Financier Baron Rothschild famously said, “The time to buy is when there’s blood in the streets.” What he meant is that the largest profits are made when traders purchase shares in companies whose share price has been beaten down so far that most investors have lost all interest. It’s at this point that spectacular turnarounds can happen. Today, one industry in particular has come under fire. Extreme regulatory pressure, public outcry, massive defaults, and even having its financial lifeline threatened have caused investors to flee the sector in droves. Stock prices in this sector plunged to lows last July. Then,… Read More

Financier Baron Rothschild famously said, “The time to buy is when there’s blood in the streets.” What he meant is that the largest profits are made when traders purchase shares in companies whose share price has been beaten down so far that most investors have lost all interest. It’s at this point that spectacular turnarounds can happen. Today, one industry in particular has come under fire. Extreme regulatory pressure, public outcry, massive defaults, and even having its financial lifeline threatened have caused investors to flee the sector in droves. Stock prices in this sector plunged to lows last July. Then, before prices recovered, investors quietly starting snapping up shares again. These brave investors have since been rewarded handsomely with monster gains. The leading names in the sector have been trading higher by over 30% year-to-date, and I expect much greater gains over the next several years. That sector? For-profit education. Regulatory Pressure Has Crushed Profitability The for-profit education sector is a $23 billion industry with over 1,000 active businesses. Recently, for-profit universities and colleges have increasingly come under fire for their marketing tactics and admissions standards. The industry suffers from a shockingly high level of student loan defaults and… Read More

One of the coolest things about Wall Street is the ability to follow in the footsteps of ultra-successful investors. Unlike the secretive world of other investments, the stock market has regulations requiring large investors to disclose their holdings to the public on a quarterly basis via the SEC Form 13F. This disclosure applies to all institutional money managers with over $100 million in qualified assets. #-ad_banner-#Following the 13F filings of these money managers can provide smaller investors both direct and indirect guidance as to how to invest. Direct guidance can be gleaned by following what holdings are new, added, or… Read More

One of the coolest things about Wall Street is the ability to follow in the footsteps of ultra-successful investors. Unlike the secretive world of other investments, the stock market has regulations requiring large investors to disclose their holdings to the public on a quarterly basis via the SEC Form 13F. This disclosure applies to all institutional money managers with over $100 million in qualified assets. #-ad_banner-#Following the 13F filings of these money managers can provide smaller investors both direct and indirect guidance as to how to invest. Direct guidance can be gleaned by following what holdings are new, added, or lessened during the quarter. Indirectly, investors can observe the movement of money into and out of sectors and industries to obtain inside knowledge of burgeoning market trends. One of my all-time favorite mega-investors to follow is Carl Icahn. At 80 years old, Mr. Icahn has built his reputation, and over $16 billion in personal wealth, as an activist shareholder and buyout specialist. Icahn has most recently been in the news as being a candidate for Treasury Secretary under Donald Trump. However, it is unlikely he will accept any official government position beyond informal advisor. He explained to FOX Business Network,… Read More

Cutting-edge and high-yield are not two terms that are heard together often. Cutting-edge conjures up thoughts of growth focused internet or high-tech firms creating novel products and services. High-yield, however, makes one think of stodgy, slow-growing REITs or blue-chip stocks producing a high dividend yield but not much upside. Despite… Read More

The Trump Administration will likely create a tremendous opportunity for investors in several emerging markets. “What?” I can hear some of you saying, “Didn’t this guy just write an article trashing emerging markets and warning investors to stay far away?”  Yes, that is the truth. I am expecting the primary emerging markets like China, Thailand, Brazil, and South Korea to struggle under pending economic changes in the United States.  However, there are two emerging markets that I think will thrive despite the potential for radical domestic policy change.  Finding The Good Side Of An International Slowdown An interesting truth… Read More

The Trump Administration will likely create a tremendous opportunity for investors in several emerging markets. “What?” I can hear some of you saying, “Didn’t this guy just write an article trashing emerging markets and warning investors to stay far away?”  Yes, that is the truth. I am expecting the primary emerging markets like China, Thailand, Brazil, and South Korea to struggle under pending economic changes in the United States.  However, there are two emerging markets that I think will thrive despite the potential for radical domestic policy change.  Finding The Good Side Of An International Slowdown An interesting truth about the stock market is that every negative has a corresponding positive. Even in the direst bearish markets and individual company situations, someone is earning profits from the turmoil. Another similar market fact is that there is an exception to every rule. No matter how many examples can be shown that a certain market or stock behavior occurs after XYZ happens, there are other examples where it does not happen. #-ad_banner-#The same thing happens whenever a blanket statement is made about the markets. Although my past article issued a warning about emerging markets, not every emerging market will suffer the… Read More

Over the summer I had the opportunity to visit Newport, Rhode Island. Talk about an incredible place to visit! I was struck by the amazing mansions lining the Cliffside ocean vistas.  The over-the-top architecture combined with no-holds-barred luxury appointments were truly a sight to behold. This Disneyland of the Gilded… Read More

We just experienced what seemed like the most contentious and intense Presidential election race in the history of the United States. At times, it was so crazy that it seemed very possible that the country would splinter into two or more pieces. There just couldn’t be an incumbent and same-party candidate more different than the opposing party.  #-ad_banner-#And now the election is over. A new President and political party will be leading us for the next four or more years under a very different philosophy. Despite the radical differences between the incumbent and incoming Presidents, there is one thing that… Read More

We just experienced what seemed like the most contentious and intense Presidential election race in the history of the United States. At times, it was so crazy that it seemed very possible that the country would splinter into two or more pieces. There just couldn’t be an incumbent and same-party candidate more different than the opposing party.  #-ad_banner-#And now the election is over. A new President and political party will be leading us for the next four or more years under a very different philosophy. Despite the radical differences between the incumbent and incoming Presidents, there is one thing that they have in common. As an investor, this similarity will tell you where to deploy your capital over the next several years. On a grander scale, it will dictate the direction of the entire domestic economy. This one commonality is infrastructure spending. Both Obama and Trump are very supportive of improving our nation’s crumbling infrastructure. Investing in the leaders in this sector should therefore make a profitable investment over the next few years.  Here’s why: In 2015, Obama signed into law the first long-term transportation bill passed by Congress in a decade. Known as the FAST (Fixing America’s Surface Transportation)… Read More

The economic cycles have turned negative on this attractive investment sector. Despite this sector having at one time been up by more than 16% this year, the signals are flashing that it is time to take profits. In fact, the primary ETF in the sector recently suffered its worst day of capital outflows since 2011. While at the same time, the bond-based ETF of this sector experienced $300 million in outflows, the most ever on record. #-ad_banner-#A Bloomberg analyst stated that we could see $20 billion of outflows from this sector by November 18th.  Apparently, big money has announced its… Read More

The economic cycles have turned negative on this attractive investment sector. Despite this sector having at one time been up by more than 16% this year, the signals are flashing that it is time to take profits. In fact, the primary ETF in the sector recently suffered its worst day of capital outflows since 2011. While at the same time, the bond-based ETF of this sector experienced $300 million in outflows, the most ever on record. #-ad_banner-#A Bloomberg analyst stated that we could see $20 billion of outflows from this sector by November 18th.  Apparently, big money has announced its intentions.  Despite the bearish signals, the mainstream financial press is alive with articles attempting to prop up the sector. The question is, will you continue plowing money into the “hot” sector of 2016, or heed the warning signs?  First, let’s take a quick look at the nature of financial cycles. Most every investor knows that the market often acts in cycles. However, investors often ignore the fact that hot stocks — or even sectors — will not stay hot forever.  Take the Internet bubble, for example. It was very clear that shares of untested, and often revenue-less, companies could not… Read More

Things are changing in America. In fact, change will likely be the single word best describing the next several years in future history books.  #-ad_banner-#We are expecting a new presidential administration with grand visions of a thriving domestic economy. There will be a House and Senate united under a single-party majority, and business and personal income taxes are expected to be slashed. All these changes combine to create an economy supercharged with expansion. And all of this growth will be incredibly beneficial to the American people.  However, to economists and investors, there will likely be a dark side to such… Read More

Things are changing in America. In fact, change will likely be the single word best describing the next several years in future history books.  #-ad_banner-#We are expecting a new presidential administration with grand visions of a thriving domestic economy. There will be a House and Senate united under a single-party majority, and business and personal income taxes are expected to be slashed. All these changes combine to create an economy supercharged with expansion. And all of this growth will be incredibly beneficial to the American people.  However, to economists and investors, there will likely be a dark side to such rapid expansion. This dark side will be the Federal Reserve aggressively stepping in to slow the growth via interest rate increases. Rates have already started to ease higher, as evidenced by the 0.25% advance last December, in response to a successful fiscal stimulus program. We all know that higher interest rates are thought to slow economic growth and strengthen the U.S. dollar. However, don’t despair. Opportunities will abound in a climbing-rate environment. Stock market investors can profit from a climbing interest rate environment by going long greenback ETF’s like PowerShares DB US Dollar Index Bullish ETF (NYSE: UUP). Other sectors… Read More

There are three primary factors that should come into play whenever choosing a winning stock for a long-term investment.  The shares must be undervalued, they must possess a solid dividend yield, and there must be internal and external catalysts that will push shares higher. #-ad_banner-#I have identified a company that… Read More

Imagine being arrested for a crime that you haven’t even committed yet. Noted science-fiction author Philip K. Dick wrote about this possibility many years ago. His premise was that predictive analytics and massive computer power would allow law enforcement to predict, and stop, crime before the actual occurrence based on strong probabilities of it occurring.  While Philip K. Dick’s vision of a dystopian future remains a distant possibility, parts of similar technology are actively used in the corporate environment.  #-ad_banner-#Artificial intelligence, predictive analytics, and big data are no longer in the realm of science fiction. These high-tech skills, services, and… Read More

Imagine being arrested for a crime that you haven’t even committed yet. Noted science-fiction author Philip K. Dick wrote about this possibility many years ago. His premise was that predictive analytics and massive computer power would allow law enforcement to predict, and stop, crime before the actual occurrence based on strong probabilities of it occurring.  While Philip K. Dick’s vision of a dystopian future remains a distant possibility, parts of similar technology are actively used in the corporate environment.  #-ad_banner-#Artificial intelligence, predictive analytics, and big data are no longer in the realm of science fiction. These high-tech skills, services, and products are now a must-have to compete in today’s quantitatively driven corporate environment.  However, these firms remain in their infancy, offering years of upside potential for savvy investors who can choose the right companies in the space now. The leading company in this sector is already up over 18% this year and has just posted strong third quarter results. Even better, its share price has set it up to be an ideal buy candidate. Let’s take a closer look. Nice Ltd (Nasdaq: NICE) is an Israeli-based, $4.2 billion-market cap big data/artificial intelligence company. The shares trade in the United States… Read More