In trading on Monday, shares of Flowers Foods, were yielding above the 6% mark based on its quarterly dividend (annualized to $0.99), with the stock changing hands as low as $16.43 on the day. Dividends are particularly important for investors to consider, because historically speaking dividends have provided a considerable share of the stock market’s total return. To illustrate, suppose for example you purchased shares of the iShares Russell 3000 ETF (IWV) back on 5/31/2000 — you would have paid $78.27 per share. Fast forward to 5/31/2012 and each share was worth $77.79 on that date, a loss of $0.48…

About 14 months ago, I wrote a column about gold. “I don’t think gold is an investment for all seasons,” I wrote, “but right now, I think it’s sensible to hold some.” That turned out to be right. Gold is up about 51% since I made that recommendation, including a 25% gain this year through May 30. So, what now? Take your golden profits and run? I don’t think so. Most of my clients have about 6% of their portfolio assets in gold, and I’m considering increasing that. Gold doesn’t have profits or pay dividends, so evaluating it is harder…

Ahead of its next interest rate decision on June 11, Federal Open Market Committee members are now in a blackout period. This limits public comments on monetary policy. Recent speeches suggest that June’s meeting will result in holding rates at their current 4.25% to 4.5% level. The CME FedWatch Tool, which gauges the implied forecast of fixed income markets implies it is almost a certainty that rates are held steady in June. However, the FOMC is watching the impact of tariffs closely and incoming data this month, and next, could help inform the path for interest rates later in 2025.…

Most mainstream financial websites are not “smart enough” to include special dividends. The yields they display reflect plain ol’ quarterly or monthly payouts. For most stocks this does not matter. But for a select few “special payers” this is a costly oversight. One that we can capitalize on as thoughtful contrarians. In a moment we’ll discuss five special dividends. The vanilla screens say they pay as little as 3.2% but in reality they dish up to 13.8%! What exactly is a special dividend payment? It is a one-time cash payout, often the result of a massive cash influx from, say,…

This latest US debt downgrade is a buying opportunity for us contrarians. I say that because we had the same (profitable) setup the last three times the ratings agencies took Uncle Sam’s credit rating down a peg. You might find that last sentence surprising. Three times? Indeed, the US government has seen its debt downgraded on three different occasions: 2011, 2023 and most recently a couple of weeks ago. You can be forgiven for not remembering all of these: In some cases (2023 comes to mind), they didn’t really make headlines. In others, they set up a small dip in…

The financial markets in 2025 have been a whirlwind of volatility, with the stock market battered by economic policy shocks and the bond market grappling with its own turbulence. The 10-year Treasury yield, a critical barometer of economic health, has oscillated between approximately 4.0% and 4.47% this year, injecting unprecedented volatility into a market typically known for its stability. For bond investors, the chaos stems from a volatile mix of aggressive policy moves, resurgent inflation fears, and a looming fiscal crisis—culminating in the House passage of the controversial One Big Beautiful Bill Act. As the Senate debates this transformative legislation,…

Year-to-year inflation may look low, but prices continue to compound upwards. For example, “Food at home” pricing, accounting for 8% of the total CPI basket, was up 1.8% in 2024. That seemingly low inflation rate nevertheless pushed up the Covid period price inflation to 27.6%, and that is what consumers are contending with. So, why is that a problem for companies? Because consumers’ actions to reduce the inflationary effects can adversely affect business revenues and profits. Grocery shopping is a good example. Here are examples of what consumers can do: Switch to lower-priced brands (e.g., store brands) Substitute alternate products…

In trading on Friday, shares of Noble were yielding above the 8% mark based on its quarterly dividend (annualized to $2), with the stock changing hands as low as $24.60 on the day. Dividends are particularly important for investors to consider, because historically speaking dividends have provided a considerable share of the stock market’s total return. To illustrate, suppose for example you purchased shares of the iShares Russell 3000 ETF back on 5/31/2000 — you would have paid $78.27 per share. Fast forward to 5/31/2012 and each share was worth $77.79 on that date, a loss of $0.48 or 0.6%…

New Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa’s check list includes restoring profitability, negotiating his way around the U.S. tariff upheaval, facing down the electric vehicle revolution, and then figuring out what to do with all those brands. Stellantis’s operating profit margin in 2024 was 5.5%, down sharply from 2023’s 12.8%. Stellantis had said before the Trump tariffs problems that it expects little improvement in 2025. Last year, industrial cash flow was a negative €6 billion ($6.8 billion) compared with 2023’s positive €12.9 billion ($14.6 billion). The merger between Fiat Chrysler and France’s Groupe PSA in 2021 was named Stellantis and included 14…

Week in Review Asian equities were mixed for the week as Korea and Japan outperformed while Thailand and Malaysia underperformed. This week saw Q1 earnings reports from Meituan, which beat estimates, PDD, which missed, Kuaishou, whose report was mixed, and Li Auto, which beat estimates on revenue and net income on vehicle deliveries up 16% year-over-year (YoY). Asian equities cheered the US’ Court of International Trade’s decision Wednesday that President Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 was not legal. Mainland media noted strong preliminary sales for the 6:18 (June 18th) sales festival, with multiple online…