As you continually assess current events for any impact on your portfolio, you also need to spend time thinking about what events may be on the horizon. And although none of us has a crystal ball, it’s important to try to anticipate the direction of economics, sector activity, politics and any other issues that may affect the investment environment. The list below contains possible scenarios for the next 12 months that could impact your portfolio in a meaningful way. 1. New jobless claims fall below 400,000 in the first quarter, and meaningful job… Read More

As you continually assess current events for any impact on your portfolio, you also need to spend time thinking about what events may be on the horizon. And although none of us has a crystal ball, it’s important to try to anticipate the direction of economics, sector activity, politics and any other issues that may affect the investment environment. The list below contains possible scenarios for the next 12 months that could impact your portfolio in a meaningful way. 1. New jobless claims fall below 400,000 in the first quarter, and meaningful job creation begins in earnest in 2011 as companies realize that they’ve squeezed out all possible productivity enhancements and need to re-build depleted workforces. The unemployment rate is slow to fall, as previously discouraged workers start to look for work again. But investors focus on the monthly jobs creation number instead of the actual unemployment rate. 2. Noting the impressive synergies that Delta (NYSE: DAL) derived from its merger with Northwest (which were only belatedly appreciated by investors), investors continue to bid up shares of UAL… Read More

When I went to the Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-B) annual meeting in 2009, there was something I really wanted to do. No, it wasn’t a chat with Warren Buffett. That’s almost impossible at the yearly “Woodstock for Capitalists,” and only first-timers make the trek… Read More

Even as we look to post 10% to 15% annual gains for our portfolios, the occasional 50% gainer never hurts. So I like to look at the market’s biggest winners to see what’s working right now. Some of these big gainers may even have more room to run. Read More

As an income investor, I occasionally feel forced to choose between growth and a hefty dividend. Finding a high yielding stock that also has good growth potential is a rarity. One reason for that may be that fast-growing companies often don’t pay a dividend. Instead, these companies re-invest… Read More

The Republican and Democratic positions on the long-term budget woes are clear: The GOP has pushed strongly for sharp spending cuts to help bring down the national debt, while the Democrats believe current spending efforts to get the economy on track now will boost government revenue and close… Read More

One of the guys in the office is just getting his start in the financial world. In fact, he just celebrated his 24th birthday. I told him, “I have clothes in my closet older than you.” He looked shocked. I’m not a big shopper, but when I… Read More

Bargains are getting increasingly difficult to find in the U.S. stock market. Gone are the fire sales that existed after the financial crisis. The S&P 500 has rallied more than 80% from the March 2009 lows and a rising prognosis for economic growth in 2011 has lifted the stock market… Read More

I live a rich life, one that has far exceeded my wildest dreams. I don’t mean rich as in uber-investor Warren Buffett or Facebook wunderkind Mark Zuckerberg. It’s not something I measure by the number of zeros that follow a dollar sign. I measure it with something… Read More

Carl Icahn has a pretty simple formula for investing: Find a company with unappreciated assets and a sleepy management team, rattle a few cages, and wait for shares to finally appreciate. That’s what he did with Motorola (NYSE: MOT) and many other companies over the years. [Read my take on that here.] He doesn’t always succeed, but several big hits have pushed him into the billionaire’s club (he’s actually worth an estimated $8.9 billion, according to Forbes). He’s at it again. Icahn has been buying up shares of natural gas firm Chesapeake Energy (NYSE:… Read More

Carl Icahn has a pretty simple formula for investing: Find a company with unappreciated assets and a sleepy management team, rattle a few cages, and wait for shares to finally appreciate. That’s what he did with Motorola (NYSE: MOT) and many other companies over the years. [Read my take on that here.] He doesn’t always succeed, but several big hits have pushed him into the billionaire’s club (he’s actually worth an estimated $8.9 billion, according to Forbes). He’s at it again. Icahn has been buying up shares of natural gas firm Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK), and is gearing up some fresh cage rattling. Icahn just announced in a 13-D filing that his firm now owns 5.8% of the company and “intends to seek to continue to have conversations with the company’s management to discuss the business & operations of the company and the maximization of shareholder value.” There’s one small problem: Chesapeake’s CEO Aubrey McClendon is stubborn as a mule, and not likely to warm to Icahn’s overtures. As I noted this summer, McClendon thinks he’s smarter than his peers and can identify cheap assets better than anyone else. But I… Read More

As gold flirts with all-time (non inflation-adjusted) highs, many investors wonder whether gold can surge yet higher, or if we’re merely in a bubble. Although we lack a crystal ball on that question, we do know some basic facts that help to explain just how far from a baseline value that yellow metal has come. Gold serves four main purposes: 1. As a key ingredient in a range of industrial processes 2. Jewelry 3. As a key asset held by governments that can be used in trade when they want to take… Read More

As gold flirts with all-time (non inflation-adjusted) highs, many investors wonder whether gold can surge yet higher, or if we’re merely in a bubble. Although we lack a crystal ball on that question, we do know some basic facts that help to explain just how far from a baseline value that yellow metal has come. Gold serves four main purposes: 1. As a key ingredient in a range of industrial processes 2. Jewelry 3. As a key asset held by governments that can be used in trade when they want to take steps to fund their budget deficits or provide confidence in their currencies 4. As a hedge by investors that fear eventual high inflation. It’s that last factor that has caused gold to nearly triple in the past five years to around $1,400 an ounce. It’s hard to get a true read of how much gold is bought and sold between countries. Some countries have sold off major gold reserves, while others have loaded up on it. Assume that major governments do not impact gold, and… Read More