Having grown accustomed to the Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) near my hometown, I was amazed at the brightness, quality, price and choices available at a competing new-to-me retailer during my visit while on vacation.#-ad_banner-# A closer look at the merchandise revealed high-end designer fashions such as Missoni, Oscar de la Renta,… Read More

So, what now, Mike? That’s the question I posed to the most recent addition to StreetAuthority’s stable of stock market strategists, Michael J. Carr, following a week that saw the steepest single-day drop in the stock market since November 2011. During the past month I’ve been telling you about Mike’s Maximum Profit trading system — a trading system that’s among the greatest investment strategies we’ve ever discovered. Every two weeks, Mike starts with about… Read More

So, what now, Mike? That’s the question I posed to the most recent addition to StreetAuthority’s stable of stock market strategists, Michael J. Carr, following a week that saw the steepest single-day drop in the stock market since November 2011. During the past month I’ve been telling you about Mike’s Maximum Profit trading system — a trading system that’s among the greatest investment strategies we’ve ever discovered. Every two weeks, Mike starts with about 150 individual stocks, partnerships and trusts that constitute the 10 portfolios in the premium StreetAuthority advisories — the same holdings that have already been recommended by Carla Pasternak, Elliott Gue, Amy Calistri and the rest of the StreetAuthority experts.#-ad_banner-# From there, Mike runs every pick through a test of relative strength — a measure that compares a stock’s performance of the past six months with the performance of the thousands of stocks that make up the entire market. Only those holdings that are rising faster than 70% of… Read More

We are on the brink of a potentially epic economic change. Fortunately, this is unlikely to be a “black swan” event that rattles the markets from Main Street to Wall Street. It is also not likely to be a sudden shock that quickly dissipates, leaving everything about the same as before. I am talking about a fully controlled, incremental long-term shift that will forever change the economic landscape. To prop up the U.S. Read More

We are on the brink of a potentially epic economic change. Fortunately, this is unlikely to be a “black swan” event that rattles the markets from Main Street to Wall Street. It is also not likely to be a sudden shock that quickly dissipates, leaving everything about the same as before. I am talking about a fully controlled, incremental long-term shift that will forever change the economic landscape. To prop up the U.S. economy after the financial crisis, the Federal Reserve used monetary tools such as dropping interest rates to the lowest levels in history and flooding the markets with ready cash and quantitative easing measures. Now that the economy is back on track, the Fed has signaled its intention to throttle back on quantitative easing, likely to the point of elimination.  In addition, interest rates have started to spike.  This is a long-term change that is currently in its infancy: the economy’s reversion… Read More

The term “fracking” — referring to the hydraulic fracturing of rock formations to tap into seams of natural gas deep underground — is controversial. Consumers have expressed concerns that fracking may cause groundwater contamination, and regulators are studying the issue. The good news: Proper safeguards can help fracking unlock America’s vast trove of natural gas in ways that don’t despoil the environment, and several companies are gearing up to help the cause. Oil services giant Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB), for example, is now selling… Read More

The term “fracking” — referring to the hydraulic fracturing of rock formations to tap into seams of natural gas deep underground — is controversial. Consumers have expressed concerns that fracking may cause groundwater contamination, and regulators are studying the issue. The good news: Proper safeguards can help fracking unlock America’s vast trove of natural gas in ways that don’t despoil the environment, and several companies are gearing up to help the cause. Oil services giant Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB), for example, is now selling fracking fluids that have a much more benign environmental footprint, and rivals are coming up with their own solutions as well. #-ad_banner-# Still, for these fluids to work effectively, fresh water needs to be trucked in, and post-fracking wastewater needs to be trucked away from drilling sites. One of the leading companies in that effort also happens to be one of the most unloved stocks in the market right now. That’s largely due to a major acquisition… Read More

On Thursday, I told you about the advice Warren Buffett is all too happy to offer, but most investors seem to ignore. Today, I’m going to share with you — in the hopes that we can all heed his words a little more closely — the seemingly “magic” formula he uses to consistently beat the market. Ready for it? Stuff minus debt. That’s it. That’s the golden ticket. That’s how an investor can determine the… Read More

On Thursday, I told you about the advice Warren Buffett is all too happy to offer, but most investors seem to ignore. Today, I’m going to share with you — in the hopes that we can all heed his words a little more closely — the seemingly “magic” formula he uses to consistently beat the market. Ready for it? Stuff minus debt. That’s it. That’s the golden ticket. That’s how an investor can determine the intangible value of a business. A lot of people try to make this more complicated than that, but it’s really not.  After all, the accountants are not trying to trick anyone: Each line is exactly what it says it is. “Cash” is self-explanatory. “Inventory” is stuff. “Receivables” are unpaid bills sent for goods delivered or services rendered. And so forth. Yet balance sheets hold this weird mystique. They scare the hell out of a… Read More

The latest rankings of the world’s richest people show that telecom magnate Carlos Slim of Mexico is again on the top of the heap, followed by Microsoft founder Bill Gates. Both of these men amassed dizzying fortunes primarily with one investment: Gates with Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) and Slim with America Movil (NYSE: AMX), one of the largest telecom companies in the world. Fourth on the list is Warren Buffett. The Oracle of Omaha also made his fortune with one company, Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-B), but there’s a twist. While Microsoft is focused on software… Read More

The latest rankings of the world’s richest people show that telecom magnate Carlos Slim of Mexico is again on the top of the heap, followed by Microsoft founder Bill Gates. Both of these men amassed dizzying fortunes primarily with one investment: Gates with Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) and Slim with America Movil (NYSE: AMX), one of the largest telecom companies in the world. Fourth on the list is Warren Buffett. The Oracle of Omaha also made his fortune with one company, Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-B), but there’s a twist. While Microsoft is focused on software and America Movil on cellphones, Berkshire is a holding company. Its business is to own other businesses. It is Buffett’s uncanny ability to pick winning businesses that has enabled the modest man from Omaha to pile up nearly $55 billion. But is it really all that uncanny? I don’t think so. If you go to the bookstore, you’ll find a whole shelf of books on Buffett in the investing section. They will be chock-full of his witty sayings. His earthy common sense resonates with everyone. No matter… Read More

When you think of pizza, you don’t often think of technology. But Domino’s Pizza (NYSE: DPZ), one of America’s largest pizza chains, has combined the two into a formula for success. Until 2010, the stock struggled to break $15 as revenue and earnings growth were sluggish. But between 2010 and the end of 2012, earnings accelerated almost 32%, going from $1.45 to $1.91 in the three-year period. The stock responded with a vengeance, up nearly 500% since the summer of 2010. Read More

When you think of pizza, you don’t often think of technology. But Domino’s Pizza (NYSE: DPZ), one of America’s largest pizza chains, has combined the two into a formula for success. Until 2010, the stock struggled to break $15 as revenue and earnings growth were sluggish. But between 2010 and the end of 2012, earnings accelerated almost 32%, going from $1.45 to $1.91 in the three-year period. The stock responded with a vengeance, up nearly 500% since the summer of 2010. The earnings and share price acceleration can be attributed to several factors: successful advertising campaigns, a tastier pizza recipe and international expansion, but perhaps most importantly, technology — specifically digital ordering technology.#-ad_banner-# In many ways, Domino’s is revolutionizing the way pizza is ordered and delivered. Want a steaming-hot pizza? No need to pick up the phone and speak to a person to place an order. Now there’s an app for that. In 2011, Domino’s created an app to order a pizza through an Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPhone. A year later, it followed with an… Read More

On June 7, I watched the Internet video feed from Las Vegas as Mike “The Mouth” Matusow pocketed $266,503 by winning the 13th event in the 2013 World Series of Poker. Matusow has won nearly $9 million playing tournament poker, and I’ve studied nearly every hand he has ever played. I even sat next to his mother the night he won $1 million in the Championship Event of the 2005 World Series of Poker. During his recent tournament, Matusow seldom had the lead. But he played a disciplined game. He folded many hands while his opponents wasted chips, chasing after… Read More

On June 7, I watched the Internet video feed from Las Vegas as Mike “The Mouth” Matusow pocketed $266,503 by winning the 13th event in the 2013 World Series of Poker. Matusow has won nearly $9 million playing tournament poker, and I’ve studied nearly every hand he has ever played. I even sat next to his mother the night he won $1 million in the Championship Event of the 2005 World Series of Poker. During his recent tournament, Matusow seldom had the lead. But he played a disciplined game. He folded many hands while his opponents wasted chips, chasing after hands they didn’t have the odds to win. Matusow’s patience and premium hand selection over the course of the three-day event were rewarded with the first-prize gold bracelet. I’ve played poker for more than a decade. I’ve had the opportunity to study — and go up against — some of the best professionals in the world. I’ve seen players amass big leads in a tournament, only to turn right around and give every chip back. In my experience, both as a poker player and an investor, the decision to not play a mediocre hand can be the most profitable decision… Read More

Recently, I told you about the simple strategy that’s never lost money. Put simply, the longer you hold an investment, the better your chances of making a profit. The S&P 500 has never had a losing 20-year span, going all the way back to the 1950s. The key is finding a handful of companies that enjoy huge (and lasting) advantages over the competition… companies that pay their investors each and every… Read More

Recently, I told you about the simple strategy that’s never lost money. Put simply, the longer you hold an investment, the better your chances of making a profit. The S&P 500 has never had a losing 20-year span, going all the way back to the 1950s. The key is finding a handful of companies that enjoy huge (and lasting) advantages over the competition… companies that pay their investors each and every year by dishing out fat dividends… and companies buying back massive amounts of their own stock. Once you find them, the strategy is simple — just buy their shares and hold “Forever.” But if you want to see the best reason why investing “Forever” is the smartest way to let the market make you wealthy, pay attention to the… Read More

When it comes to assessing the outlook for drugmakers, investors really only care about the pipeline of new drugs. After all, existing drugs eventually lose patent protection, and when that happens, a large hole in the income statement… Read More