffett sheepishly commented that any average investor could have done just as well. In fact, more recently, he has stated that it should be possible for any individual investor to beat his performance at Berkshire Hathaway going forward. Does this mean Buffett has lost a step? Hardly. It’s simply a matter of the law of large numbers coming into effect. To earn that $10 billion, Buffett had to invest $26 billion. That put his return at about 38%, or 6.7% a year over five years. Now let’s put that into context. Buffett made his… Read More

Powerball and the other assorted government sponsored lotteries are big business. During 2014,  players spent $70 billion on legal lotteries in America alone. Global lottery sales bring in about $300 billion each year. The urge for fast money is so strong that ticket sales on U.S. lottery games average $300 per adult in the 43 states hosting the games. Putting this number into perspective, it’s more money than U.S. citizens in all 50 states spent on movies, recorded music, sports tickets, books and even video games combined! #-ad_banner-#While many players participate in the lottery as a fun diversion, some view… Read More

Powerball and the other assorted government sponsored lotteries are big business. During 2014,  players spent $70 billion on legal lotteries in America alone. Global lottery sales bring in about $300 billion each year. The urge for fast money is so strong that ticket sales on U.S. lottery games average $300 per adult in the 43 states hosting the games. Putting this number into perspective, it’s more money than U.S. citizens in all 50 states spent on movies, recorded music, sports tickets, books and even video games combined! #-ad_banner-#While many players participate in the lottery as a fun diversion, some view it differently. A study published in 2004 revealed a sad truth. Cornell professors, Garrick Blalock, David R. Just, and Daniel H. Simon authored a study called “Hitting the Jackpot or Hitting the Skids.” The research discovered that local lottery ticket sales are higher in areas of low income. However, movie ticket sales decline with poverty levels. Bluntly stated, the lottery is viewed as a possible source of income by the destitute, despite the astronomical  odds against winning. Although the odds of winning the Powerball can be as low as 1 in 258 million, there is a way to significantly improve… Read More

During a bull market, you can just about set your watch to individual investors being fashionably late. Institutional money is always early to the party. They must be per their investment mandates. But individual retail investors are a completely different animal. Why do individual investors always get in late during a bull run? This chart of the S&P 500 going back to the turn of the century is the best explanation. Over the last 17 years, the index has endured two bear markets, where the average decline was 47%, and two significant corrections with average drawdowns of 16.5%. Read More

During a bull market, you can just about set your watch to individual investors being fashionably late. Institutional money is always early to the party. They must be per their investment mandates. But individual retail investors are a completely different animal. Why do individual investors always get in late during a bull run? This chart of the S&P 500 going back to the turn of the century is the best explanation. Over the last 17 years, the index has endured two bear markets, where the average decline was 47%, and two significant corrections with average drawdowns of 16.5%. This translates into a major market downturn every 4.25 years. That’s a lot of volatility, and volatility always frightens individual investors. But as everyone knows, when dealing with market forces the opposite side of fear is greed. Once individual investors see that the train has left the station, they usually chase it. One of the main vehicles used in the chase, of course, is the venerable mutual fund. #-ad_banner-#With this is mind, fund manager stocks are an excellent way to profit from tardy investors jumping into the market. As investors shovel money into the funds, increasing the managers’ assets under… Read More

As 2017 rushes forward, I’m seeing confirmation of my market outlook from the beginning of this year. In the past week, it’s become clear that Warren Buffett now agrees with my assessment of airline stocks. I’ll admit I was nervous as I dove into the sector… Read More

This is BIG… For the first time since 1933, the SEC is now allowing regular people like you and me to invest in brand-new explosive-growth companies BEFORE THEY GO PUBLIC. Imagine getting in on the next Facebook for 33 cents a share or the next Apple at 78 cents. Each… Read More