The number of S&P 500 companies paying a dividend just hit a new all-time high. As of July 1, 84% (424) of the S&P 500 companies paid a dividend — up from 74% 10 years ago.   That’s an extra 54 dividend payers to choose from in just the S&P. It means that, on average, you’ve had five new choices each year.   On one hand it’s great. These companies are building reputations as solid dividend payers. And investors have more options than ever.   #-ad_banner-#But on the other hand, not all dividends are created equally. On the surface two… Read More

The number of S&P 500 companies paying a dividend just hit a new all-time high. As of July 1, 84% (424) of the S&P 500 companies paid a dividend — up from 74% 10 years ago.   That’s an extra 54 dividend payers to choose from in just the S&P. It means that, on average, you’ve had five new choices each year.   On one hand it’s great. These companies are building reputations as solid dividend payers. And investors have more options than ever.   #-ad_banner-#But on the other hand, not all dividends are created equally. On the surface two stocks with a current yield of 2.6% may look similar, but underneath the hood they can be very different.   The newest dividend payers don’t have the history to demonstrate they can sustain a dividend through a recession, a depression, or a stock market crash, and certainly not through a couple of world wars.   If you want a dividend payer with that kind of resume, you need to zero in on the most reliable dividend payers on earth, companies that are in one of the most exclusive clubs in the entire global stock market.    Companies That Have Been… Read More

If you’re a growth investor, it’s time to get a lot more boring with your portfolio.   Studies have shown that the real secret to beating the market isn’t growth stocks. Contrary to popular belief, the secret to outsized gains lies in dividends.   The respected research firm Ned Davis conducted a study over more than four decades. Their research found that dividend-paying stocks tend to beat the market over the long term and yield far better returns than stocks that don’t pay dividends.   #-ad_banner-#The Ned Davis study showed that stocks in the S&P 500 that didn’t pay dividends… Read More

If you’re a growth investor, it’s time to get a lot more boring with your portfolio.   Studies have shown that the real secret to beating the market isn’t growth stocks. Contrary to popular belief, the secret to outsized gains lies in dividends.   The respected research firm Ned Davis conducted a study over more than four decades. Their research found that dividend-paying stocks tend to beat the market over the long term and yield far better returns than stocks that don’t pay dividends.   #-ad_banner-#The Ned Davis study showed that stocks in the S&P 500 that didn’t pay dividends delivered a 2.5% annual return from 1972 through 2015. That would have turned a $1,000 investment into $2,910 over that timeframe.    By comparison, dividend-paying stocks in the S&P 500 returned 9% annually over the same period — also beating the S&P 500’s 7.4% annual return.    In this scenario, a 9% annual return over this period would have turned a $1,000 investment into $43,850.   This might be discouraging if you’re a young investor that owns all the FANG (Facebook, Apple, Netflix, Google) stocks. But don’t worry, this is a great time to swap out some of those growth… Read More

America is in the middle of a massive retirement tsunami. Starting in 2010, 10,000 baby boomers began reaching the retirement age of 65 every single day. Looking forward, this trend is just beginning. 10,000 more boomers will reach the retirement age of 65 every day for the next 12 years, all the way until 2030. With bond yields stuck near record lows, boomers are desperate to find safe alternatives to generate retirement income. One of the most popular places they have been shifting their capital is utility stocks. Utility stocks offer two things that retirees value. First, they are generally… Read More

America is in the middle of a massive retirement tsunami. Starting in 2010, 10,000 baby boomers began reaching the retirement age of 65 every single day. Looking forward, this trend is just beginning. 10,000 more boomers will reach the retirement age of 65 every day for the next 12 years, all the way until 2030. With bond yields stuck near record lows, boomers are desperate to find safe alternatives to generate retirement income. One of the most popular places they have been shifting their capital is utility stocks. Utility stocks offer two things that retirees value. First, they are generally a lot more stable than the broader stock market and particularly growth stocks. Second, utility stocks usually offer excellent dividends. The popularity of utility stocks has led to big gains for the Vanguard Utilities Index Fund ETF (NYSE: VPU). In the last ten years, this ETF has gained 127.7%, outperforming the S&P 500’s return by 17%. Take a look below. Those gains have been great for current shareholders. However, for new boomers looking, it has created a problem: U.S. utility stocks look pricey. VPU’s forward P/E ratio of 18.5 is in line with the S&P 500, despite little… Read More

Warren Buffett is the 2nd richest person in the world in Forbes’s 2017 annual ranking, with a net worth of $76 billion. Buffett has accumulated his riches from investing in almost every sector — everything from candy companies to insurance companies. One notable exception from amassing his fortune? Technology stocks. Buffett is notorious for avoiding the technology sector altogether because he loves investing in companies that are easy to understand. #-ad_banner-#Buffett once commented on his distaste for tech, saying “I know about as much about semiconductors or integrated circuits as I do of the mating habits of the chrzaszcz (the… Read More

Warren Buffett is the 2nd richest person in the world in Forbes’s 2017 annual ranking, with a net worth of $76 billion. Buffett has accumulated his riches from investing in almost every sector — everything from candy companies to insurance companies. One notable exception from amassing his fortune? Technology stocks. Buffett is notorious for avoiding the technology sector altogether because he loves investing in companies that are easy to understand. #-ad_banner-#Buffett once commented on his distaste for tech, saying “I know about as much about semiconductors or integrated circuits as I do of the mating habits of the chrzaszcz (the polish word for Beetle). We will not go into businesses where technology which is way over my head is crucial to the investment decision.” However, this view came to a screeching halt in May of 2016. That’s when Buffett broke with tradition and bought 9.8 million shares of Apple. Since then, he’s kept on buying. In January Buffett bought another 72 million shares. Today, Buffett owns 2.5% of Apple, making it his 2nd largest holding. These moves have a lot of investors asking an important question. Is Apple stock a good buy? Absolutely. Let me explain why Buffett couldn’t resist… Read More

Big tech is having another monster year. The big four technology leaders, also known as FANG — Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google (Alphabet) — have returned an average of 29% in 2017. Take a look at the chart below. This basket of tech high flyers has been great for growth investors, crushing the S&P 500’s 9% return in 2017.  However, for income investors, these outsized gains have been painful to watch. Most of the FANG stocks don’t pay a dividend. And watching this group of stocks deliver a 29% gain in less than six months can make a… Read More

Big tech is having another monster year. The big four technology leaders, also known as FANG — Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google (Alphabet) — have returned an average of 29% in 2017. Take a look at the chart below. This basket of tech high flyers has been great for growth investors, crushing the S&P 500’s 9% return in 2017.  However, for income investors, these outsized gains have been painful to watch. Most of the FANG stocks don’t pay a dividend. And watching this group of stocks deliver a 29% gain in less than six months can make a normally impressive 5% dividend yield seem insignificant. But don’t worry, I have the perfect solution for income investors looking for a piece of tech growth — a well-known global leader that I consider to be the best growth and income stock in the S&P 500. This global leader is still delivering outsized sales and earnings growth. It offers one of the best dividend yields in the technology sector and one of the fastest growing dividends in the S&P 500. And even better, compared to FANG stocks it looks undervalued. Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) is one of the greatest growth stocks in… Read More

Small-cap stocks have been a reliable way for investors to outperform the S&P 500 for a long time. In the last 17 years the iShares Core S&P Small Cap (NYSE: IJR) has gained 335%. That’s more than a 300% premium to the 74% return of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSE: SPY) over the same period. This huge discrepancy is shown below. However, over the last three years this performance gap has evaporated. With investors fearful of another big stock market crash and huge waves of retirees piling into dividend stocks in search of yield, small-caps have temporarily… Read More

Small-cap stocks have been a reliable way for investors to outperform the S&P 500 for a long time. In the last 17 years the iShares Core S&P Small Cap (NYSE: IJR) has gained 335%. That’s more than a 300% premium to the 74% return of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSE: SPY) over the same period. This huge discrepancy is shown below. However, over the last three years this performance gap has evaporated. With investors fearful of another big stock market crash and huge waves of retirees piling into dividend stocks in search of yield, small-caps have temporarily fallen out of favor. As you can see in the chart below, small caps have only fared slightly better than the S&P 500 over the last three years. Take a look below. In the short run, this has been frustrating for small cap investors. They took the risk of higher volatility without the reward of outsized returns. However, it has also created a rare value opportunity. Right now there are an abnormal number of small cap stocks that are trading with historically low valuations while still offering huge growth potential. I put together a screen of… Read More

Canada is emerging as an early global leader in the high-growth cannabis industry.  Medical cannabis has been legal in the country of 30 million since 2001. Then, in 2014, Canada implemented sweeping regulatory changes that set the stage for its young cannabis industry to prosper. Since then, the industry has been booming. Sales topped $1 billion in 2016. Today, Canada’s high-growth cannabis industry is about to get another huge boost. Canada just announced plans to legalize recreational cannabis by July of 2018. That would make Canada the first developed country in the world to legalize both medical and recreational cannabis. Read More

Canada is emerging as an early global leader in the high-growth cannabis industry.  Medical cannabis has been legal in the country of 30 million since 2001. Then, in 2014, Canada implemented sweeping regulatory changes that set the stage for its young cannabis industry to prosper. Since then, the industry has been booming. Sales topped $1 billion in 2016. Today, Canada’s high-growth cannabis industry is about to get another huge boost. Canada just announced plans to legalize recreational cannabis by July of 2018. That would make Canada the first developed country in the world to legalize both medical and recreational cannabis. It’s also set to unleash a multibillion dollar industry. Cannabis sales are expected to be between $5 and $7 billion in the first 12 months after legalization. That would be between a 400 percent and 600 percent increase from 2016. According to consulting firm Deloitte, this could generate up to $23 billion in economic activity. That would be more than beer and wine combined. If you want to learn how you can potentially profit from this cannabis revolution, let me tell you about Canada’s legal monopolies — an exclusive group of companies that have been issued a commercial license to… Read More

Income investors have it pretty bad right now. Despite a recent spike, the 10-year Treasury note yield of 2.3% is near an all-time low. Those low bond yields have pushed income-starved investors into the S&P 500 in search of reliable dividend stocks. Unfortunately, their options are slim… After a 70% gain in five years, the S&P 500’s dividend yield has compressed to 1.92%, also near an all-time low. Take a look below. Source: Multpl.com If you’re one of those investors banging your head against the wall trying to find better yields, I have the solution for you. Read More

Income investors have it pretty bad right now. Despite a recent spike, the 10-year Treasury note yield of 2.3% is near an all-time low. Those low bond yields have pushed income-starved investors into the S&P 500 in search of reliable dividend stocks. Unfortunately, their options are slim… After a 70% gain in five years, the S&P 500’s dividend yield has compressed to 1.92%, also near an all-time low. Take a look below. Source: Multpl.com If you’re one of those investors banging your head against the wall trying to find better yields, I have the solution for you. You might be surprised to learn that a huge collection of high-yield stocks is right at your fingertips. However, in order to capitalize on this opportunity, you have to be willing to overcome one of the biggest investor biases. The Bias Keeping U.S. Investors From The Best Yields In The World Home Bias is the tendency for investors to invest heavily in domestic stocks despite the potential benefits of diversifying into international equities. According to research from mutual fund company Oppenheimer, U.S. stocks make up over 70% of U.S. investors’ equity portfolios. Not only is… Read More

There are few things that can light a fire under a stock like a positive earnings surprise. When a company beats expectations it sends a powerful message to the Street that business is good. #-ad_banner-#For example, Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) jumped almost 10% in one day on January 31 after reporting record first-quarter results and a 5% positive earnings surprise. However, it is difficult to predict which stocks will beat and which will disappoint. It’s kind of like throwing darts in the dark. Today, I am going to reveal a better way to profit from an earnings surprise with one of… Read More

There are few things that can light a fire under a stock like a positive earnings surprise. When a company beats expectations it sends a powerful message to the Street that business is good. #-ad_banner-#For example, Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) jumped almost 10% in one day on January 31 after reporting record first-quarter results and a 5% positive earnings surprise. However, it is difficult to predict which stocks will beat and which will disappoint. It’s kind of like throwing darts in the dark. Today, I am going to reveal a better way to profit from an earnings surprise with one of Wall Street’s best kept secrets. Even better, this is the perfect time to capitalize. Let me explain… First Quarter Earnings Season Is About To Kick Off This is a pivotal quarter for S&P 500 earnings. After being trapped in an earnings recession for a year and a half, S&P 500 earnings are finally returning to sustained growth. First-quarter earnings are expected to grow 6.5% and then steadily accelerate from there. Take a look below. I am expecting the S&P 500’s return to earnings growth to fuel some very nice positive earnings surprises this season. But don’t worry… Read More

2016 was a record year at the box office, with sales hitting $11.2 billion. This success is expected to continue this year, with sales projected to eclipse $12 billion. Hollywood is pretty much booming. Today, I want to reveal the best way to profit. This global media giant owns the industry’s best portfolio of media companies and brands. I expect it to achieve record revenue in 2017. Even better, shares are trading at one of the biggest discount to sales in the last five years. The Walt Disney Corporation (NYSE: DIS) should be a familiar name. Disney is the second-largest… Read More

2016 was a record year at the box office, with sales hitting $11.2 billion. This success is expected to continue this year, with sales projected to eclipse $12 billion. Hollywood is pretty much booming. Today, I want to reveal the best way to profit. This global media giant owns the industry’s best portfolio of media companies and brands. I expect it to achieve record revenue in 2017. Even better, shares are trading at one of the biggest discount to sales in the last five years. The Walt Disney Corporation (NYSE: DIS) should be a familiar name. Disney is the second-largest media company in the world by revenue, behind only Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA). Disney owns one of the most valuable portfolios of companies in the entire global media industry. Its valuable properties include Walt Disney Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, ESPN, ABC, the Disney Channel, Lucasfilms, and the Star Wars franchise. #-ad_banner-#Beyond its media properties, Disney operates Disney Theme Parks, a collection of 14 theme parks with locations around the world. The company also owns the merchandising rights for its collection of brands under its consumer brands division, another huge source of revenue. Despite its industry-leading portfolio of media companies, Disney shares… Read More