One of the most overlooked aspects of the market is the fact that as the economy rebounds, consumers aren’t alone in loosening their purse strings — businesses do, too.#-ad_banner-#​ Specifically, 2014 should see a higher level of securities trading and companies looking to make strategic investments. That means companies will increasingly be looking for advice and to raise money and buy up competitors.  Thus, investment banks should perform fairly well in 2014. On the other side, there should be a higher level of trading this year, which is good news for brokerage firms.  One of the best growth… Read More

One of the most overlooked aspects of the market is the fact that as the economy rebounds, consumers aren’t alone in loosening their purse strings — businesses do, too.#-ad_banner-#​ Specifically, 2014 should see a higher level of securities trading and companies looking to make strategic investments. That means companies will increasingly be looking for advice and to raise money and buy up competitors.  Thus, investment banks should perform fairly well in 2014. On the other side, there should be a higher level of trading this year, which is good news for brokerage firms.  One of the best growth plays for 2014 is a company that has exposure to both the brokerage and investment banking industries. Stifel Financial (NYSE: SF) is just that, and it appears to be one of the best plays in this highly fragmented industry.  Stifel is also playing its part in consolidating the industry. The company has spent upwards of $2 billion on acquisitions since 1997, and now has total client assets under management of $154 billion and 5,800 employees. Acquisitions and mergers should continue to be a great way for Stifel to snatch up market share, as well as gaining market share through organic… Read More

Many people don’t believe that disconnects like the one I’m about to tell you about can happen. They believe that with all of the eyeballs on Wall Street, someone (and likely many people) would surely spot a rising star like this. But that’s not at all true. And I can prove it to you. #-ad_banner-#Just look at the stats on a stock I’ve uncovered earlier this month in my premium advisory, Top 10 Stocks. This firm is one of the most established companies in the metals business. But it’s not resting on its laurels. In 2009, management set out a… Read More

Many people don’t believe that disconnects like the one I’m about to tell you about can happen. They believe that with all of the eyeballs on Wall Street, someone (and likely many people) would surely spot a rising star like this. But that’s not at all true. And I can prove it to you. #-ad_banner-#Just look at the stats on a stock I’ve uncovered earlier this month in my premium advisory, Top 10 Stocks. This firm is one of the most established companies in the metals business. But it’s not resting on its laurels. In 2009, management set out a program of cost-cutting and efficiency improvements designed to boost this company’s profitability. Since that time, margins have jumped to a projected 21.9% for 2013, up an astonishing 65% from 2009 levels. Growth like this should send stock buyers scrambling to call their brokers. But here’s the incredible thing: Today, you can buy this firm for 45% less than when it started its relentless margin improvements. This sounds too good to be true. Surely there must be something wrong. Perhaps there’s a hidden defect that’s causing investors to drop the stock? The reason for this disconnect has nothing to do with… Read More

Shares of T-Mobile US (NYSE: TMUS) popped almost 9% last month on news that Sprint (NYSE: S) would seek a buyout of the wireless carrier. Coming less than a year after Japanese giant Softbank (OTC: SFTBF) acquired Sprint, the move heats up the battle for telecom supremacy.#-ad_banner-#​ Investors are cheering on both sides of the potential deal, but they may be in for a rude awakening when the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) weighs in.  Four has always been a magic number for telecom carriers. The idea is that if the industry consolidated… Read More

Shares of T-Mobile US (NYSE: TMUS) popped almost 9% last month on news that Sprint (NYSE: S) would seek a buyout of the wireless carrier. Coming less than a year after Japanese giant Softbank (OTC: SFTBF) acquired Sprint, the move heats up the battle for telecom supremacy.#-ad_banner-#​ Investors are cheering on both sides of the potential deal, but they may be in for a rude awakening when the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) weighs in.  Four has always been a magic number for telecom carriers. The idea is that if the industry consolidated to fewer than four carriers, an oligopoly would form and prices would go up. That’s part of the reason regulators jumped in when AT&T (NYSE: T) tried to buy T-Mobile in 2011. While a Sprint/T-Mobile combination would still be smaller than either AT&T or Verizon (NYSE: VZ), it would still put considerable pricing power in the hands of just three companies. I alerted investors in October to T-Mobile’s great turnaround story and the success in its Uncarrier program. TMUS is up more than 25% since that article — but the valuation looks stretched, especially if regulators put the kibosh on an… Read More

This just in: The Department of Agriculture warns that record droughts in Texas and the Midwest may drop beef production to 20-year lows in 2014. I can just see the writing on the wall over the next few days about how you should steer clear of McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD), that higher costs to the burger empire will strangle its already tight margins.#-ad_banner-# Expect analysts to dwell on its mere 2.5% growth in profits last year and MCD’s 4% gain on the year — pathetic in the context of a record bull run.  Analysts may focus on McDonald’s’ struggles… Read More

This just in: The Department of Agriculture warns that record droughts in Texas and the Midwest may drop beef production to 20-year lows in 2014. I can just see the writing on the wall over the next few days about how you should steer clear of McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD), that higher costs to the burger empire will strangle its already tight margins.#-ad_banner-# Expect analysts to dwell on its mere 2.5% growth in profits last year and MCD’s 4% gain on the year — pathetic in the context of a record bull run.  Analysts may focus on McDonald’s’ struggles in China and Europe or the absence of restaurants in a number of emerging markets. Some could even bring up past menu disasters like the McDLT, McLean Deluxe, McSalad Shakers and McLobster… and the recent switch from Heinz ketchup. But my argument for investing in McDonald’s is based on one simple trait that the Big Mac maker shares with Big Pharma and Big Tobacco — but has nothing to do with food, drugs or cigarettes. They’re all experts at converting revenue into cash — and regularly divvying up portions to shareholders.  Between 2008 and the third quarter of last year,… Read More

In my look last summer at what makes for a great brand, I alerted StreetAuthority readers to a rapidly growing, dividend-paying company that happens to be steeped in American legend and lore.#-ad_banner-#​ Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson, actors Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda, and the outlaw motorcycle club Hells Angels have all had a part in building the powerful mythos around this company — one that has translated into massive profits for its investors. When that article was published Aug. 1, this stock was trading around $57. Since that time, it has surpassed my… Read More

In my look last summer at what makes for a great brand, I alerted StreetAuthority readers to a rapidly growing, dividend-paying company that happens to be steeped in American legend and lore.#-ad_banner-#​ Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson, actors Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda, and the outlaw motorcycle club Hells Angels have all had a part in building the powerful mythos around this company — one that has translated into massive profits for its investors. When that article was published Aug. 1, this stock was trading around $57. Since that time, it has surpassed my target price, soaring close to 20% to a 52-week high near $70 in less than six months. Fortunately, it’s not too late to capture additional upside in this 110-year-old company.  This company is continuing to post fantastic numbers, pays an unswerving dividend and participates in an aggressive share buyback program — not to mention the fanatical loyalty it inspires in its customers. If you haven’t guessed, I’m talking about Harley-Davidson (NYSE: HOG). The famed motorcycle company posted a blowout third quarter with a nearly 24% increase in diluted earnings per share and U.S. motorcycle sales revving up more than 20%… Read More

The old saying “one bad apple spoils the bunch” can apply to most facets of life, including investing.#-ad_banner-#​ But it doesn’t always hold true. I don’t think it holds true at all for a certain entertainment company notorious for its news channel’s decidedly conservative political bent. In fact, I’ve heard investors say they’d never buy the company’s stock simply because of the news channel. But they might be more inclined to reconsider if they realized what they’re passing up — a chance at triple-digit gains from an industry leader that offers much more than news programming. As I’m… Read More

The old saying “one bad apple spoils the bunch” can apply to most facets of life, including investing.#-ad_banner-#​ But it doesn’t always hold true. I don’t think it holds true at all for a certain entertainment company notorious for its news channel’s decidedly conservative political bent. In fact, I’ve heard investors say they’d never buy the company’s stock simply because of the news channel. But they might be more inclined to reconsider if they realized what they’re passing up — a chance at triple-digit gains from an industry leader that offers much more than news programming. As I’m sure you’ve guessed, the “bad apple” I’m referring to is Fox News. “The bunch” is the media and entertainment conglomerate that controls it, Twenty-First Century Fox (Nasdaq: FOXA), which was spun off from News Corp. (Nasdaq: NWS) last June. Actually, it’s not fair to label Fox News a bad apple if you consider its value purely from an investing standpoint. The channel has tens of millions of regular viewers and generates more than $1.2 billion in annual revenue. Whatever your opinion of Fox News, I suggest you put aside your political leanings for a few moments and take a closer… Read More

It’s turned scores of investors into millionaires. It goes against everything taught in business school… and against conventional wisdom… yet it’s helped many businesses go from nothing to a billion dollars in a few years.  We’ve all heard sayings like:  “Customer is king.”  “The customer is always right.”  “You’ve got to give the people what they want.”  If you search the Internet, you’ll find thousands of articles with headlines like this from Forbes: “Listening to Your Customers Yields Success.” But what truly great investors realize is…  If you want the potential for life-altering profits, you have to invest in companies… Read More

It’s turned scores of investors into millionaires. It goes against everything taught in business school… and against conventional wisdom… yet it’s helped many businesses go from nothing to a billion dollars in a few years.  We’ve all heard sayings like:  “Customer is king.”  “The customer is always right.”  “You’ve got to give the people what they want.”  If you search the Internet, you’ll find thousands of articles with headlines like this from Forbes: “Listening to Your Customers Yields Success.” But what truly great investors realize is…  If you want the potential for life-altering profits, you have to invest in companies that forget about customers. #-ad_banner-#That’s the great secret.  It’s the opposite of what you’d expect. But when you think about it, it’s absolutely true. And when you find a company doing this, you know you’re in luck. Ford Motors is good example. Henry Ford showed a total disregard for customers. When asked about adding color variety to cars, he famously quipped, “Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black.”  He’s also alleged to have said, “If I’d asked people what they wanted, they would have said, ‘faster horses.'” And he’s… Read More

Imagine a company that not only filed bankruptcy in 2009, but was bounced from owner to owner as a nearly toxic asset that fateful year. Things were so bad for this once thriving American firm that it was forced to accept a $4 billion bailout.#-ad_banner-#​ Despite Uncle Sam’s helping hand, the situation was so negative that the company stopped trading on the U.S. stock exchanges. While there’s now serious talk about being relisted, this formerly downtrodden company currently trades in the U.S. only under its foreign benefactor’s ticker symbol. This company isn’t some no-name widget maker. It was… Read More

Imagine a company that not only filed bankruptcy in 2009, but was bounced from owner to owner as a nearly toxic asset that fateful year. Things were so bad for this once thriving American firm that it was forced to accept a $4 billion bailout.#-ad_banner-#​ Despite Uncle Sam’s helping hand, the situation was so negative that the company stopped trading on the U.S. stock exchanges. While there’s now serious talk about being relisted, this formerly downtrodden company currently trades in the U.S. only under its foreign benefactor’s ticker symbol. This company isn’t some no-name widget maker. It was once a leading American manufacturer whose brands have remained respected and international household names despite its fall from grace. Today, an unexpected resurgence of consumer demand for some of its leading products has enabled the company to post dramatically improved numbers as well as create a unique, profitable opportunity for investors. I am talking about Chrysler Group, maker of the iconic Jeep SUV and Ram pickup models. Decimated by the financial crisis combined with soaring gasoline prices, it looked like sales of SUVs and light trucks would never recover to their pre-crisis levels. Now that the worst of the downturn… Read More

While thumbing through an old copy of “Beating the Street” recently, I came across a basic but powerful concept that applies just as much now as it did when legendary investor Peter Lynch wrote the book in 1993.#-ad_banner-# Basically, Lynch reminds readers that just because a stock is already a huge multi-bagger doesn’t necessarily mean its high-flying days are over. After I read that, one particular stock came to mind. Like most stocks, the one I’m thinking of took a major beating during the financial crisis. It sank to about $7 per share in… Read More

While thumbing through an old copy of “Beating the Street” recently, I came across a basic but powerful concept that applies just as much now as it did when legendary investor Peter Lynch wrote the book in 1993.#-ad_banner-# Basically, Lynch reminds readers that just because a stock is already a huge multi-bagger doesn’t necessarily mean its high-flying days are over. After I read that, one particular stock came to mind. Like most stocks, the one I’m thinking of took a major beating during the financial crisis. It sank to about $7 per share in October 2008 after trading between $11 and $18 during the prior 12 months. But in 2009, it rebounded like a champ, posting a 94% gain to finish the year just over $19. Since the darkest days of 2008, the stock is up 650% and now trades near $49 a share. After such a steep run-up, shareholders in this company, AutoNation (NYSE: AN), may be wondering if now is a good time to sell. After all, how much higher can the stock go after a sevenfold rise in five years? Quite a bit higher, in my opinion. I think the stock… Read More

Successful investing is all about figuring out what something is worth and then paying significantly less than that for it. If you can do that over and over again, you’ll have found yourself a recipe for success.#-ad_banner-#​ It sounds easy, but of course it isn’t. It takes a lot of hard work and patience to find situations where the market is offering up such juicy bargains.  I believe that there is one such bargain sitting in plain view today. This is a well-known company that I think offers investors the chance to buy a dollar’s worth of assets… Read More

Successful investing is all about figuring out what something is worth and then paying significantly less than that for it. If you can do that over and over again, you’ll have found yourself a recipe for success.#-ad_banner-#​ It sounds easy, but of course it isn’t. It takes a lot of hard work and patience to find situations where the market is offering up such juicy bargains.  I believe that there is one such bargain sitting in plain view today. This is a well-known company that I think offers investors the chance to buy a dollar’s worth of assets for 25 cents. The evidence to support that valuation is quite compelling, but the question of when that value might be realized is difficult to answer. The company I’m talking about is Sears Holdings (Nasdaq: SHLD).  Many people are familiar with the Sears story. Hedge fund manager Eddie Lampert gained control of Kmart in 2003 by buying up the company’s debt and exchanging that debt for equity during bankruptcy proceedings. That was a home run for Lampert. Then in 2004, Lampert had Kmart acquire Sears to form Sears Holdings. Investors were thrilled with this hedge fund star taking control of two… Read More