Sometimes, you’d think that the worst diseases to threaten mankind come from tropical environments. They do.  #-ad_banner-#AIDS came from sub equatorial Africa, as did the Ebola virus. Malaria, tropical. Yellow fever, for which there is no cure or vaccine, tropical. Now the Zika virus which, like Malaria and Yellow Fever, is mosquito borne. With multiple cases and one death being reported in the continental United States, it’s becoming a major public health concern, specifically due to the threat it poses to pregnant women. The babies of pregnant women infected with the virus face the risk of a birth defect known… Read More

Sometimes, you’d think that the worst diseases to threaten mankind come from tropical environments. They do.  #-ad_banner-#AIDS came from sub equatorial Africa, as did the Ebola virus. Malaria, tropical. Yellow fever, for which there is no cure or vaccine, tropical. Now the Zika virus which, like Malaria and Yellow Fever, is mosquito borne. With multiple cases and one death being reported in the continental United States, it’s becoming a major public health concern, specifically due to the threat it poses to pregnant women. The babies of pregnant women infected with the virus face the risk of a birth defect known as microcephaly or a smaller-than-normal skull which can lead to developmental disabilities, brain damage and death. There has been a speculative run up in a handful of biotech companies working on vaccines or treatment. But I’ve been buying shares of a large cap, deeply discounted global pharmaceutical giant who is currently working with the U.S. Army to develop a Zika vaccine that should be ready for human trials by October of this year. You should, too. Sanofi (NYSE: SNY), isn’t exactly a household name when compared to peers such as Pfizer (NYSE: PFE), Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) or Merck (NYSE:… Read More

Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen gave a speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on Friday, saying that the central bank will likely raise short-term interest rates at least once by the end of the year. The first possible increase could be during the Fed’s policy meeting on Sept. 20-21. But according to the Wall Street Journal, any announcement will likely depend on the results of the Sept. 2 jobs report. If the data disappoint, then the door is still open for a possible rate hike in November or December. #-ad_banner-#From the Journal: “The Fed pushed rates to near zero in December… Read More

Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen gave a speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on Friday, saying that the central bank will likely raise short-term interest rates at least once by the end of the year. The first possible increase could be during the Fed’s policy meeting on Sept. 20-21. But according to the Wall Street Journal, any announcement will likely depend on the results of the Sept. 2 jobs report. If the data disappoint, then the door is still open for a possible rate hike in November or December. #-ad_banner-#From the Journal: “The Fed pushed rates to near zero in December 2008, kept them there for seven years and then nudged them up a quarter percentage point last December. Officials began the year expecting to raise rates four times in quarter-point increments but have delayed moving them because economic growth disappointed in the first half of the year and because they were uncertain about developments overseas and about the strength of the U.S. job market after some soft reports. Ms. Yellen said her worries had dissipated. ‘While economic growth has not been rapid, it has been sufficient to generate further improvement in the labor market,’ Ms. Yellen said. Broad measures of… Read More

All major U.S. indices closed lower last week, except for the small-cap Russell 2000. This followed two weeks of mostly sideways, non-directional trading. #-ad_banner-# The Nasdaq continues to negotiate its March 2000 tech-bubble highs amid historically low volatility. Both of these factors continue to warn of the broader market’s vulnerability to at least a minor pullback between now and the end of the third quarter.  Internally, the market may actually be more vulnerable than it looks. All sectors of the S&P 500 except for financials and technology finished in negative… Read More

All major U.S. indices closed lower last week, except for the small-cap Russell 2000. This followed two weeks of mostly sideways, non-directional trading. #-ad_banner-# The Nasdaq continues to negotiate its March 2000 tech-bubble highs amid historically low volatility. Both of these factors continue to warn of the broader market’s vulnerability to at least a minor pullback between now and the end of the third quarter.  Internally, the market may actually be more vulnerable than it looks. All sectors of the S&P 500 except for financials and technology finished in negative territory last week, led lower by utilities (-2.2%) and health care (-1.7%).  However, there is one potential bright spot. The table below, which displays Asbury Research’s metric for tracking investor asset flows in the State Street SPDR sector ETFs, shows that the largest inflows over the past one-week and one-month periods went into energy.   As long as these inflows into energy stocks continue, it bodes well for more strength from this economically sensitive sector, which, like materials and industrials, is correlated to the U.S. economy and the broader stock market. Seasonality Turns Negative In September For the… Read More

Don’t look now, but commodities are finally making a big comeback.  If you peruse the Lifetime Wealth Generators and Undiscovered High-Yielders portfolios in my High-Yield Investing premium newsletter, you won’t find a single stock tied directly to the production of energy or metals. There are several midstream partnerships that transport the stuff, but none that actually dig it out of the ground.  #-ad_banner-#That underweighting has served us well, as commodities have been stuck in a multi-year swoon. Everyone knows that oil plunged from $100 to around $25 per barrel. And gold bugs were dismayed last November when the metal sunk… Read More

Don’t look now, but commodities are finally making a big comeback.  If you peruse the Lifetime Wealth Generators and Undiscovered High-Yielders portfolios in my High-Yield Investing premium newsletter, you won’t find a single stock tied directly to the production of energy or metals. There are several midstream partnerships that transport the stuff, but none that actually dig it out of the ground.  #-ad_banner-#That underweighting has served us well, as commodities have been stuck in a multi-year swoon. Everyone knows that oil plunged from $100 to around $25 per barrel. And gold bugs were dismayed last November when the metal sunk to a 6-year low of $1,070 per ounce, about half its former highs above $1,900.  Copper, platinum, coal, iron ore and many other resources have all been in the same leaky boat.  Just look at the PowerShares DB Commodity Tracking ETF (NYSE: DBC), which reflects the prices of everything from gasoline to zinc to sugar. From the beginning of 2014 through the end of 2015, the fund lost half its value, sliding from $25.08 to $13.36. Along the way, investors yanked out more than $1 billion in assets.  But this cyclical group is making a strong recovery in 2016. In… Read More

Barry Sternlicht knows a thing or two about real estate. The Harvard Business School grad got started early, buying up more than 7,000 residential apartment units in the early 1990s at fire-sale prices following the savings and loan crisis.  Soon after, he signed a mega-deal with real estate tycoon Sam Zell, exchanging many of these apartments for an ownership stake in Zell’s Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR). This transaction ultimately netted Sternlicht (and his investors) handsome triple-digit returns. But that was just the beginning for this savvy investor and the company he founded, Starwood Capital.  #-ad_banner-#Starwood later built an empire of… Read More

Barry Sternlicht knows a thing or two about real estate. The Harvard Business School grad got started early, buying up more than 7,000 residential apartment units in the early 1990s at fire-sale prices following the savings and loan crisis.  Soon after, he signed a mega-deal with real estate tycoon Sam Zell, exchanging many of these apartments for an ownership stake in Zell’s Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR). This transaction ultimately netted Sternlicht (and his investors) handsome triple-digit returns. But that was just the beginning for this savvy investor and the company he founded, Starwood Capital.  #-ad_banner-#Starwood later built an empire of luxury hotels, amassing a global portfolio of more than 1,200 resorts under upscale brands such as Westin, Sheraton, St. Regis, and Le Meridien. Incidentally, it sold this collection to Marriott last year for $13.6 billion.  Elsewhere, Starwood has made big investments in retail shopping malls in Sweden, suburban office parks in South Florida, and undeveloped land parcels in California. As I discussed last month with my High-Yield Investing premium subscribers, Starwood has also teamed up with Colony Capital to create Colony Starwood Homes (NYSE: SFR), which owns 35,000 rental homes. Sternlicht helped orchestrate this venture, which has already generated gains… Read More

Big pharma has some great long-term drivers, ranging from aging demographics to a growing middle-class around the world. Few products reach a level of importance as high as the drugs that keep us alive and healthy. It’s especially true as we get older, and that’s something happening to a record number of people these days. #-ad_banner-#Yet one more benefit of drug stocks is the counter-cyclical nature of sales. While people may skimp on everything from cars to tech when the economy turns sour, they aren’t going to stop taking their prescriptions.  In fact, my favorite pharma stock booked annualized growth… Read More

Big pharma has some great long-term drivers, ranging from aging demographics to a growing middle-class around the world. Few products reach a level of importance as high as the drugs that keep us alive and healthy. It’s especially true as we get older, and that’s something happening to a record number of people these days. #-ad_banner-#Yet one more benefit of drug stocks is the counter-cyclical nature of sales. While people may skimp on everything from cars to tech when the economy turns sour, they aren’t going to stop taking their prescriptions.  In fact, my favorite pharma stock booked annualized growth in sales of 11% over the three years through 2009. With a global economic outlook that’s looking pretty weak, that revenue resilience is a huge plus for investors. Looking at the industry, one company stood out for its pipeline of upcoming drugs and the potential for higher profits over the next few years. A Blockbuster Pipeline And Higher Profits Make This Leader My Top Pick Big pharma is all about the pipeline, and my top pick is no different. The company had a solid reputation for its R&D until a steep patent cliff in 2014 had investors worried. In… Read More

I’m sure it’s no shock to hear that stocks are expensive right now. But you might be surprised to find out just how expensive they are. Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) recently measured the market and found that the median stock trades in the 99th percentile of its historical valuation. Stocks are near historic highs on numerous valuation metrics, including price-to-earnings growth (PEG), enterprise-to-sales and forward price-to-earnings (P/E). You can argue that rock-bottom interest rates make stocks a “relatively” better investment than bonds and other asset types, but that argument sounds a little like every other excuse investors make… Read More

I’m sure it’s no shock to hear that stocks are expensive right now. But you might be surprised to find out just how expensive they are. Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) recently measured the market and found that the median stock trades in the 99th percentile of its historical valuation. Stocks are near historic highs on numerous valuation metrics, including price-to-earnings growth (PEG), enterprise-to-sales and forward price-to-earnings (P/E). You can argue that rock-bottom interest rates make stocks a “relatively” better investment than bonds and other asset types, but that argument sounds a little like every other excuse investors make at the height of a market bubble. #-ad_banner-# Investors with long time horizons can shift to cash and wait until the market rolls over, snapping up stocks at better valuations. Traders and shorter-term investors don’t have that luxury. They need to capitalize on weakness and hedge their long holdings. I’ve found a company that may be a perfect candidate for one of my favorite market-hedging strategies.  Insiders and an activist hedge fund are unloading millions of this company’s shares, which are trading at a 74% premium to the five-year average… Read More

It’s been nearly three decades since the prefix “robo” entered the popular lexicon, thanks to the 1987 film RoboCop, in which a fatally wounded policeman returns to fight crime as a powerful cyborg. (My own initial viewing of the movie came courtesy of a bootlegged VHS tape in a basement in Ukraine, but that’s another story.) Since then, we’ve been exposed to robopets, robosigners, robocallers, and robochefs, among others. And now the investing community has a “robo” of its own, and it’s emerging as one of the biggest trends in the money-management business: robo-advising.  —Sponsored Link—… Read More

It’s been nearly three decades since the prefix “robo” entered the popular lexicon, thanks to the 1987 film RoboCop, in which a fatally wounded policeman returns to fight crime as a powerful cyborg. (My own initial viewing of the movie came courtesy of a bootlegged VHS tape in a basement in Ukraine, but that’s another story.) Since then, we’ve been exposed to robopets, robosigners, robocallers, and robochefs, among others. And now the investing community has a “robo” of its own, and it’s emerging as one of the biggest trends in the money-management business: robo-advising.  —Sponsored Link— The Greatest Commodity Shortage In History It’s no secret the world faces shortages in many commodities. The world’s diminishing supply of everything from cocoa to coffee… lithium to lumber… phosphate to plutonium… silver to sugar… is of great concern. But there’s an even bigger and more imminent commodity shortage at hand that no one is talking about. Details here. Mostly thanks to their rock-bottom costs — robo-advisers have progressed from relative obscurity just a few years ago to a becoming a significant force in the industry.  Management consulting firm A.T. Kearney recently predicted that robo-advisors… Read More