Warren Buffett is currently earning a 39% dividend yield on his shares of Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO). It seems impossible. If you or I were to buy the shares today, we’d… Read More

When it comes to investing in high-tech stocks, you need to catch companies at the right phase of their growth spurt. Major profits were made in companies like Dell (Nasdaq: DELL), Cisco Systems (Nasdaq: CSCO) and Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) while they were still being introduced to fresh new waves of… Read More

When industry veterans are asked to join a company’s board of directors, they are expected to stick around for many years. That gives them the accumulated knowledge of a company’s operations, industry positioning and economic sensitivity to help guide forward-looking investment planning decisions. And right now, many of these directors… Read More

We’re now more than a dozen years removed from the stock market meltdown that heralded the end of dot-com era. A number of e-commerce stocks went on to disappear after the boom ended, though the companies that survived grew stronger over time. Companies… Read More

There is no question that smoking is a dirty, unhealthy habit. I can remember back when smoking was popular. The smell of cigarette smoke permeated nearly everything, particularly public spaces and offices. Even in high school, where it was banned inside, there was a smoking area outside the cafeteria and… Read More

Rail shippers are one of the few industries benefiting from higher energy prices. That’s because rising crude and gasoline prices have caused many companies to switch from trucking to more cost-effective rail services to ship their goods. That fundamental shift in the shipping landscape has been a… Read More

It came down to an esoteric measure that maybe one investor in 100 gives a hoot about. It didn’t have to be like this. I was interested in insurance, notably Aon (NYSE: AON) and Marsh McClendon & Co. (NYSE:… Read More

I can’t tell you how many times a client walks out of my office with my last pen, drains my last bit of ink asking for an extra report, or I find myself one or two envelopes short for a client mailing. I’m left jumping into my car for a… Read More

Just like the broader economy, various industries go through phases of retrenchment, growth and then a peak. If you hold off on investing in these cyclical industries until growth is robust, then you’ve missed the boat. Various studies indicate that stock prices peak about… Read More

Nick Dreystadt is an Unsung Hero of American business. In 1933, the engineer knocked on the boardroom door at General Motors (NYSE: GM) and asked to be heard for ten minutes. He said he could take GM’s most problematic division and make it profitable within 18 months. Read More