My parents took me to Walt Disney World for the first time when I was five years old. One of the rides I most vividly remember, now long since gone, was Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride. Based on Disney’s film adaptation of the classic book The Wind in the Willows, you recklessly “drove” an old fashioned (pre-Model T) car through a darkened, decrepit Victorian mansion. Sounds a little cheesy, I know. But for a small tyke in 1973, it was big adventure. The market has felt a little like Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride recently, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average posting… Read More

My parents took me to Walt Disney World for the first time when I was five years old. One of the rides I most vividly remember, now long since gone, was Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride. Based on Disney’s film adaptation of the classic book The Wind in the Willows, you recklessly “drove” an old fashioned (pre-Model T) car through a darkened, decrepit Victorian mansion. Sounds a little cheesy, I know. But for a small tyke in 1973, it was big adventure. The market has felt a little like Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride recently, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average posting its biggest one-day point drop ever at 1,175 points. While that is indeed significant, this chart of the S&P 500 is even more unnerving. Since equities decided to roll over like my 13 year-old yellow lab does when she wants her tummy scratched, investors have experienced a 9.56% drawdown from what appears to be a market top. A wild ride indeed. #-ad_banner-#I’m not going to dive into the nuances of why volatility has suddenly decided to return to the market, but it has — big time. And with any market pullback, opportunities are created to buy great, timely… Read More

Artificial intelligence and robotics could dramatically transform every industry over the next decade. From increases in productivity to wage savings and minimizing human error, I’m hard-pressed to find another time in history with as much potential for a corporate profits bonanza. It’s impossible to predict all the ways this robo-revolution will affect society, but one thing is certain: The replacement of expensive human workers with their efficient robot counterparts will be a boon to the bottom line. #-ad_banner-#While timelines for widespread adoption in most industries puts this transformation decades out or more, there is one industry that could see massive… Read More

Artificial intelligence and robotics could dramatically transform every industry over the next decade. From increases in productivity to wage savings and minimizing human error, I’m hard-pressed to find another time in history with as much potential for a corporate profits bonanza. It’s impossible to predict all the ways this robo-revolution will affect society, but one thing is certain: The replacement of expensive human workers with their efficient robot counterparts will be a boon to the bottom line. #-ad_banner-#While timelines for widespread adoption in most industries puts this transformation decades out or more, there is one industry that could see massive changes in the next couple of years. In fact, a robot recently drove 2,400 miles to prove it could do the work of a human worker. Robots Are Already Behind The Wheel Of The Largest Big Rigs Embark’s self-driving semi-truck has completed the first cross-country trip from Los Angeles to Jacksonville, Florida. The truck completed the 2,400 mile trip with only rare disengagements that required the driver to take over. Autonomous driving is developing along multiple paths, which could help the tech find a mass-market solution faster. Embark’s technology uses machine learning along with data… Read More

Medical experts fear that the current flu season could be one of the worst in history. Hospitalizations are already well above average, with California victims being hospitalized at four times 2014 levels. To make matters worse, the CDC is estimating that flu vaccines available may only be about 30% effective to the strain this year compared to an average effectiveness of 45% over the last decade. Top it off with the recent announcement that the CDC is planning to cut up to 80% of its epidemic prevention activities around the globe and this could just be… Read More

Medical experts fear that the current flu season could be one of the worst in history. Hospitalizations are already well above average, with California victims being hospitalized at four times 2014 levels. To make matters worse, the CDC is estimating that flu vaccines available may only be about 30% effective to the strain this year compared to an average effectiveness of 45% over the last decade. Top it off with the recent announcement that the CDC is planning to cut up to 80% of its epidemic prevention activities around the globe and this could just be the start of widespread health outbreaks that threaten the United States. #-ad_banner-#Even if you can’t protect yourself from getting the flu this year, you can protect your portfolio with companies that stand to benefit from heightened risk of pandemic contagions. Besides the potential to beat expectations for the fourth quarter of last year and first-quarter results this year, these companies could see higher sales in the future if slashed funding for disease prevention fails to stop more outbreaks. Why This Year’s Flu Is One Of The Worst In History The CDC reports the flu is now widespread in 46… Read More

Fear is coming back. Last Tuesday, the S&P 500 Index closed down by 0.67%. Then… on Wednesday… boom! Another decline. On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 665 points, or 2.5%. That’s the largest percentage decline since June 2016. But Monday was the worst of all. After a wild ride of a day, the Dow closed down 1,175, the largest single-day point drop in history. So, is the sky falling? —Sponsored Link— Silicon Valley Legend: ‘Every Penny You Put Elsewhere Is Wasted’ He called Bitcoin at $90… Now, this Silicon Valley legend reveals a… Read More

Fear is coming back. Last Tuesday, the S&P 500 Index closed down by 0.67%. Then… on Wednesday… boom! Another decline. On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 665 points, or 2.5%. That’s the largest percentage decline since June 2016. But Monday was the worst of all. After a wild ride of a day, the Dow closed down 1,175, the largest single-day point drop in history. So, is the sky falling? —Sponsored Link— Silicon Valley Legend: ‘Every Penny You Put Elsewhere Is Wasted’ He called Bitcoin at $90… Now, this Silicon Valley legend reveals a new trick to make up to 5, 7, or even 10 times your money… Whether the price goes up… or down… Full story here. Not quite. It just might feel that way… This is what happens when raging bull markets bordering on irrational exuberance take hold. When markets have charged upwards for weeks… months… years, even — what would normally be viewed as a healthy profit-taking breather is suddenly viewed as if it were Armageddon, leading investors to wonder whether it’s all coming to an end. As Bespoke Investment Group notes: “We’ve… Read More

In my September issue, I talked about how Ray Dalio started his fledgling company — Bridgewater Associates — out of his apartment in 1975 and went on to grow it into the largest hedge fund in the world. His accolades include consistently outperforming his peers (which is why his company is the world’s largest hedge fund) to sounding the alarm on the looming financial crisis in 2008. It was during the financial crisis — when few listened to him — that he really made his mark. While most of his peers were losing money or going belly-up, he turned a… Read More

In my September issue, I talked about how Ray Dalio started his fledgling company — Bridgewater Associates — out of his apartment in 1975 and went on to grow it into the largest hedge fund in the world. His accolades include consistently outperforming his peers (which is why his company is the world’s largest hedge fund) to sounding the alarm on the looming financial crisis in 2008. It was during the financial crisis — when few listened to him — that he really made his mark. While most of his peers were losing money or going belly-up, he turned a profit.  —Sponsored Link— New FCC Approval; Say Goodbye To Power Cords The FCC recently green lighted a stunning breakthrough device that will revolutionize electricity and get rid of the need for any plugs or cords. The Washington Times says that this technology “will change the world on a scale hardly seen in human history.” Even famed scientist Stephen Hawking agrees that “it’s about to change your life.” And this technology is set to pour $37.2 billion into this sector. But only one small company is at the center of this massive shift. Read More

Google parent Alphabet (Nasdaq: GOOG) has struggled with problems around its advertising in recent years. First it was complaints by advertisers of placements on racist and inflammatory videos. Then some of its most popular YouTube stars were caught posting potentially racist or violent content.  YouTube cracked down last year, but the same problems have persisted. Major brands including AT&T, Verizon, Pepsi, and Walmart pulled millions of dollars from the video sharing platform until YouTube could provide assurance to the quality of the videos on which ads were being shown. In response, YouTube shocked its creator community in April by requiring… Read More

Google parent Alphabet (Nasdaq: GOOG) has struggled with problems around its advertising in recent years. First it was complaints by advertisers of placements on racist and inflammatory videos. Then some of its most popular YouTube stars were caught posting potentially racist or violent content.  YouTube cracked down last year, but the same problems have persisted. Major brands including AT&T, Verizon, Pepsi, and Walmart pulled millions of dollars from the video sharing platform until YouTube could provide assurance to the quality of the videos on which ads were being shown. In response, YouTube shocked its creator community in April by requiring channels to have at least 10,000 views before videos could be monetized with ads. Some video creators reported as much as an 80% drop in ad revenue after the change. #-ad_banner-#YouTube again changed its revenue sharing model earlier this month in a move that could shut out many more publishers.  The policy change could have unintended consequences. Investors have yet to react to the news, but could be in for a rude awakening over the rest of the year.  The New YouTube Policy Hits Google Where It Hurts The Most YouTube is again raising the bar on its revenue-sharing… Read More

We are in the midst of the most magnificent speculative frenzy of our lifetimes. The media has been on fire with articles and chatter about the monster gains in cryptocurrency.  Small investors, some starting with under $1,000, have become millionaires over the last year. Larger investors, such as the Winklevoss twins (formerly of Facebook fame), have earned billions by risking significantly more.  Now with Bitcoin hovering around $11,000, investors are hungry to find the next millionaire-making cryptocurrency. With over 900 active choices and hundreds (If not thousands) more initial coin offerings (ICOs) in the works, choosing winning investments has become… Read More

We are in the midst of the most magnificent speculative frenzy of our lifetimes. The media has been on fire with articles and chatter about the monster gains in cryptocurrency.  Small investors, some starting with under $1,000, have become millionaires over the last year. Larger investors, such as the Winklevoss twins (formerly of Facebook fame), have earned billions by risking significantly more.  Now with Bitcoin hovering around $11,000, investors are hungry to find the next millionaire-making cryptocurrency. With over 900 active choices and hundreds (If not thousands) more initial coin offerings (ICOs) in the works, choosing winning investments has become very difficult.  As an active cryptocurrency investor, I have discovered five ways to increase your odds of finding the next bitcoin.  #-ad_banner-#​1. Monthly Volume Trading volume is a crucial method of identifying winning cryptocurrencies. Think of choosing profitable coins and tokens as a popularity contest. The more excitement and potential of a coin, the more investors it attracts. Volume often begets volume, and speculation becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, pushing the price higher.  I use CoinMarketCap to identify the top monthly volume rankings. Look at the top 25 highest-ranked cryptos to start your search for a… Read More

We’re only three weeks into 2018 and it’s already been a particularly wild year for cryptocurrency investors. And that’s saying something for a market where 15% moves are brushed off as daily trading swings. The euphoric first week of January, when a number of coins achieved all-time highs and bitcoin reached for its own stratospheric peak, was met with a downturn that slid from disappointing to catastrophic over the next two weeks. Prices dipped to lows not seen since the mainstream media picked up on cryptocurrencies last fall, with bitcoin crashing under the critical $10,000 mark on Jan 16. Read More

We’re only three weeks into 2018 and it’s already been a particularly wild year for cryptocurrency investors. And that’s saying something for a market where 15% moves are brushed off as daily trading swings. The euphoric first week of January, when a number of coins achieved all-time highs and bitcoin reached for its own stratospheric peak, was met with a downturn that slid from disappointing to catastrophic over the next two weeks. Prices dipped to lows not seen since the mainstream media picked up on cryptocurrencies last fall, with bitcoin crashing under the critical $10,000 mark on Jan 16. Was it big-money investors shorting the market to cash in on futures contracts? A selloff in preparation of tax season or the Chinese New Year? The classic January crypto-dip? We may never know for sure. But whatever plagued the market has made a swift exit. #-ad_banner-#At the time of writing, bitcoin had rallied over 20% in less than a day, and the other two most well-known cryptos, ether and litecoin, had gained even more. But some of the greatest gains were in a couple of “altcoins” (coins other than bitcoin) you may or may not… Read More

We are standing on the precipice of an entirely new world. In almost all recorded history only the elite have been able to participate and benefit from the major economic changes.  Today, things are radically different. The internet has created a democratization of those who can capture the upside of economic shifts. Nowhere is this fact more evident than in the volatile arena of cryptocurrencies. Nearly everyone, regardless of economic status, family pedigree, or connections, can take advantage of the opportunities in this nascent field.  Not only has the concept of money started to change, but we are also seeing… Read More

We are standing on the precipice of an entirely new world. In almost all recorded history only the elite have been able to participate and benefit from the major economic changes.  Today, things are radically different. The internet has created a democratization of those who can capture the upside of economic shifts. Nowhere is this fact more evident than in the volatile arena of cryptocurrencies. Nearly everyone, regardless of economic status, family pedigree, or connections, can take advantage of the opportunities in this nascent field.  Not only has the concept of money started to change, but we are also seeing the first steps of a completely new way of carrying out transactions and contracts.  A Brief History Of Monetary Change The first major shift in the history of human transaction was from the physical trading of commodities and services to the use of commodities (precious metals or other valuable items) to represent and exchange value from one person to another.  #-ad_banner-#Next, coins and paper money, backed by precious metals, made it easier to transfer value back and forth among users.  Fiat currency, money that is not backed by precious metals — but only by faith in government, soon arose,… Read More

Without great American innovators like Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla, Benjamin Franklin, and Alexander Graham Bell, the United States wouldn’t be the country it is today.  The same goes for Apple’s Steve Jobs, Microsoft’s Bill Gates, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Google’s Larry Page and Sergey Brin, and Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg. These individuals have revolutionized entire industries and markets… and thanks to them and their companies and innovations, they’ve made investors extremely wealthy along the way.  —Sponsored Link— EXPOSED: Biggest Scam Against The American People The head of one of America’s largest independent financial research firms says the enslavement… Read More

Without great American innovators like Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla, Benjamin Franklin, and Alexander Graham Bell, the United States wouldn’t be the country it is today.  The same goes for Apple’s Steve Jobs, Microsoft’s Bill Gates, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, Google’s Larry Page and Sergey Brin, and Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg. These individuals have revolutionized entire industries and markets… and thanks to them and their companies and innovations, they’ve made investors extremely wealthy along the way.  —Sponsored Link— EXPOSED: Biggest Scam Against The American People The head of one of America’s largest independent financial research firms says the enslavement of millions of Americans is leading to a political event that is unlike anything we’ve seen in America in more than 50 years. And it has a surprising twist, that will dramatically affect you and your money. This looming crisis will threaten your way of life, whether you own any investments related to it or not. Of course, it’s not easy to identify the next great innovator until the lion’s share of the wealth has been made. But what we can do is use the blueprints left in the wake of these disruptors to help us… Read More