In stressful times like these, it’s important to distinguish between investors’ appetite for stocks in general and the actual outlook of each company. The market plunge is related to top-down concerns about the U.S. economy, but a bottom-up approach is still warranted. This is because — despite the weak… Read More

If investing were always a walk in the park, we would all be Warren Buffett. Truth is, there are always tough times. And after more than two years of one of the strongest bull markets we’ve ever seen, the market is… Read More

Here we go again. This week is starting off where last week ended — on a dismal note. Since hitting an intra-day peak of 1,346 back on July 22, the S&P 500 Index is on track (as of Aug. 8) to mark its 10th losing session in the last… Read More

We watched the market implode last week. Some were scared, some were exhilarated. Some could only watch. When the market closed flat Friday after a tough Thursday, in which more than a trillion dollars of investor wealth was wiped away, I think pretty much everyone was pretty… Read More

After watching the recent market news, many wonder if we’ll ever see the market come back to pre-recession levels again. For many investors with less experience in the market, or investors who came of age during the boom years of the 1990s, this kind of recent market turbulence seems very… Read More

With the global economy on shaky footing again, a more conservative investing approach is warranted. Many investors direct their focus on traditional safe havens such as gold, government bonds certificates of deposit — even cold, hard cash. Food is… Read More

As the calendar flipped from 2010 to 2011, stock strategists routinely included both Ford (NYSE: F) and GM (NYSE: GM) among their top picks for the coming year. After all, both car makers had staged a remarkably recovery and looked poised to boost sales and profits at a continued robust pace. Seven months later, the wheels have fallen off, and each stock trades near a 52-week low. Judging by the stock price movements for both of these companies, you would think consumers are about to stop buying cars and trucks, as was the case in 2008. Will… Read More

As the calendar flipped from 2010 to 2011, stock strategists routinely included both Ford (NYSE: F) and GM (NYSE: GM) among their top picks for the coming year. After all, both car makers had staged a remarkably recovery and looked poised to boost sales and profits at a continued robust pace. Seven months later, the wheels have fallen off, and each stock trades near a 52-week low. Judging by the stock price movements for both of these companies, you would think consumers are about to stop buying cars and trucks, as was the case in 2008. Will this really be the case? After all, the economy was imploding in 2008. Now, it’s merely flat. Another question: if investors are being overly bearish about these automakers, then which one has the better looking stock right now? First, let’s take a quick look at how business is faring so far this year. Thee figures in the table below compare the first six months of 2011 with the first six months of 2010. One item quickly jumps out. Even though Ford and GM have both posted similar sales gains in the first… Read More

This industry is never going away. And even when the economy struggles, such as is the case now, stocks in this industry rarely disappoint investors. They provide consistent dividend payments at growing rates and can be great defensive plays. I’m talking about waste management companies… Read More

Investors are pressing the “Sell” button as fast as they can, dumping stocks that have already fallen 20% or 30% on fears they’ll fall even more in the sessions to come. The current environment appears based on fear more than fact. Indeed, the… Read More

There was a time when investors who felt anxious about the job market, economy or life in general could always find solace in U.S. Treasuries. They could be secure in the knowledge their money was perfectly safe and at least earning fairly decent interest. Things sure… Read More