If you’re going to be a landlord, then it’s crucial to find good tenants — ones that will never bounce a check, always pay on time and stick around for the long-term.  I’ve found a company that rents to the absolute most dependable tenant you can find: The U.S. Government. You see, although Uncle Sam owns nearly 10,000 buildings, he’s also the nation’s largest renter.  And as it turns out, renting to the government is quite profitable. Think about it… Government tenants tend to stay in the same office for decades without moving around, and they don’t bounce rent checks. Read More

If you’re going to be a landlord, then it’s crucial to find good tenants — ones that will never bounce a check, always pay on time and stick around for the long-term.  I’ve found a company that rents to the absolute most dependable tenant you can find: The U.S. Government. You see, although Uncle Sam owns nearly 10,000 buildings, he’s also the nation’s largest renter.  And as it turns out, renting to the government is quite profitable. Think about it… Government tenants tend to stay in the same office for decades without moving around, and they don’t bounce rent checks.   That’s why I like Government Properties Trust (NYSE: GOV) so much. As a top landlord to Uncle Sam, this real estate investment trust (or REIT) throws off ample cash flow, translating into a rock-solid 10% dividend yield for investors who buy the stock today.  That’s a lot of reward for very little risk.  The company leases office buildings to well-funded government agencies such as the Department of Defense, the Social Security Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Justice, the Department of Energy, the Department of Homeland Security, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for… Read More

#-ad_banner-#I’m fortunate to live in a city with generally strong economic activity and new business development. Still, even in the shadow of new construction, there are businesses dying off.  A few days ago I stopped in for lunch at a local place, only to see an “Out of Business” sign on the door. A few miles away, a well-known chain restaurant finally threw in the towel and moved out of its location as well. I also noticed across the street, yet another chain-restaurant location is now vacant.  Still, we have an abundance of casual dining options in my city. And… Read More

#-ad_banner-#I’m fortunate to live in a city with generally strong economic activity and new business development. Still, even in the shadow of new construction, there are businesses dying off.  A few days ago I stopped in for lunch at a local place, only to see an “Out of Business” sign on the door. A few miles away, a well-known chain restaurant finally threw in the towel and moved out of its location as well. I also noticed across the street, yet another chain-restaurant location is now vacant.  Still, we have an abundance of casual dining options in my city. And just like in nature, the cruel reality is that some businesses will feast while others starve. The weakest must find a way to differentiate themselves and attract customers — or risk extinction.  That’s true everywhere — and it’s especially important to keep in mind when investing. I’ve been thinking about this a great deal lately as I re-read the profound insights of Michael Porter, the legendary business school professor at Harvard. He is a leading authority on competitive strategies and when he’s not teaching classes or writing books, he mentors newly-appointed CEOs at large corporations. Frankly, the key messages Porter… Read More

With all of the recent stock market gyrations associated with events in Greece and China, investors may have failed to notice what is happening in the bond market.  The rate on the 10-year U.S. Treasury has fallen nearly 10% to 2.2% since mid-July, taking corporate bond yields down as well. The yield in one sector has actually increased though and has rarely been higher. Besides the higher yield, values have come down and historical data suggest solid returns over the next year.   #-ad_banner-# Earn A 7% Yield And 40% Potential Upside Strong long-term demand for pipeline transportation and… Read More

With all of the recent stock market gyrations associated with events in Greece and China, investors may have failed to notice what is happening in the bond market.  The rate on the 10-year U.S. Treasury has fallen nearly 10% to 2.2% since mid-July, taking corporate bond yields down as well. The yield in one sector has actually increased though and has rarely been higher. Besides the higher yield, values have come down and historical data suggest solid returns over the next year.   #-ad_banner-# Earn A 7% Yield And 40% Potential Upside Strong long-term demand for pipeline transportation and energy storage has not been enough to save midstream master limited partnerships (MLPs) from their energy-related selloff. Energy may have fallen out of favor lately, but it’s important to remember that the U.S. energy production renaissance is a multi-decade theme. While oil and gas production may ebb and flow, the demand for pipeline transportation will remain extremely strong. A clear sign of industry demand: Roughly 850,000 barrels of oil are transported daily on our nation’s rails, despite relatively higher costs for that mode of transport. The knee-jerk reaction to lower energy prices has led to steep cuts in capital spending… Read More

The other morning, I drove myself half-crazy looking for my car keys. It must have taken me almost a half hour to find them. And when I did, they were sitting — in plain sight — on my hall table. The reason I had trouble finding my keys, of course, was that they weren’t where I usually put them. I’m so used to looking in the same places that I walked right by my hall table without a glance. #-ad_banner-#The same thing happens to securities that pay irregular — or special — dividends. Read More

The other morning, I drove myself half-crazy looking for my car keys. It must have taken me almost a half hour to find them. And when I did, they were sitting — in plain sight — on my hall table. The reason I had trouble finding my keys, of course, was that they weren’t where I usually put them. I’m so used to looking in the same places that I walked right by my hall table without a glance. #-ad_banner-#The same thing happens to securities that pay irregular — or special — dividends. I call them “Wall Street Irregulars.” These dividend payers offer above-average yields, yet most investors skip right over them. That’s because popular investment resources like Yahoo! Finance rarely reflect the total yield these companies offer. Most brokerage and investment websites only take a stock’s most recent dividend payment and multiply it times the payment frequency to get a stock’s annual dividend. The websites then use the computed annual dividend to calculate the yield. So while the “posted yield” — the yield investors see listed — may… Read More

Last year, I was reminded of one of the most important keys to building a successful income-generating portfolio. The epiphany came when I was stuck at the airport while on a family vacation, of all things. #-ad_banner-#Most of us wait to board our plane with little thought to the activity going on outside the terminal. While we check our email one last time, a bevy of critical activities are taking place to ensure our flight arrives and leaves in a safe and timely fashion. This may seem arbitrary, but in fact… Read More

Last year, I was reminded of one of the most important keys to building a successful income-generating portfolio. The epiphany came when I was stuck at the airport while on a family vacation, of all things. #-ad_banner-#Most of us wait to board our plane with little thought to the activity going on outside the terminal. While we check our email one last time, a bevy of critical activities are taking place to ensure our flight arrives and leaves in a safe and timely fashion. This may seem arbitrary, but in fact it’s the premise of a highly profitable, often overlooked business. You may not know this, but these vital services are commonly performed by private contractors known as fixed base operators (FBOs). In addition to the sale of aviation fuel, FBOs also handle parking, hangaring and tie-down. In some cases, they offer ancillary services ranging from maintenance and repair to in-flight food and beverage catering. Imagine a town with only one gas station, and you appreciate the advantageous position that these FBOs are exploiting. Most (but not all) airport operating authorities grant a single FBO… Read More

Sometimes you need to venture off the beaten path to find the best investment ideas. As Chief Investment Strategist of StreetAuthority’s High-Yield International newsletter, I can personally attest to the truth in that statement. I spend my days in search of the best dividend payers around the world, unearthing the kinds of high-yielding investment ideas you’re not likely to hear about anywhere else. This has allowed my subscribers and me to earn double-digit yields from solid international companies, while most investors limit themselves to the paltry yields offered by U.S. stocks. Read More

Sometimes you need to venture off the beaten path to find the best investment ideas. As Chief Investment Strategist of StreetAuthority’s High-Yield International newsletter, I can personally attest to the truth in that statement. I spend my days in search of the best dividend payers around the world, unearthing the kinds of high-yielding investment ideas you’re not likely to hear about anywhere else. This has allowed my subscribers and me to earn double-digit yields from solid international companies, while most investors limit themselves to the paltry yields offered by U.S. stocks. Today, I want to share one of my latest investment ideas with you — one that I don’t think you’ll hear about anywhere else. Due to centuries of overfishing, global wild fish supplies have been depleted to crisis levels. The Census of Marine Life completed a 10-year study in 2010 and found that 90% of the world’s big fish had disappeared from the ocean. The United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization released a study in 2014 that found 87% of the world’s marine stocks fully fished or overfished. Read More

Here’s a simple question: Do you invest in stocks or in companies? Stock-focused investors assess financial statements, technical charts and other gauges to help them know a good value when they see one. Investors in companies prefer to focus on the business itself, while fundamental and technical considerations play a secondary role. #-ad_banner-#This “buy a great company at any price” approach may seem foolish, but it’s actually quite wise. Let me explain. Great companies will deliver solid returns year after year. You may not find such a company… Read More

Here’s a simple question: Do you invest in stocks or in companies? Stock-focused investors assess financial statements, technical charts and other gauges to help them know a good value when they see one. Investors in companies prefer to focus on the business itself, while fundamental and technical considerations play a secondary role. #-ad_banner-#This “buy a great company at any price” approach may seem foolish, but it’s actually quite wise. Let me explain. Great companies will deliver solid returns year after year. You may not find such a company before the crowd, but you can still reap ample gains after the train has left the station. To illustrate my point, let’s talk about Magellan Midstream Partners, L.P. (NYSE: MMP). A decade ago, this nationwide oil and gas pipeline operator was added to my colleague Nathan Slaughter’s High-Yield Investing portfolio when shares traded for around $10. At the time, the company paid a $1 annual dividend, good for an impressive 10% yield. If you were a subscriber to Nathan’s newsletter at the start of 2011, you would likely have noted that… Read More

The year 2004 was one of the most exciting times of my life. The future looked bright. That was the year I beat out hundreds of candidates to enter an exclusive bond-trading program for a multi-billion-dollar brokerage firm. #-ad_banner-#I was going to dig deeper than ever into the market. I was going to be around market junkies all day. And most importantly, I was going to become a trading hotshot and make a few million bucks before I turned 30. Three years later, two of those things had come true, and… Read More

The year 2004 was one of the most exciting times of my life. The future looked bright. That was the year I beat out hundreds of candidates to enter an exclusive bond-trading program for a multi-billion-dollar brokerage firm. #-ad_banner-#I was going to dig deeper than ever into the market. I was going to be around market junkies all day. And most importantly, I was going to become a trading hotshot and make a few million bucks before I turned 30. Three years later, two of those things had come true, and one had not… After spending years fully entrenched in the markets and learning from the sharpest minds in the business, I learned a valuable lesson: trading is no quick path to riches. The cumulative effect of making a few hundred trades a day for years left me emotionally and financially spent. I found myself at a crossroads. I had loved the market ever since joining the stock market club in sixth grade. I wasn’t ready to walk away from it completely, but it was clear that my relationship with the market needed to evolve. Read More

Over the next few decades, the world’s population will be older on average than it’s ever been before. Brazil’s senior population is expected to grow to 30% of the total population in 2030 from just 10% in 2014. A quarter of Europe’s population will be above 65 by 2030, and Japan’s 65-plus population will climb to 38% in 2055. #-ad_banner-#In 15 years, China will have an estimated 340 million people over the age of 60. That’s nearly four times larger than the United States’ projected 92 million senior citizens. People all… Read More

Over the next few decades, the world’s population will be older on average than it’s ever been before. Brazil’s senior population is expected to grow to 30% of the total population in 2030 from just 10% in 2014. A quarter of Europe’s population will be above 65 by 2030, and Japan’s 65-plus population will climb to 38% in 2055. #-ad_banner-#In 15 years, China will have an estimated 340 million people over the age of 60. That’s nearly four times larger than the United States’ projected 92 million senior citizens. People all over the world are living longer than they did 50 years ago, and the growing global senior population is driving a steady wave of demand for drugs and medicine. Pharmaceutical industry research firm EvaluatePharma recently projected global pharma sales at $1.107 trillion in 2020, up from $750 billion in 2014. The best-selling drugs will treat chronic illnesses and diseases more prevalent in the elderly such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, dementia and Alzheimer’s. U.S. drug companies, like Pfizer (NYSE: PFE), will benefit from this trend, but I expect foreign-based companies to benefit… Read More

Income investments are an important portion of any retirement portfolio. Historically, they’ve provided retirees monthly or quarterly income distributions to help cover expenses, healthcare and any other living expenses. #-ad_banner-#The other morning I was perusing a Morgan Stanley Smith Barney report that outlined four different 401(k) allocations. While there are many factors that go into an individual investor’s asset allocation, the portfolios range from 25%-to-60% in income-producing bonds. Along with bonds, the portfolios invest anywhere from 10%-to-54% in large-cap stocks. Assuming that part of the… Read More

Income investments are an important portion of any retirement portfolio. Historically, they’ve provided retirees monthly or quarterly income distributions to help cover expenses, healthcare and any other living expenses. #-ad_banner-#The other morning I was perusing a Morgan Stanley Smith Barney report that outlined four different 401(k) allocations. While there are many factors that go into an individual investor’s asset allocation, the portfolios range from 25%-to-60% in income-producing bonds. Along with bonds, the portfolios invest anywhere from 10%-to-54% in large-cap stocks. Assuming that part of the reason for investing in these types of assets is to add income-producing securities to your portfolio, a logical question to ask is: Do these models account for the lower yields that we’re seeing in the current environment? I doubt it. If you’re trying to earn income by investing in large-cap stocks and bonds, you face serious obstacles. Mainly that yields are down across the board…   The average yield in the S&P 500 is only 1.9%. At that rate, you’re not even keeping up with inflation. It would… Read More