With Donald Trump now elected the next U.S. president, investors once again are honing in on important global economic variables. Attention is on inflation, growth and employment, among other variables, and specifically how they may impact changes in global monetary policy. After the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and subsequent increase in inflation, global central banks dramatically increased policy rates. They are now embarking on a rate-cutting cycle that will potentially run through 2025. Last week, both the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Bank of England reduced their policy rate by 0.25%, and Sweden’s Riksbank cut rates by 0.50%. Other central…

Once the soaring leader in the aerospace sector with a stock price of around $430 per share and a market capitalization of almost $240 billion, Boeing has dropped far from its heyday. With the BA stock price down by more than 60% and market capitalization losing billions by the day, the corporation is today a shell of its past. This sharp drop did not occur by accident; rather, it was the outcome of a sequence of strategic errors, leadership decisions, and cultural changes costing Boeing not only financially but also reputationally. Once praised for engineering excellence and safety, Boeing’s narrative…

The Prudent Speculator follows an approach to investing that focuses on broadly diversified investments in undervalued stocks for their long-term appreciation potential. Does that mean we build portfolios of 20 stocks…30…? More like 50 and up. We like stocks. And we like a lot of ‘em. We don’t rely nearly as much on “how many” as we do “in which,” but we tend to invest in far more names than most. This expansive diversification, we find, potentially serves us well in two ways: we can further minimize the risk of individual stock ownership, while maximizing the likelihood of finding the…

In this article I use AAII’s A+ Investor Stock Grades to provide insight into three bank stocks. With the Federal Reserve initiating its first interest rate cut in years, should you consider the three stocks of FFBW (FFBW), Guaranty Bancshares (GNTY) and Pathward Financial (CASH)? Bank Stocks Recent News The Federal Reserve’s decision to lower interest rates in September and again in November reflect a shift from fighting inflation to encouraging economic growth. Banks are particularly well-positioned to capitalize on the interest rate cut. Lower interest rates are expected to spur loan demand, especially in mortgages, auto loans and business…

Long-term mortgage costs have, in fact, risen since the Federal Reserve started cutting interest rates in September. Falling interest rates often mean lower mortgage costs. However, that’s not what’s happened since the summer. The yield curve has steepened. That has more than offset any benefit from lower short-term rates for mortgage costs. Short-term rates have come down as longer term rates have risen. Ultimately, where mortgage rates go from here will depend on how expectations for the monetary policy and inflation play out relative to market expectations. Fed projections imply that mortgage costs could decline over the medium term, but…

In this article I cover James O’Shaughnessy’s Tiny Titans stock-picking strategy and give you a list of stocks currently passing the AAII O’Shaughnessy Tiny Titans screen based on the approach. The O’Shaughnessy Tiny Titans strategy focuses on micro-cap stocks that meet specific criteria for value, size and momentum. Small-cap stocks normally do well during periods of economic recovery. For the investor with patience and the ability to withstand the higher short-term volatility and risk of micro-cap stocks, there is potential for strong long-term returns. As of October 31, 2024, AAII’s O’Shaughnessy Tiny Titans screening model has an annual average gain…

Key News Asian equities had a weak day, as Hong Kong and Taiwan underperformed by -2%, South Korea and the Philippines nearly -2%, and India and Mainland China -1% as the US dollar strengthened overnight. It is hard to know precisely what the bigger driver of the region’s risk-off sentiment was: US interest rates higher for longer and/or President Trump’s early cabinet picks with the rumor of Senator Mark Rubio as Secretary of State. Regional weakness was not a China or Hong Kong issue, as potential investors recognize that the global economy is highly interconnected. As we mentioned yesterday, offshore…

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve mentioned closed-end funds (CEFs) to investors and been met with blank stares in return. It’s too bad more people don’t know about these powerful income plays because … CEFs let you diversify, not only within stocks but beyond them. Among the 500 or so CEFs out there are funds that own stocks, corporate bonds, municipal bonds, real estate investment trusts (REITs) and more. CEFs often trade at discount to net asset value (NAV, or the value of their portfolios). This means we can buy shares of high-quality firms like Apple (AAPL) for…

Bitcoin bounced back early Tuesday morning, stoking hopes that the symbolic $100,000 mark is within arm’s reach. In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin’s price climbed 6.8% to $87,600, while Ethereum is up 3.3%. Many altcoins followed suit. Avalanche is up 8.4%, Dogecoin gained 35.1%, Shiba Inu added 2.5%, BNB rose 1.1%, and XRP saw a 9.9% bump. While Trump’s election victory might be the biggest driver for now, it’s far from the only factor fueling Bitcoin’s surge. Behind the scenes, broader trends—ranging from a post-halving supply squeeze to favorable macroeconomic developments—are helping to push crypto prices higher. Crypto insiders believe…

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