You hear it all the time. Save for retirement! Many financial experts — including my favorite, Suze Orman — tell you to contribute to a Roth IRA or traditional IRA outside of your… Read More

The market has surged and plunged during the past two years, but two things have remained constant. Companies continue to generate lots of cash. And lacking any real options to re-invest that cash back into their business, they’re hiking or initiating new dividends at a rapid rate. Read More

In my nearly two years penning articles for StreetAuthority, I’ve made my share of winning and losing calls. Thankfully, the track record has been largely positive, so I hope I’ve made readers a lot more money than I’ve lost them. As much as I hate the idea of a bad… Read More

When income investors set out to find high yields, they’re lucky to find a stock yielding 6%, maybe 7%. Anything more is usually in dubious territory. This is because a higher yield is often backed by a stock that has dropped precipitously for one… Read More

Those who are new to investing are just as smart as those who have been around for a long time. The main difference lies not in intelligence, but wisdom — the wisdom that comes from making mistakes and learning from them. From Warren Buffett to George Soros,… Read More

If you’re an American consumer with small children, the chances of interacting with something made by toy giant Mattel (Nasdaq: MAT) are probably no less than 99.999998%. Whether you’re always stepping on the cold, die-cast metal of a Hot Wheels car your son always manages to leave out in the… Read More

The end is near. That is to say, the deepening European crisis is coming to head. And when policy makers finally devise an effective strategy to tackle the banking mess in Southern Europe, the never-ending market selloff in Europe will likely come to an end. This is… Read More

Gyrations in the U.S. stock market have been capturing headlines worldwide, but European stocks have had it even worse. While the S&P 500 Index was down roughly 4% through the end of August, German and French stocks had fallen 17% year-to-date, while English stocks had lost 8% of their… Read More

In investing, there’s a time to focus on reward and a time to focus on risk. And in a clearly growing economy, it always pays to find the companies best positioned to grow steadily. In better times, investors have been amply rewarded for their… Read More

It’s the safest investment on the planet. There’s no arguing that. Take a look at how it has performed over the past month: The chart above compares this investment to some of the other safe havens — including gold and the Swiss franc. Read More