A healthy cushion of cash is always valued by large, stable companies. Many companies make good use of that cash by buying back their own stock. Just a few weeks into earnings season, we’ve already seen a hefty slate of new stock buyback announcements. Read More

There aren’t many companies that can say they’ve paid dividends every year for the past four decades. Fewer still are those that have raised their dividends in every single one of those years. Of that elite group, I know of only one company that has hiked its… Read More

If you want to invest in the top hedge funds — such as from George Soros, Carl Icahn, Bill Ackman or John Paulson — you will need to write a big check. A minimum investment can easily be $10 million — that is, even if you are allowed… Read More

Not long ago, I took my Game-Changing Stocks readers on a journey to the non-descript offices of an obscure Department of Defense agency that funds research into areas most people never imagine.   Occasionally, this cadre of uber-geniuses comes up with a real winner. Take the Internet, for… Read More

Food has a reputation as a product that is not only recession-resistant, but certifiably recession-proof. No matter the state of the economy or point we are in the business cycle, people have to eat. Of the traditional grocery chains, Kroger (NYSE: KR) is the largest player,… Read More

#-ad_banner-#It’s one of the first rules of investing: find stocks with strong earnings growth and reasonable valuations. We’re even taught a simple formula: look for stocks that have a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio that is lower than the earnings growth rate, or, a PEG ratio (P/E divided by the earnings growth rate) lower than 1.0. Yet the converse is also true. Stocks with a PEG ratio over 1.0 can be overvalued. It happens without many investors even noticing. A stock rises and rises… Read More

#-ad_banner-#It’s one of the first rules of investing: find stocks with strong earnings growth and reasonable valuations. We’re even taught a simple formula: look for stocks that have a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio that is lower than the earnings growth rate, or, a PEG ratio (P/E divided by the earnings growth rate) lower than 1.0. Yet the converse is also true. Stocks with a PEG ratio over 1.0 can be overvalued. It happens without many investors even noticing. A stock rises and rises until its value becomes disconnected from the reality on the ground. A high PEG ratio can limit further upside and make a stock especially ripe for a pullback in down markets. On the flip side, it can also make for a nice stock to short. Here’s a look at three stocks with alarmingly high PEG ratios. Each of the stocks on this table trade at least 50% above fair value when the PEG ratio test is applied. Salesforce.com (Nasdaq: CRM) This provider of contact relationship software has seen its shares fall roughly… Read More

When you think about ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM), you think of oil. A steady focus on “black gold” has enabled the company to become the most valuable company on the planet. But with oil prices steadily rising and natural gas prices flat-lined during the past year, it may surprise you that… Read More

You’ve probably heard the word nanotechnology before, but can you define it? Simply put, nanotech involves creating systems built on a molecular scale. While the industrial practice is small, nanotech manufacturing is big business. It’s also a very profitable one. What’s more, I’ve found a nanotech company that has the… Read More

Every U.S. state boasts its own unique claim to fame. Louisiana has Mardi Gras and Cajun food. Florida has sugar-white beaches and Disney World. And Alaska has millions of acres of beautiful, untamed wilderness. Of course, Alaska also has something else deep underground: Crude oil — lots of it. Every day, the Trans-Alaska Pipeline carries about 670,000 barrels of oil from North Slope production grounds south to Valdez, where it’s loaded into waiting tankers. That represents about 15% of the nation’s total oil output. Thanks to the riches of Prudhoe Bay,… Read More

Every U.S. state boasts its own unique claim to fame. Louisiana has Mardi Gras and Cajun food. Florida has sugar-white beaches and Disney World. And Alaska has millions of acres of beautiful, untamed wilderness. Of course, Alaska also has something else deep underground: Crude oil — lots of it. Every day, the Trans-Alaska Pipeline carries about 670,000 barrels of oil from North Slope production grounds south to Valdez, where it’s loaded into waiting tankers. That represents about 15% of the nation’s total oil output. Thanks to the riches of Prudhoe Bay, every man, woman and child living in the state receives an annual royalty dividend distribution — last year’s check was $1,281. But if the Department of Energy (DOE) is right, then Alaska could soon relinquish its title as America’s largest oil producer – so I’ve already set my sights on its successor. The latest projections from the DOE have Alaska’s daily production rates slipping to 450,000 barrels within the next seven years. Meanwhile, output from the oil-rich Bakken Shale of North Dakota could potentially climb to 700,000 barrels a day by 2015 — more aggressive… Read More

Bull markets can be broken into several phases. At first, investors seek out large stable companies, tentatively stepping into stocks while still a bit unsure if the rally will last. As a rally builds, investors start to migrate into the tried-and-true growth stocks, such as major Nasdaq technology stocks. Only… Read More