The semiconductor industry has been around since the 1960s and has grown to be a nearly $300 billion global business. Basically, semiconductors control the flow of electricity by forming the basis of integrated circuits, transistors, solid-state electronics and solar cells, among many other functions. In other words, semiconductors form the base of our modern electronics-driven society.  Over the years, investors have made trillions of dollars investing in this sector. Most everyone is familiar with major semiconductor companies like Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), Micron Technology (Nasdaq: MU) and… Read More

The semiconductor industry has been around since the 1960s and has grown to be a nearly $300 billion global business. Basically, semiconductors control the flow of electricity by forming the basis of integrated circuits, transistors, solid-state electronics and solar cells, among many other functions. In other words, semiconductors form the base of our modern electronics-driven society.  Over the years, investors have made trillions of dollars investing in this sector. Most everyone is familiar with major semiconductor companies like Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), Micron Technology (Nasdaq: MU) and Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN).  However, there are dozens of smaller companies that don’t have the market share of the top names, but are masters of their particular niches. My stock scanning recently discovered one of these under-the-radar semiconductor companies is setting up to be a great investment. The company is Skyworks Solutions (Nasdaq: SWKS). This Massachusetts-based semiconductor company was founded in 1962. It provides products for the GPS, broadband, cellular infrastructure, smartphone and tablet markets, among other applications. The company… Read More

The semiconductor industry has been around since the 1960s and has grown to be a nearly $300 billion global business. Basically, semiconductors control the flow of electricity by forming the basis of integrated circuits, transistors, solid-state electronics and solar cells, among many other functions. In other words, semiconductors form the base of our modern electronics-driven society.  Over the years, investors have made trillions of dollars investing in this sector. Most everyone is familiar with major semiconductor companies like Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), Micron Technology (Nasdaq: MU) and… Read More

The semiconductor industry has been around since the 1960s and has grown to be a nearly $300 billion global business. Basically, semiconductors control the flow of electricity by forming the basis of integrated circuits, transistors, solid-state electronics and solar cells, among many other functions. In other words, semiconductors form the base of our modern electronics-driven society.  Over the years, investors have made trillions of dollars investing in this sector. Most everyone is familiar with major semiconductor companies like Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), Micron Technology (Nasdaq: MU) and Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN).  However, there are dozens of smaller companies that don’t have the market share of the top names, but are masters of their particular niches. My stock scanning recently discovered one of these under-the-radar semiconductor companies is setting up to be a great investment. The company is Skyworks Solutions (Nasdaq: SWKS). This Massachusetts-based semiconductor company was founded in 1962. It provides products for the GPS, broadband, cellular infrastructure, smartphone and tablet markets, among other applications. The company… Read More

The semiconductor industry has been around since the 1960s and has grown to be a nearly $300 billion global business. Basically, semiconductors control the flow of electricity by forming the basis of integrated circuits, transistors, solid-state electronics and solar cells, among many other functions. In other words, semiconductors form the base of our modern electronics-driven society.  Over the years, investors have made trillions of dollars investing in this sector. Most everyone is familiar with major semiconductor companies like Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), Micron Technology (Nasdaq: MU) and… Read More

The semiconductor industry has been around since the 1960s and has grown to be a nearly $300 billion global business. Basically, semiconductors control the flow of electricity by forming the basis of integrated circuits, transistors, solid-state electronics and solar cells, among many other functions. In other words, semiconductors form the base of our modern electronics-driven society.  Over the years, investors have made trillions of dollars investing in this sector. Most everyone is familiar with major semiconductor companies like Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), Micron Technology (Nasdaq: MU) and Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN).  However, there are dozens of smaller companies that don’t have the market share of the top names, but are masters of their particular niches. My stock scanning recently discovered one of these under-the-radar semiconductor companies is setting up to be a great investment. The company is Skyworks Solutions (Nasdaq: SWKS). This Massachusetts-based semiconductor company was founded in 1962. It provides products for the GPS, broadband, cellular infrastructure, smartphone and tablet markets, among other applications. The company… Read More

The semiconductor industry has been around since the 1960s and has grown to be a nearly $300 billion global business. Basically, semiconductors control the flow of electricity by forming the basis of integrated circuits, transistors, solid-state electronics and solar cells, among many other functions. In other words, semiconductors form the base of our modern electronics-driven society.  Over the years, investors have made trillions of dollars investing in this sector. Most everyone is familiar with major semiconductor companies like Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), Micron Technology (Nasdaq: MU) and… Read More

The semiconductor industry has been around since the 1960s and has grown to be a nearly $300 billion global business. Basically, semiconductors control the flow of electricity by forming the basis of integrated circuits, transistors, solid-state electronics and solar cells, among many other functions. In other words, semiconductors form the base of our modern electronics-driven society.  Over the years, investors have made trillions of dollars investing in this sector. Most everyone is familiar with major semiconductor companies like Intel (Nasdaq: INTC), Micron Technology (Nasdaq: MU) and Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN).  However, there are dozens of smaller companies that don’t have the market share of the top names, but are masters of their particular niches. My stock scanning recently discovered one of these under-the-radar semiconductor companies is setting up to be a great investment. The company is Skyworks Solutions (Nasdaq: SWKS). This Massachusetts-based semiconductor company was founded in 1962. It provides products for the GPS, broadband, cellular infrastructure, smartphone and tablet markets, among other applications. The company… Read More

Billionaires Warren Buffett and Bill Ackman have helped make investors serious money in the railroad industry over the past couple of years. If you missed these opportunities while trying to navigate the financial crisis, never fear: There’s still… Read More

Billionaires Warren Buffett and Bill Ackman have helped make investors serious money in the railroad industry over the past couple of years. If you missed these opportunities while trying to navigate the financial crisis, never fear: There’s still… Read More

The market is flashing big warning signals right now. The biggest concern is the Federal Reserve tapering its quantitative easing program. The impact of the world’s most powerful central bank reducing the size of its monthly… Read More

There are two ways to invest in retail stocks. You can focus on strong and steady operators such as Costco (Nasdaq: COST) or Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) and hope to secure moderate upside. Or you can be bold and buy shares of truly struggling retailers that have fallen deeply out of favor. That latter approach has been extremely profitable in 2013 for anyone with the guts to invest in GameStop (NYSE: GME) or Best Buy (NYSE: BBY). Just a few… Read More

There are two ways to invest in retail stocks. You can focus on strong and steady operators such as Costco (Nasdaq: COST) or Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) and hope to secure moderate upside. Or you can be bold and buy shares of truly struggling retailers that have fallen deeply out of favor. That latter approach has been extremely profitable in 2013 for anyone with the guts to invest in GameStop (NYSE: GME) or Best Buy (NYSE: BBY). Just a few quarters ago, these companies looked to be in deep trouble as spending on video games and consumer electronics, respectively, increasingly was taking place at rivals. Those two retailers have found a way to lure back customers, and the payoff has been huge. Major investors are now scouring the retail landscape in search of the next turnaround play, and mega-investor George Soros thinks he’s found one. In this year‘s second quarter, he plunked down $3 million to buy shares of J.C. Read More

There are two ways to invest in retail stocks. You can focus on strong and steady operators such as Costco (Nasdaq: COST) or Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) and hope to secure moderate upside. Or you can be bold and buy shares of truly struggling retailers that have fallen deeply out of favor. That latter approach has been extremely profitable in 2013 for anyone with the guts to invest in GameStop (NYSE: GME) or Best Buy (NYSE: BBY). Just a few… Read More

There are two ways to invest in retail stocks. You can focus on strong and steady operators such as Costco (Nasdaq: COST) or Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) and hope to secure moderate upside. Or you can be bold and buy shares of truly struggling retailers that have fallen deeply out of favor. That latter approach has been extremely profitable in 2013 for anyone with the guts to invest in GameStop (NYSE: GME) or Best Buy (NYSE: BBY). Just a few quarters ago, these companies looked to be in deep trouble as spending on video games and consumer electronics, respectively, increasingly was taking place at rivals. Those two retailers have found a way to lure back customers, and the payoff has been huge. Major investors are now scouring the retail landscape in search of the next turnaround play, and mega-investor George Soros thinks he’s found one. In this year‘s second quarter, he plunked down $3 million to buy shares of J.C. Read More

While the markets seem to only be interested in rising rates and earnings, an entire sector has gone unnoticed and blown the doors off the market. The Dow Jones U.S. Railroad Index is surging with a 24% gain this year and has quadrupled since its 2009 low. Besides the general rebound in the economy, crude production is at 20-year highs, far exceeding… Read More

While the markets seem to only be interested in rising rates and earnings, an entire sector has gone unnoticed and blown the doors off the market. The Dow Jones U.S. Railroad Index is surging with a 24% gain this year and has quadrupled since its 2009 low. Besides the general rebound in the economy, crude production is at 20-year highs, far exceeding pipeline capacity and growth. That means a massive surge in demand for transportation by rail. An estimated 1.4 million barrels of crude and refined products were transported by rail every day in the first six months of 2013, an increase of almost 50% from the first half of 2012.#-ad_banner-# All signs pointed to another great year in 2013 and the sector again being a good investment. Then the unthinkable happened: Just after 1 a.m. on July 6, a freight carrier operated by Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway crashed in the Quebec town of Lac-Megantic,… Read More