Mark Twain understood the mind of an investor. The world-renowned author once proclaimed: “A dollar picked up in the road is more satisfaction to us than the 99 which we had to work for, and the money won in the stock market snuggles into our hearts in the same way.” Twain acknowledged the rush that can accompany earning money without any labor. He understood that the human brain is not wired for clear thinking in regard to money. That’s because the area of the brain that responds to financial reward is the same part… Read More

Mark Twain understood the mind of an investor. The world-renowned author once proclaimed: “A dollar picked up in the road is more satisfaction to us than the 99 which we had to work for, and the money won in the stock market snuggles into our hearts in the same way.” Twain acknowledged the rush that can accompany earning money without any labor. He understood that the human brain is not wired for clear thinking in regard to money. That’s because the area of the brain that responds to financial reward is the same part that lights up from cocaine. This presents a major problem. Investors can become insatiable, searching high and low for the next “big winners.” What they’re really interested in is a get-rich-quick scheme. That’s a terrific way to lose money — and quickly. However, if you are a regular reader of my Game-Changing Stocks newsletter, then you know that I have been making a habit of finding stocks with the most “big winner” potential for a while. In fact, I’ve found more than 23 triple-digit winners since joining StreetAuthority… Read More

When I was a kid, I had a friend named Corey. His folks were loaded: His dad was a successful gynecologist, and his mom “came from money,” as polite people used to say. The family cars were all Mercedes-Benzes. I was fortunate to have a relatively affluent upbringing, so luxury cars were not unknown to me. But one thing set Corey’s family’s cars apart: They had cell phones installed in them. #-ad_banner-#During the 1980s in Wichita, Kansas, cellular telephones were an exorbitantly expensive device limited mainly to very serious oilmen and very important physicians. Read More

When I was a kid, I had a friend named Corey. His folks were loaded: His dad was a successful gynecologist, and his mom “came from money,” as polite people used to say. The family cars were all Mercedes-Benzes. I was fortunate to have a relatively affluent upbringing, so luxury cars were not unknown to me. But one thing set Corey’s family’s cars apart: They had cell phones installed in them. #-ad_banner-#During the 1980s in Wichita, Kansas, cellular telephones were an exorbitantly expensive device limited mainly to very serious oilmen and very important physicians. But when I could finally afford it a decade later during my sophomore year of college, I became an early adopter of the technology and bought a Nokia handheld model. It was expensive-ish, I suppose, but the convenience made sense to me, and it wasn’t like I had a mortgage to worry about at the time. Well, you know what happened. It wasn’t much longer before the cell phone trend caught on and then took off. The technology grew better and better, and so did the service, which simultaneously became cheaper and cheaper. Now,… Read More

In 1991, Steve Young became the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, one of the National Football League’s most storied franchises. Young was a highly touted prospect, but he was facing an obstacle none of his peers had to overcome. He was replacing Joe Montana — one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. #-ad_banner-#Montana had won four Super Bowls with the 49ers and would soon be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. While 49ers fans were optimistic about their new, quarterback, they knew he’d never be nearly as successful as… Read More

In 1991, Steve Young became the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, one of the National Football League’s most storied franchises. Young was a highly touted prospect, but he was facing an obstacle none of his peers had to overcome. He was replacing Joe Montana — one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. #-ad_banner-#Montana had won four Super Bowls with the 49ers and would soon be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. While 49ers fans were optimistic about their new, quarterback, they knew he’d never be nearly as successful as Joe Montana. They couldn’t have been more wrong. Steve Young won the league’s Most Valuable Player award in both the 1992 and 1994 seasons, and he led the 49ers to a decisive Super Bowl victory in 1995. Despite replacing an all-time great, Young had exceeded expectations. Today, Apple finds itself in a position similar to the 1991 San Francisco 49ers. Steve Jobs was an icon and incredible innovator, and there are a lot of people who think Apple won’t be able to continue innovating without its founder. That’s… Read More

Always cast your line where the big fish swim. With tens of thousands of potential investment choices, one smart strategy is to follow the smart money — the kind managed by the sort people who seldom guess wrong. #-ad_banner-#In most instances, that means hedge funds. These special investments are open only to the (really) rich. This is actually defined by federal law. To qualify, an individual must have a net worth greater than a million bucks, not counting home equity. An individual also needs to have $200,000 in annual income (or… Read More

Always cast your line where the big fish swim. With tens of thousands of potential investment choices, one smart strategy is to follow the smart money — the kind managed by the sort people who seldom guess wrong. #-ad_banner-#In most instances, that means hedge funds. These special investments are open only to the (really) rich. This is actually defined by federal law. To qualify, an individual must have a net worth greater than a million bucks, not counting home equity. An individual also needs to have $200,000 in annual income (or household income of greater than $300,000), with a reasonable belief that the income stream will continue. Hedge funds have professional management. I’m talking about the pinstriped suit crowd that actually run the world; the private jet types who use “weekend” as a verb. Let’s be very clear, though. Most hedge funds, no matter how lovely their managers’ suits, do not beat the market over time. That might be one reason why Warren Buffett made a famous $1 million bet that a basket of five hedge funds couldn’t beat the market over… Read More

I grew up on a family farm in North Central Kansas. And though I moved away to the big city long ago, the farm has always been home. It’s among my favorite places. Farming is tough work and ridiculously capital-intensive. It takes millions of dollars’ worth of land and millions more in equipment to launch even a modest agricultural operation. There are no guarantees, and all of the critical success factors are completely out of the farmer’s control. #-ad_banner-#Last year, we intended to harvest the wheat that we planted in half the county. In… Read More

I grew up on a family farm in North Central Kansas. And though I moved away to the big city long ago, the farm has always been home. It’s among my favorite places. Farming is tough work and ridiculously capital-intensive. It takes millions of dollars’ worth of land and millions more in equipment to launch even a modest agricultural operation. There are no guarantees, and all of the critical success factors are completely out of the farmer’s control. #-ad_banner-#Last year, we intended to harvest the wheat that we planted in half the county. In a good year, our ground yields roughly $200 profit per acre, leaving enough to pay for some equipment, make a little progress on any land debt and put a few bucks in the bank. Now, the trouble with that paragraph is the phrase “in a good year.” I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but “good” years have been rare of late, primarily because of a persistent drought that has put a relentless stranglehold on the Bread Basket. Conditions were so poor last year that we didn’t have a crop to cut. Read More

I would bet few investors really understand what’s behind the success of technology behemoth, Apple, Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL). The rags-to-riches story of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak building the first Apple computer in a garage is widely known. And of course, its products like the iPod, iPhone and Macbook are undeniably popular. #-ad_banner-#But today I want to share with you the secret that’s led Apple to become the world’s largest company by market capitalization and helped its share price sky rocket more than 12,600% since 2001. Despite what most people think,… Read More

I would bet few investors really understand what’s behind the success of technology behemoth, Apple, Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL). The rags-to-riches story of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak building the first Apple computer in a garage is widely known. And of course, its products like the iPod, iPhone and Macbook are undeniably popular. #-ad_banner-#But today I want to share with you the secret that’s led Apple to become the world’s largest company by market capitalization and helped its share price sky rocket more than 12,600% since 2001. Despite what most people think, it’s not the company’s revolutionary products that drive its success… The key to understanding Apple’s success can be seen in a simple pattern. Once you identify this pattern, the catalyst to future growth for Apple — and the way investors can make money from the company today — will be apparent. After Apple sold the first iPod in October 2001, it was not received well by critics, consumers and investors. Just look at this chart showing Apple’s share price in the 18 months following the iPod launch: Not what you’d expect,… Read More

It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer number of differing opinions regarding the market. Talking heads shout them at you through the TV. Your financial advisor suggests a different strategy. A close relative swears by yet another completely unique way to put your hard-earned money to work. For some it might seem impossible to separate the noise from the advice that can secure the future you desire for yourself and your family. But actually, there’s one simple thing that can help you ignore the false prophets and identify true winners. Read More

It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer number of differing opinions regarding the market. Talking heads shout them at you through the TV. Your financial advisor suggests a different strategy. A close relative swears by yet another completely unique way to put your hard-earned money to work. For some it might seem impossible to separate the noise from the advice that can secure the future you desire for yourself and your family. But actually, there’s one simple thing that can help you ignore the false prophets and identify true winners. Follow the results. #-ad_banner-#You see, anyone can get lucky enough to stumble upon triple-digit gains once… maybe even twice. But I’ve done it 23 times in the four years since I joined the Game-Changing Stocks newsletter. That means, on average, I’ve helped my readers identify at least one stock that gains 100% or more every other month. That’s somewhere around six triple-digit winners per year, in addition to the many double-digit winners I’ve uncovered. One area, in particular, where I’ve been able… Read More

I hate to say this, but as an investor the deck is stacked against you. There are literally tens of thousands of investments out there for you to choose between, each with their own market capitalization, earnings multiple, dividend yield and a whole host of other facts that dictate how they might perform. And given the set of infinite potential outcomes, the odds of successful investment sustained over time are likewise infinitesimal. Luckily though, my Game-Changing Stocks strategy can reverse the odds dramatically in your favor. In fact, it’s as close… Read More

I hate to say this, but as an investor the deck is stacked against you. There are literally tens of thousands of investments out there for you to choose between, each with their own market capitalization, earnings multiple, dividend yield and a whole host of other facts that dictate how they might perform. And given the set of infinite potential outcomes, the odds of successful investment sustained over time are likewise infinitesimal. Luckily though, my Game-Changing Stocks strategy can reverse the odds dramatically in your favor. In fact, it’s as close to a sure thing as anything I’ve ever seen. “Now, Andy,” I can just hear you respond, “of course you’d say that. It’s your strategy.” #-ad_banner-#But the truth is, the Game-Changing Stocks strategy isn’t really “mine.” It’s based on the work of an Italian mathematician named Vilfredo Pareto, who posited that 20% of all effort will yield 80% of the results. That’s why I preach letting 20% of your portfolio do the heavy lifting and capture all the big gains, while the remaining 80% sits in solid blue-chip investments earning you… Read More

If you’re like me, then you never want to worry about money again… whether that means merely being financially independent or becoming filthy rich is beside the point. And while blue-chip stocks, index funds and dividend payers can keep the income flowing, the truth is these securities will take decades to amass real wealth. You’ll need something else if you’re after a seven-figure bank account: a “swing for the fences” strategy. So today I’m going to show you how to position yourself for “out-of-the-park” gains without jeopardizing your safer investments. I… Read More

If you’re like me, then you never want to worry about money again… whether that means merely being financially independent or becoming filthy rich is beside the point. And while blue-chip stocks, index funds and dividend payers can keep the income flowing, the truth is these securities will take decades to amass real wealth. You’ll need something else if you’re after a seven-figure bank account: a “swing for the fences” strategy. So today I’m going to show you how to position yourself for “out-of-the-park” gains without jeopardizing your safer investments. I call it the “20% solution.” The idea behind it is simple: dedicate a portion of your portfolio to aggressive growth stocks. Let me explain. My daughter is in private school. In a few years she may go to college. Eventually she’ll need a car, an apartment and someday a wedding. All of which cost money. For her and the rest of my family, I’ve allocated 80% of my portfolio to safe, reliable assets. These are securities that I know will allow me to keep living comfortably and adequately provide for my family. We want this money to grow hands-free. So… Read More

Only once a lifetime — twice, if you’re lucky — does an invention come along that truly changes the world. The wheel. The plow. The printing press. The combustion engine. The semiconductor. The wheel increased the speed and efficiency of transportation and was the foundation of future ingenuities likes railroads and automobiles. The plow allowed farmers to achieve economies of scale and produce more food than humans needed to survive. The printing press spread literacy from select nobles, elites and holy figures to the common man. An enormity of information could be recorded and proliferated, at relatively low cost. The… Read More

Only once a lifetime — twice, if you’re lucky — does an invention come along that truly changes the world. The wheel. The plow. The printing press. The combustion engine. The semiconductor. The wheel increased the speed and efficiency of transportation and was the foundation of future ingenuities likes railroads and automobiles. The plow allowed farmers to achieve economies of scale and produce more food than humans needed to survive. The printing press spread literacy from select nobles, elites and holy figures to the common man. An enormity of information could be recorded and proliferated, at relatively low cost. The combustion engine connected the globe physically via ships, trains, automobiles and airplanes. And the semiconductor united the world intellectually with instant mass communication between anyone, no matter the geographic distance. But with the benefits that come from mankind’s past and future achievements, there will always be exploitation. #-ad_banner-#The wheel — and eventually the combustion engine — became (amongst other uses) weapons of war and oppression. The printing press can be used to spread propaganda, libel and plagiarism. Over-plowing depletes a soil’s nutrients and makes farmland infertile. Not only were these problems not solved overnight, but many of them are largely… Read More