Traders have been buying everything this month, and that could continue to push prices higher in stocks while fueling a turnaround in bonds and gold. Headlines Hide the Good News in Earnings Despite some headline grabbing disappointments, earnings season is actually off to a good start. About one-fifth of the companies in the S&P 500 index have reported earnings,… Read More

Traders have been buying everything this month, and that could continue to push prices higher in stocks while fueling a turnaround in bonds and gold. Headlines Hide the Good News in Earnings Despite some headline grabbing disappointments, earnings season is actually off to a good start. About one-fifth of the companies in the S&P 500 index have reported earnings, and 66.4% have beaten estimates. Over the past four quarters, 64.6% of companies have beaten estimates on average. We are still weeks away from knowing what the number will ultimately be for this quarter, but it is a promising start.#-ad_banner-# Headlines have been focused on the companies that have come in below expectations. That list includes Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) and Google (Nasdaq: GOOG). INTC fell 3.6% for the week, MSFT was down 12%, and GOOG was off 2.9%. These losses weighed down PowerShares… Read More

Less than a decade ago, Petrobras (NYSE: PBR) was the hottest oil company on the planet. A massive offshore discovery led the residents of Sao Paolo and Rio de Janeiro to dance in the streets, looking ahead to the day when all that oil money would circulate through the economy.  Yet year after year, Petrobras has managed to disappoint its backers in new and novel ways. The oil giant vastly overspent to get those big oil fields ready for production,… Read More

Less than a decade ago, Petrobras (NYSE: PBR) was the hottest oil company on the planet. A massive offshore discovery led the residents of Sao Paolo and Rio de Janeiro to dance in the streets, looking ahead to the day when all that oil money would circulate through the economy.  Yet year after year, Petrobras has managed to disappoint its backers in new and novel ways. The oil giant vastly overspent to get those big oil fields ready for production, the Brazilian government sought onerous levels of taxes from the company, and investors had to sit idly by as the company issued massive blocks of new shares, leading to hefty dilution. Just how badly did things turn out? Back in 2007, before Petrobras began the heavy lifting to start production on its major new oil fields, the company had 23% operating margins and earnings per share of around $3. Read More

I love James Bond flicks, preferably from the Sean Connery era. “Goldfinger” is one of my favorites. I am often reminded by the classic scene in which a captive James Bond is seconds away from being charred by a laser. James Bond: “Do you expect me to talk?” Goldfinger: “No, Mr. Bond — I expect you to die!” Quintessential 007: Ridiculous stunts and jams, sports cars, beautiful women and a dastardly, almost clownish villain — in this case, one whose plan was to poison the U.S. gold supply at Fort Knox to create… Read More

I love James Bond flicks, preferably from the Sean Connery era. “Goldfinger” is one of my favorites. I am often reminded by the classic scene in which a captive James Bond is seconds away from being charred by a laser. James Bond: “Do you expect me to talk?” Goldfinger: “No, Mr. Bond — I expect you to die!” Quintessential 007: Ridiculous stunts and jams, sports cars, beautiful women and a dastardly, almost clownish villain — in this case, one whose plan was to poison the U.S. gold supply at Fort Knox to create global financial chaos. His endgame? Simply to drive up the value of his own gold holdings.#-ad_banner-# Frankly, it sounds like walking around the block to get across the street. But hey, it’s a James Bond movie. Since the financial crisis of 2008, the global villain that seemed destined to wreak havoc wasn’t a fat guy who liked to cheat at golf. The perceived villain was hard-core, runaway, Weimar/Zimbabwe-style global hyperinflation caused by central bank quantitative easing programs. However, that scary train hasn’t arrived at the station yet… Read More

Beleaguered shareholders of this coal miner probably feel like Lee Dorsey in the classic 1966 song “Working in the Coal Mine”: “Lord! I’m so tired! How long can this go on?” That’s a good question. It’s been a wild ride for Walter Energy (NYSE: WLT) over the past seven years. The share price is lower than it was during the apex of the financial crisis. But while there was a massive sell-off of all types of assets in 2008 and 2009, current conditions seem much more stable. So what gives? The End Of The Supercycle With… Read More

Beleaguered shareholders of this coal miner probably feel like Lee Dorsey in the classic 1966 song “Working in the Coal Mine”: “Lord! I’m so tired! How long can this go on?” That’s a good question. It’s been a wild ride for Walter Energy (NYSE: WLT) over the past seven years. The share price is lower than it was during the apex of the financial crisis. But while there was a massive sell-off of all types of assets in 2008 and 2009, current conditions seem much more stable. So what gives? The End Of The Supercycle With explosive economic growth in emerging markets such as the BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India and China) has come a rapid escalation in commodity prices based on what has seemed like an insatiable need for raw materials. Commodity producers and investors have enjoyed very good returns. How good? This 10-year chart of the S&P GSCI Commodity Index says it all. But these days? Not so much. As the U.S. dollar strengthens, commodity prices… Read More

Beleaguered shareholders of this coal miner probably feel like Lee Dorsey in the classic 1966 song “Working in the Coal Mine”: “Lord! I’m so tired! How long can this go on?” That’s a good question. It’s been a wild ride for Walter Energy (NYSE: WLT) over the past seven years. The share price is lower than it was during the apex of the financial crisis. But while there was a massive sell-off of all types of assets in 2008 and 2009, current conditions seem much more stable. So what gives? The End Of The Supercycle With… Read More

Beleaguered shareholders of this coal miner probably feel like Lee Dorsey in the classic 1966 song “Working in the Coal Mine”: “Lord! I’m so tired! How long can this go on?” That’s a good question. It’s been a wild ride for Walter Energy (NYSE: WLT) over the past seven years. The share price is lower than it was during the apex of the financial crisis. But while there was a massive sell-off of all types of assets in 2008 and 2009, current conditions seem much more stable. So what gives? The End Of The Supercycle With explosive economic growth in emerging markets such as the BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India and China) has come a rapid escalation in commodity prices based on what has seemed like an insatiable need for raw materials. Commodity producers and investors have enjoyed very good returns. How good? This 10-year chart of the S&P GSCI Commodity Index says it all. But these days? Not so much. As the U.S. dollar strengthens, commodity prices… Read More

Let’s be realistic. You’re NOT going to get rich in a hurry by investing in mainstream blue-chip stocks. The S&P 500 is a handy benchmark and a good proxy for the U.S. economy, but it’s not going to make anyone rich unless you have decades to invest. If you want to truly soar above the market, you have to dedicate at least part of your portfolio to serious big-game hunting. With that in mind, my team and I just released a report on my boldest predictions for 2014. (On Tuesday, I told you about one prediction.) These are ideas that… Read More

Let’s be realistic. You’re NOT going to get rich in a hurry by investing in mainstream blue-chip stocks. The S&P 500 is a handy benchmark and a good proxy for the U.S. economy, but it’s not going to make anyone rich unless you have decades to invest. If you want to truly soar above the market, you have to dedicate at least part of your portfolio to serious big-game hunting. With that in mind, my team and I just released a report on my boldest predictions for 2014. (On Tuesday, I told you about one prediction.) These are ideas that you won’t hear about in the mainstream financial press until it’s too late. In the past, my previous predictions have returned thousands of dollars to subscribers of my newsletter Game-Changing Stocks. Here’s a brief look at a few of the triple-digit winners… But my ideas for 2014 are some of the most exciting to date. In fact, I had such a hard time limiting myself to just 11 “game-changing” ideas that I had to leave some off the list.#-ad_banner-# I want to share one of these ideas with you today. Just because it didn’t make the cut… Read More

Whenever I’m faced with a major change in my opinion regarding the market‘s long-term direction, I think of the English punk band the Clash.  In particular, the 1980s hit “Should I Stay or Should I Go” comes to mind. With apologies to the song’s writers:  “Should I buy or should I sell? If I buy, there will be trouble / If I sell, it will be double.” #-ad_banner-# Thinking of these altered lyrics might be a nod to being obsessed with music during my adolescence. It might also… Read More

Whenever I’m faced with a major change in my opinion regarding the market‘s long-term direction, I think of the English punk band the Clash.  In particular, the 1980s hit “Should I Stay or Should I Go” comes to mind. With apologies to the song’s writers:  “Should I buy or should I sell? If I buy, there will be trouble / If I sell, it will be double.” #-ad_banner-# Thinking of these altered lyrics might be a nod to being obsessed with music during my adolescence. It might also be a signal that it’s time to make a change. I like to think of them as the latter. Over the past week, I thought of those lyrics when looking at the price of gold. Regular StreetAuthority readers will remember my April 29 article on the precious metal. I had forecast that gold would drop below $1,200 an ounce before bouncing higher. This is exactly what has occurred with gold futures dropping to $1,179 prior to bouncing into the $1,250 range seven sessions later.  This has led me to turn… Read More

When I was growing up in Pittsburgh, nearly everyone had some connection to the steel industry. If not your own parents, then it was your uncle or neighbor who was employed by the huge steel mills lining the riverbanks. Even the city’s pro football team is named in homage to… Read More

If you want to be successful in the stock market, then sometimes you must think like a contrarian. I’ve spent 15 years in the investment industry. In that time, I’ve seen many investors struggle and many others make a fortune. The difference between success and failure usually has little to do with intelligence or analytical skills. Rather, the best investors generally have an ability to stay cool under pressure and the fortitude to break… Read More

If you want to be successful in the stock market, then sometimes you must think like a contrarian. I’ve spent 15 years in the investment industry. In that time, I’ve seen many investors struggle and many others make a fortune. The difference between success and failure usually has little to do with intelligence or analytical skills. Rather, the best investors generally have an ability to stay cool under pressure and the fortitude to break away from the herd when necessary.#-ad_banner-# This is the best way to make money when it comes to commodity investing. Like many investors, I’ve been neutral to bearish for most precious and industrial metals over the past couple of months. However, there is one notable exception. Before I tell you about this metal, let me give you some background on it first… It’s one the scarcest metals on the planet. In fact, for every… Read More

Since the Federal Reserve’s recent announcements regarding the “tapering” of its quantitative easing programs, the real estate investment trust (REIT) market has been in a tailspin. The Dow Jones Equity REIT… Read More