In April 2015, I recommended that my Top 10 Stocks readers buy Kraft Foods (Nasdaq: KRFT). Within 24 hours of my recommendation, the company received a takeover offer from The H. J. Heinz Company — backed by legendary investor Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway and Brazilian private equity giant 3G Capital. Powered by this top-tier endorsement as well as a considerable premium to market on the offer, Kraft soared 45% in two weeks following my recommendation. It was one of the most dramatic wins I’ve ever had the pleasure to be involved with. Read More

In April 2015, I recommended that my Top 10 Stocks readers buy Kraft Foods (Nasdaq: KRFT). Within 24 hours of my recommendation, the company received a takeover offer from The H. J. Heinz Company — backed by legendary investor Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway and Brazilian private equity giant 3G Capital. Powered by this top-tier endorsement as well as a considerable premium to market on the offer, Kraft soared 45% in two weeks following my recommendation. It was one of the most dramatic wins I’ve ever had the pleasure to be involved with. #-ad_banner-#But the truth is that my readers and I nearly missed out on the opportunity. Fortunately I paid attention to the right metrics. The fact is, the timing of my investment was complete serendipity. I had no inkling that a buyout was on tap for Kraft. Had I waited 24 hours to release my April issue, we would have missed the stock’s double-digit bounce entirely. But looking back, there were a number of indicators — some of which were downright glaring — that showed Kraft was ripe for this kind of lavish attention. Read More

For long-term investors, certain characteristics can make a stock virtually irresistible. Key attributes include a compelling portfolio of indispensable products, dominant market share, consistently strong cash flow and clear avenues for future growth. Indeed, such virtues are common in what StreetAuthority refers to as “Forever Stocks.” The term applies to shares of firms that are so financially sound and perform so reliably over the long haul, that investors can feel reasonably safe owning shares for decades. I see such promise in Amphenol Corp. (NYSE: APH), a top producer of electronic and fiber optic connectors, cable and interconnect systems. Amphenol displays… Read More

For long-term investors, certain characteristics can make a stock virtually irresistible. Key attributes include a compelling portfolio of indispensable products, dominant market share, consistently strong cash flow and clear avenues for future growth. Indeed, such virtues are common in what StreetAuthority refers to as “Forever Stocks.” The term applies to shares of firms that are so financially sound and perform so reliably over the long haul, that investors can feel reasonably safe owning shares for decades. I see such promise in Amphenol Corp. (NYSE: APH), a top producer of electronic and fiber optic connectors, cable and interconnect systems. Amphenol displays nearly all of the strengths that long-term investors covet. And with a couple relatively small tweaks, this company could attain the status of Forever Stock. In terms of financial performance, the firm could hardly be more reliable. As the following table shows, revenue, earnings and free cash flow all grew significantly in every full year but one since 2005. Sales, for example, have been compounding by about 13% annually. Any declines were limited to the Great Recession, and in all cases strong growth resumed within a year. Industry-leading profit margins were a consistent theme throughout the period. Amphenol Corp. Financial… Read More

As a resident of New York State’s Hudson Valley, I have met dozens of local citizens who worked for International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) in its heyday. A massive set of layoffs in 1993 meant that Big Blue’s local presence is now almost gone, and the local economy has yet to recover. Two decades later, IBM is still backpedaling. A current initiative, known as Project Chrome, is culling another 100,000 employees from IBM’s global employment base. In some respects, CEO Ginni Rometty has no choice. IBM’s revenue base has already peaked and is expected to drop a precipitous 10%… Read More

As a resident of New York State’s Hudson Valley, I have met dozens of local citizens who worked for International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) in its heyday. A massive set of layoffs in 1993 meant that Big Blue’s local presence is now almost gone, and the local economy has yet to recover. Two decades later, IBM is still backpedaling. A current initiative, known as Project Chrome, is culling another 100,000 employees from IBM’s global employment base. In some respects, CEO Ginni Rometty has no choice. IBM’s revenue base has already peaked and is expected to drop a precipitous 10% this year to around $83.5 billion. IBM has few fans among Wall Street analysts.  As Goldman Sachs’ Bill Shope wrote, “the company faces many secular pressures and transformation costs ahead. His $146 price target represents roughly 15% downside.” Why is IBM so unpopular with many tech analysts? The company’s focus on slashing expenses and buying back massive amounts of stock to maintain earnings per share is considered to be a last-ditch attempt to artificially maintain investor support. But it’s not working. Shares of IBM have lagged the Nasdaq Composite index by 91 percentage points over the past three years. Read More

Did it really work? It’s a question many investors are pondering seven months after the conclusion of the Federal Reserve’s massive quantitative easing (QE) program, in which trillions of dollars were pumped into the banking system from 2008 to 2014. The aim was to shock the ailing economy into recovery by providing a flood of cash for banks to lend at ultra-cheap rates. It was an unprecedented move that possibly forestalled a more severe economic downturn, perhaps even a depression. However, the program continued long after the U.S. economy was out of crisis, mainly because of the belief that QE… Read More

Did it really work? It’s a question many investors are pondering seven months after the conclusion of the Federal Reserve’s massive quantitative easing (QE) program, in which trillions of dollars were pumped into the banking system from 2008 to 2014. The aim was to shock the ailing economy into recovery by providing a flood of cash for banks to lend at ultra-cheap rates. It was an unprecedented move that possibly forestalled a more severe economic downturn, perhaps even a depression. However, the program continued long after the U.S. economy was out of crisis, mainly because of the belief that QE could generate robust, sustainable long-term growth by facilitating lending, business investment and hiring. The economy is so complex that such a hypothesis may take years to confirm or disprove. But in the meantime, there are plenty of compelling signs that QE is nothing near the growth driver that policymakers had hoped. Vulnerable Economy Perhaps the most obvious sign of QE’s limits is how quickly the economy lost steam when the program ended. After surging by a 5% annual rate in the third quarter of 2014, gross domestic product (GDP) rose just 2.2% in the fourth quarter. The slump in growth… Read More

Average Gains of 144% — Is it Possible? One of the top trading experts in the world has created a unique, two-part options strategy with average annualized gains that seem too good to be true: 89% in 2012… 144% in 2013… 211% in 2014. I can’t guarantee you’ll have the same kind of success. But if history is any guide, it could help you make annualized gains of 220%… 508%… even 2,201% — which is what it has delivered over the past few weeks. We’ve put together a… Read More

Average Gains of 144% — Is it Possible? One of the top trading experts in the world has created a unique, two-part options strategy with average annualized gains that seem too good to be true: 89% in 2012… 144% in 2013… 211% in 2014. I can’t guarantee you’ll have the same kind of success. But if history is any guide, it could help you make annualized gains of 220%… 508%… even 2,201% — which is what it has delivered over the past few weeks. We’ve put together a free webpage revealing the details behind this strategy. Click here to go there now. Sincerely, Frank Bermea Publisher, Profitable Trading P.S. This expert just revealed his latest trade. He expects it to deliver 106% — but only if you take advantage immediately. Click here to get all the details. All major U.S. indices except for the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average closed higher last week, led by the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 and small-cap Russell 2000,… Read More

Over the last decade, we’ve published thousands of in-depth research reports. Everything from high dividend payers, game-changing innovations, top stocks in emerging markets — you name it, we’ve told you how to profit from it. But the research I’m going to tell you about today stands head and shoulders above everything else we’ve ever done. In fact, it ranks as our single most popular report of all time. Each year, we update the report with our team’s most recent findings. And frankly, I think what we’ve come up… Read More

Over the last decade, we’ve published thousands of in-depth research reports. Everything from high dividend payers, game-changing innovations, top stocks in emerging markets — you name it, we’ve told you how to profit from it. But the research I’m going to tell you about today stands head and shoulders above everything else we’ve ever done. In fact, it ranks as our single most popular report of all time. Each year, we update the report with our team’s most recent findings. And frankly, I think what we’ve come up with this year represents a major breakthrough. We call it: “The 10 Stocks To Own For The Rest Of Your Life” #-ad_banner-#You’ve probably heard us talk about the idea of “Forever Stocks” before. Simply put, these are solid companies that we think you can feel confident buying and holding onto for years, even decades. And we believe they will continue rewarding investors for years on end… crushing the market over the long run. They’re the kinds of stocks you’d ideally want to own forever. Owning solid, stable companies… Read More

For those that don’t know, in addition to being the Chief Strategist behind StreetAuthority’s Stock of the Month newsletter, I’m also an avid poker player. I first picked up poker about a decade ago, well before it was all over television. But I wasn’t after the big jackpot like most of the people who’ve taken up the game. I simply thought poker could make me a better investor. Poker has a lot in common with investing — and no, I’m not talking about luck. In poker, you get only one move at a time. Read More

For those that don’t know, in addition to being the Chief Strategist behind StreetAuthority’s Stock of the Month newsletter, I’m also an avid poker player. I first picked up poker about a decade ago, well before it was all over television. But I wasn’t after the big jackpot like most of the people who’ve taken up the game. I simply thought poker could make me a better investor. Poker has a lot in common with investing — and no, I’m not talking about luck. In poker, you get only one move at a time. You don’t get the luxury of making your moves in a vacuum or without consideration for the dynamics other players bring to the game. It also takes patience and foresight to win consistently. And sometimes, it’s not about winning, but simply knowing when to cut your losses. When put in those terms, it’s easy to see how playing poker can make you a better investor. #-ad_banner-#It’s easy to spot an inexperienced player at a poker table. He’ll be the guy who plays nearly every hand. He’s probably grown up watching televised poker, where folded… Read More

I understand why people love good high-yielding securities. If you’re after a large income stream, then you hardly need me to explain the benefit of this elite group of stocks. As my longtime readers know, higher yielding securities make up roughly a third of my Daily Paycheck portfolio. I wouldn’t be able to collect more than $1551 every month without them. But when it comes to high-yielders, there’s one thing that many dividend-seekers don’t realize. And in the long run, this simple oversight could be costing you thousands… Read More

I understand why people love good high-yielding securities. If you’re after a large income stream, then you hardly need me to explain the benefit of this elite group of stocks. As my longtime readers know, higher yielding securities make up roughly a third of my Daily Paycheck portfolio. I wouldn’t be able to collect more than $1551 every month without them. But when it comes to high-yielders, there’s one thing that many dividend-seekers don’t realize. And in the long run, this simple oversight could be costing you thousands of dollars every year. #-ad_banner-#One of the things I often hear from income investors is, “I only invest in securities with more than X% yield.” Usually the “X” is 8% or higher. Here’s what many income-seeking investors forget: higher yield generally equates to higher risk. To commit your whole portfolio to high-yield assets — especially if you’re nearing retirement — may not be worth it. There’s a better, safer way to dramatically boost your income. Don’t Overlook Growth For Yield With a few years time, you… Read More

Ever rooted for the underdog when you knew it couldn’t win? In basketball — as in many sports — this happens all the time. In the recent NCAA tournament, for example, Hampton (17-17 in the regular season) was pit against Kentucky (34-0). The chance that Hampton would upset this perennial powerhouse was slim to none. And yet, millions of dollars were put down on this underdog by betters all across the country. Why? Because these folks were betting on another game entirely. One with better odds and higher… Read More

Ever rooted for the underdog when you knew it couldn’t win? In basketball — as in many sports — this happens all the time. In the recent NCAA tournament, for example, Hampton (17-17 in the regular season) was pit against Kentucky (34-0). The chance that Hampton would upset this perennial powerhouse was slim to none. And yet, millions of dollars were put down on this underdog by betters all across the country. Why? Because these folks were betting on another game entirely. One with better odds and higher rewards… One that casual fans had no idea was going on right in front of them. A similar thing plays out every day in the investing world. If you understand it you stand to profit from high-yield opportunities that most investors will never see. Let me explain… Let’s consider the bond market for a moment. You can put your money on corporate bonds backed by stalwart blue-chip companies like Microsoft and Treasury IOUs. Or you can choose “junk” bonds issued by smaller, shakier businesses. Read More

There’s a dangerous idea in the world of finance that’s been floating around for years. The man who coined this idea won a Nobel Prize for his work, but even he has stated that there are “threats” to his theory. #-ad_banner-#Today, I’m going to tell you about one of those “threats,” and why it’s time to put this dangerous idea to bed for good. Because if you buy into it, you could miss out on some of the greatest opportunities the market has to offer. To frame our discussion, I’d like you to… Read More

There’s a dangerous idea in the world of finance that’s been floating around for years. The man who coined this idea won a Nobel Prize for his work, but even he has stated that there are “threats” to his theory. #-ad_banner-#Today, I’m going to tell you about one of those “threats,” and why it’s time to put this dangerous idea to bed for good. Because if you buy into it, you could miss out on some of the greatest opportunities the market has to offer. To frame our discussion, I’d like you to consider one thing: When an investor buys shares of a stock hoping that its value will rise, the person is often betting against the market — that other investors are wrong (about the stock’s value) and that his valuation is correct. It’s with this idea that theory called the “efficient market hypothesis” becomes important. The man behind the theory — economist Dr. Eugene Fama — is hailed as one of the fathers of modern finance. At its most basic, his hypothesis says that because the public has access to every bit… Read More