I recently interviewed Wall Street Journal columnist Joseph Sternberg about his provocative new book, The Theft of a Decade: How the Baby Boomers Stole the Millennials’ Economic Future. Since the 1980s, the Baby Boom generation has overseen America’s political agenda. However, Boomers will soon share their seat at the throne of public policy. The number of adult Millennials will reach...
As the first-half of 2019 draws to a close, investors have much to cheer about. A lot of money has been made across many asset classes. If you're considering tweaking your strategy for the second-half of the year, I have four words for you: Buy gold, sell bonds. Why Gold Is Attractive Again Gold has been dead money since 2011...
Consumers benefit when companies compete. And right now, there is a battle royal between traditional cable providers and streaming services like Hulu and Netflix. You are probably aware of the cord-cutting trend. But have you benefited yet? If not, it’s easy and well worth it to cut your cable. Rising Cable Costs Studies indicate a clear generational divide in cord-cutting...
Scary stock charts make for reliable clickbait, but not reliable profits. The indicators vary. A common feature, though, is provocative terminology. For instance, headlines about a 'Death Cross' in the market will tend to stir more interest among casual market watchers compared to stories about Fed policy. A conventional indicator that traders and the media often highlight includes moving averages...
Morningstar Inc. is looking to shakeup the credit rating industry. The company's timing couldn't be better. "We have probably the riskiest credit market that we have ever had,'' Scott Mather told Bloomberg Television on Wednesday. Mather is Chief Investment Officer of U.S. core strategies at the bond giant, PIMCO. He and his colleagues see a lot of disruption potential in...
I’ve worked with hundreds of investors in my career. To date, no one has ever told me their goal was to lose money. Yet apparently that’s becoming more of a ‘thing’ lately. Take this recent CNBC headline: “WeWork urges investors to see losses as ‘investments’ as it reports first-quarter loss of $264 million” Only when you consider the broader environment—where...
There are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns—the ones we don't know we don't know." - Former U.S. defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld Anxiety over the brewing U.S./China trade spat spilled...
Disney is one the top performing Dobermans of the Dow so far in 2019. Shares have risen close to 30%. My Doberman screen looks for quality cash flow generators trading at bargain prices. Disney checked both boxes at the start of the year, and the stock remains undervalued. Recent Catalysts Earlier this month, Disney management outlined the firm's content streaming...
Can you imagine JR Ewing sitting on a mat saying “Namaste”? Most people would not associate oil executives or the energy industry with yoga. But at Hart Energy’s DUG Permian Basin conference last week, yoga sessions were offered on the agenda for the first time. Attendees got to practice their downward dog pose before learning about the latest drilling practices...
You’ve probably heard about the college admission scandal rocking Hollywood and other elite social circles. But do you know the story behind the story? That is—how authorities were tipped off in the first place? The story I’m referring to is a stock market story, and it begins with a man named Morrie Tobin. In the spring of 2018, federal agents...
I was recently speaking with a friend about investments. At one point, he disclosed he didn’t have much liquidity. When I asked why, he said it was because he invested several million dollars in McLarens and Patek Philippe watches. I thought he was kidding, but he was totally serious. After we talked more and I did a little research, I...
Utilities and REITs are two sectors our firm is overweight in 2019. I recently granted an interview with Bottom Line Inc. to share a few of my ideas in these areas, which you can read by clicking here. Six months ago, there was a record short position in U.S. treasury bonds. We took the other side of that trade, effectively...