Over the past few weeks, I’ve been revealing to StreetAuthority.com readers how my research team and I honed in on “The 10 Stocks to Own For the Rest of Your Life.” #-ad_banner-#I explained how “Irreplaceable Assets” can shower investors with increased wealth for the long haul here and how we use a very unique set of criteria to find the “World’s Greatest Businesses” here. But there’s still one more vital trait that we used to find our elite group of “Forever Stocks.” See, perhaps more than anything, my Forever Stocks have an obsession with… Read More

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been revealing to StreetAuthority.com readers how my research team and I honed in on “The 10 Stocks to Own For the Rest of Your Life.” #-ad_banner-#I explained how “Irreplaceable Assets” can shower investors with increased wealth for the long haul here and how we use a very unique set of criteria to find the “World’s Greatest Businesses” here. But there’s still one more vital trait that we used to find our elite group of “Forever Stocks.” See, perhaps more than anything, my Forever Stocks have an obsession with paying shareholders rich, growing dividends. As an investor, this makes perfect sense. Since 1926 nearly half of the market’s total return came from dividends, according to Standard & Poor’s research.   In other words, if you ignore dividends, then your potential for long-term growth is cut in half. You’d also be ignoring some of the market’s best performers. From January 1972 through March 2014, dividend-paying stocks in the S&P 500 returned 9.3% on average annually, according to Ned Davis Research. That far exceeds the 2.4% annual return for S&P stocks that… Read More

All major U.S. stock indices finished in positive territory last week except for the Nasdaq 100, which lost 0.6%. Technology stocks must resume their leadership role quickly, ideally with some help from small caps, to power this year’s broad market advance into 2015. If they cannot, the market could stumble into next year. From a sector standpoint, last week’s modest advance was led by financials, health care and materials. Globally, the aggressive recovery by European equities is a good sign for U.S. stocks into the early to middle part of 2015. #-ad_banner-#Seasonality, Congress Could Hurt Stocks This Week Our first… Read More

All major U.S. stock indices finished in positive territory last week except for the Nasdaq 100, which lost 0.6%. Technology stocks must resume their leadership role quickly, ideally with some help from small caps, to power this year’s broad market advance into 2015. If they cannot, the market could stumble into next year. From a sector standpoint, last week’s modest advance was led by financials, health care and materials. Globally, the aggressive recovery by European equities is a good sign for U.S. stocks into the early to middle part of 2015. #-ad_banner-#Seasonality, Congress Could Hurt Stocks This Week Our first chart displays the weekly seasonal pattern for the fourth quarter in the S&P 500 based on data since 1957. Historically, the second week of December, which is this week, is the second seasonally weakest of the entire quarter. On average, it closed 0.21% lower while posting a negative close 56% of the time. This chart is of particular interest to me this week because, despite the fact that it has received little coverage in the financial press, Congress has until midnight on Thursday to pass legislation to keep the government from shutting down. For perspective, last year’s government shutdown… Read More

You’ve undoubtedly heard of the robber barons. These affluent industrialists were considered some of the wealthiest — and most successful — businessmen of the 18th and 19th centuries. (The term originally appeared in the August 1870 issue of The Atlantic Monthly magazine.) The most famous robber barons have even become standard icons in American culture. The stories of wealth amassed by tycoons like J.P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie are recounted in public school history classes throughout the United States each year. I’ll show you how you can get started in modern day Rockefeller investing… #-ad_banner-#Unfortunately, to most… Read More

You’ve undoubtedly heard of the robber barons. These affluent industrialists were considered some of the wealthiest — and most successful — businessmen of the 18th and 19th centuries. (The term originally appeared in the August 1870 issue of The Atlantic Monthly magazine.) The most famous robber barons have even become standard icons in American culture. The stories of wealth amassed by tycoons like J.P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie are recounted in public school history classes throughout the United States each year. I’ll show you how you can get started in modern day Rockefeller investing… #-ad_banner-#Unfortunately, to most people the word robber baron is not a term of endearment. It’s generally used to contextualize a greedy Wall Street “fat cat” with an insatiable thirst for money — the kind of caricature you would expect a political cartoonist to feature in Sunday’s edition of The Washington Post. But that’s not how I look at them. When I picture the robber barons, I see some of the best investors the world has ever known. Rockefeller, for example, was said to have accumulated an inflation-adjusted net worth of $360 billion by the time he died in 1937. To put that in… Read More

I’m going to show you a simple strategy that has never lost money in the market. A recent study by mega-investment firm Oppenheimer proved just as much. Don’t worry, it’s not some “too good to be true” story. But there are some caveats. First, I could tell 100 people about this strategy… and I’d guess 99 of them would flat ignore it. That’s despite the evidence I’ll show you backing it up. “That strategy is for suckers.” “Its time has passed.” “You have to be an idiot to think that would work today.” I know some people will say this… Read More

I’m going to show you a simple strategy that has never lost money in the market. A recent study by mega-investment firm Oppenheimer proved just as much. Don’t worry, it’s not some “too good to be true” story. But there are some caveats. First, I could tell 100 people about this strategy… and I’d guess 99 of them would flat ignore it. That’s despite the evidence I’ll show you backing it up. “That strategy is for suckers.” “Its time has passed.” “You have to be an idiot to think that would work today.” I know some people will say this — because they already have. We asked some of our regular readers to give us their thoughts on this strategy. And those were the type of responses I heard from some people. I was shocked. #-ad_banner-#Second, you can’t use this strategy for every stock. Use it on the wrong ideas, and you can still lose money. But across the market as a whole, it hasn’t failed once in the past 60 years. The truth is, you don’t have to trade every day… or every week… or even every year to beat the market. In fact, your success actually increases with… Read More

Insiders in the natural resource business often talk about “shopping season” this time of year. But they’re not referring to Christmas presents. As I’ve discussed before, this is the time of year when many natural resource investments can be had at bargain prices. This is particularly true for the smaller firms that my premium natural resource newsletter, Scarcity & Real Wealth, was created to focus on — the kind of companies that offer potential for double or even triple-digit gains through the discovery of major mineral or petroleum deposits. #-ad_banner-#This month’s buying… Read More

Insiders in the natural resource business often talk about “shopping season” this time of year. But they’re not referring to Christmas presents. As I’ve discussed before, this is the time of year when many natural resource investments can be had at bargain prices. This is particularly true for the smaller firms that my premium natural resource newsletter, Scarcity & Real Wealth, was created to focus on — the kind of companies that offer potential for double or even triple-digit gains through the discovery of major mineral or petroleum deposits. #-ad_banner-#This month’s buying opportunity is upon us — ironically — because 2014 has been a difficult year for many resource companies. With commodities prices falling, a large number of firms have seen their share prices decline. Sentiment has in fact turned down to such a degree that many of these firms are selling for cash flow multiples lower than we’ve seen in decades. I’ve been purchasing a number of these companies for my portfolio over the past few months. The thing is, today we’re seeing even better prices on these already-cheap companies. That’s because many… Read More

All major U.S. stock indices finished in positive territory last week, led by the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100, which gained 2% and is up 20.8% so far in 2014. With small-cap stocks lagging all year, the broader market continues to rely heavily on technology to drag it higher. From a sector standpoint, last week’s advance was led by consumer discretionary and technology, which gained 2.5% and 2%, respectively. The energy sector collapsed 9.8% on fears of global oversupply in crude oil after Saudi Arabia blocked calls for output cuts from poorer OPEC members. #-ad_banner-#Globally, the recent recovery in European equity prices,… Read More

All major U.S. stock indices finished in positive territory last week, led by the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100, which gained 2% and is up 20.8% so far in 2014. With small-cap stocks lagging all year, the broader market continues to rely heavily on technology to drag it higher. From a sector standpoint, last week’s advance was led by consumer discretionary and technology, which gained 2.5% and 2%, respectively. The energy sector collapsed 9.8% on fears of global oversupply in crude oil after Saudi Arabia blocked calls for output cuts from poorer OPEC members. #-ad_banner-#Globally, the recent recovery in European equity prices, particularly in Germany, points to more strength in the U.S. stock market into early next year. Failed Pattern Bodes Well for U.S. Market In mid-October, I pointed out a bearish chart pattern in the German DAX Index that targeted an 11% decline to 7,800. This particular chart pattern, a head-and-shoulders, is a common and typically reliable indication of a major bearish change in the price trend of an asset. However, on the rare occasion this pattern fails, it shows that investors have had a sudden and strong collective change of opinion on market direction. The chart… Read More

There was a period of time over the last couple of months where a form of corporate engineering dominated headlines. Apple was one of the most high-profile examples of companies taking advantage of this practice. But a number of other lesser-known firms were doing the same, either by relocating their operations abroad or acquiring an internationally-based competitor. I’m talking about tax inversions. #-ad_banner-#This practice has caused some controversy because it has allowed the companies to lower their taxable earnings in the U.S. and shift them abroad to countries with lower tax rates. Needless to say, the U.S. Government was not… Read More

There was a period of time over the last couple of months where a form of corporate engineering dominated headlines. Apple was one of the most high-profile examples of companies taking advantage of this practice. But a number of other lesser-known firms were doing the same, either by relocating their operations abroad or acquiring an internationally-based competitor. I’m talking about tax inversions. #-ad_banner-#This practice has caused some controversy because it has allowed the companies to lower their taxable earnings in the U.S. and shift them abroad to countries with lower tax rates. Needless to say, the U.S. Government was not happy — it wanted its tax dollars. But just over a month ago the U.S. Department of Treasury updated five sections of the tax code to make inversions more difficult to execute, and less profitable. The news from the Treasury tossed a wet blanket on the boom in tax inversions. The headlines began to wane and it seemed as if tax inversions were dead and gone. So last month as I was preparing the next issue of my premium newsletter, High-Yield International, I was surprised when I came across news of a small acquisition, where another company was planning to… Read More

All major U.S. stock indices finished in positive territory last week except for the small-cap Russell 2000, which lost 0.1% and is up just 0.8% this year. On the other end of the spectrum, the tech heavy Nasdaq 100 — which has powered the 2014 broad market advance — gained 0.6% and is up 18.4% year to date. From a sector standpoint, previously downtrodden energy and materials led, which suggests that cyclical sectors may be making a comeback. If this is indeed the case, it bodes well for a strengthening global economy as we head into 2015. #-ad_banner-#Also significant is… Read More

All major U.S. stock indices finished in positive territory last week except for the small-cap Russell 2000, which lost 0.1% and is up just 0.8% this year. On the other end of the spectrum, the tech heavy Nasdaq 100 — which has powered the 2014 broad market advance — gained 0.6% and is up 18.4% year to date. From a sector standpoint, previously downtrodden energy and materials led, which suggests that cyclical sectors may be making a comeback. If this is indeed the case, it bodes well for a strengthening global economy as we head into 2015. #-ad_banner-#Also significant is the recent recovery in European equity prices, which had previously been a drag on U.S. performance, as I discussed in the Oct. 13 Market Outlook. As long as European stocks remain strong, which my analysis suggests is likely at least in the near term, it will help support further strength here in the States. Technology Continues to Lead Market Higher In last week’s Market Outlook, I said Cisco Systems’ (NASDAQ: CSCO) mid-November breakout targeted a run to $32 in the stock and also signaled more strength to come in the market. CSCO… Read More

Some call Prem Watsa the Warren Buffett of Canada. He is the CEO of Fairfax Financial (OTC: FRFHF), an insurance holding company modeled in much the same way as Berkshire Hathaway. And over the last 30 years, he compounded the book value of this business by more than 21%. Not only does he have a remarkable track record, but as early as 2004 he accurately predicted, and was warning of, the impending doom facing the housing market. #-ad_banner-#Recently, he began warning of a new danger to the markets: deflation. The United States… Read More

Some call Prem Watsa the Warren Buffett of Canada. He is the CEO of Fairfax Financial (OTC: FRFHF), an insurance holding company modeled in much the same way as Berkshire Hathaway. And over the last 30 years, he compounded the book value of this business by more than 21%. Not only does he have a remarkable track record, but as early as 2004 he accurately predicted, and was warning of, the impending doom facing the housing market. #-ad_banner-#Recently, he began warning of a new danger to the markets: deflation. The United States is six years into an incredible bull market: the S&P 500 has nearly tripled from its March 2009 bottom, and the markets continue reaching new highs every month. On the surface everything looks rosy. Underneath, though, Watsa warns of serious trouble brewing. In Fairfax’s most recent investor conference call, Watsa referred to the fact that current levels of inflation are now at 60-year lows. That by itself is somewhat alarming, but remember that those low levels were reached despite the fact that the United States and almost the entire world has been engaged in easy-money policies on an unprecedented level. Read More

It finally ended… The Federal Reserve recently announced that it would end its third (and possibly final) round of quantitative easing (QE). #-ad_banner-#This brings to close the $1.7 trillion that was pumped into the economy in this round alone. October marked the last month of the $15 billion in monthly bond purchases — down from $85 billion when QE3 started in 2012 — and ends the nearly six-year bond purchasing program. You can see what the program has done to the balance sheet of the Federal Reserve: The central bank’s bond purchasing program has sent the… Read More

It finally ended… The Federal Reserve recently announced that it would end its third (and possibly final) round of quantitative easing (QE). #-ad_banner-#This brings to close the $1.7 trillion that was pumped into the economy in this round alone. October marked the last month of the $15 billion in monthly bond purchases — down from $85 billion when QE3 started in 2012 — and ends the nearly six-year bond purchasing program. You can see what the program has done to the balance sheet of the Federal Reserve: The central bank’s bond purchasing program has sent the stock market soaring… and hopefully you’ve been able to capitalize on this tremendous bull market. To put the recent bull market in perspective, we only need to look at the returns from what is considered the “lost decade” and compare that time frame when the Fed turned on the printing presses. The term “lost decade” stemmed from the sluggish performance of the Japanese economy after its real estate bubble burst in the 1980s and has also been used to describe the state of the U.S. economy from 2000 to 2009. Our analysts have surely enjoyed this latest bull… Read More