As public stock markets sink and typical buyout funds slump, Dorrell’s $72 billion Stonepeak can boast it’s never lost money on an investment. In 2001, Michael Dorrell volunteered to move from the Sydney headquarters of Australian investment bank Macquarie to a backwater in its infrastructure investing specialty: the United States of America. “For many years, Macquarie didn’t take the U.S. all that seriously. That’s why a 25-year-old kid could be sent over here and be one of six people looking at this whole market,” explains Dorrell, now 51. “We had the market to ourselves.” The U.S., with its now $4…

Stocks around the world continue to slide on President Donald Trump’s nuclear tariff option. The recent actions from Washington have served to elevate uncertainty, raise global fear, push stock prices down, and increase animosity against America. Does Trump have a master plan? Is there a historical lesson we can use to help understand what may come? A Lesson From History? Today’s tariffs have caused many to reflect to 1930, when President Herbert Hoover signed into law the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act. Although there are some differences between today’s tariff environment and the environment at that time, there are several similarities to…

Key News Asian equities had another significant sell-off overnight, as President Donald Trump and his advisors remained immune to financial pain as they stayed on script concerning tariffs over the weekend. Export and auto-heavy Japan suffered another significant sell-off as Mainland China and Hong Kong reopened following Friday’s market holiday and the Chinese government’s tariff retaliation. Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam were temporarily spared the pain due to the market holiday. Global equity markets have baked in the worst-case scenario in a shockingly quick time period as any investor utilizing leverage has been carried out feet first. After the market closed,…

Ignoring the crisis du jour (Trump’s Tariffs Induce Stock Market Meltdown) will be nearly impossible for anyone to ignore. It is dominating the news cycle and driving up prices of things you buy every day, like groceries. You may not notice bananas costing a few cents more per pound, but you will surely feel the pain of a “Tariff Fee” line item when you purchase your next car. Hence, this piece highlights eight investing mistakes when crushing tariffs are imposed on the world and the stock market tanks on the news. Donald Trump, in his second term as President, has…

The tariff steamroller ran over the stocks of some good companies in the first quarter and early April. That provides lots of candidates for my Casualty List, a roster of stocks that have been hit hard and that I believe have excellent recovery potential. The basic idea in investing is to buy low and sell high, Market declines offer an opportunity for the “buy low” part. Are we near a bottom? I can’t tell. But I know that many stocks are priced more attractively than they were at the mid-February peak. Today I’m adding five stocks to the Casualty List.…

The S&P 500 may only be down 18% from its peak, two points shy of the conventional definition of a bear market. But for anyone who owns that index, that technical distinction will hold little comfort. You know it when you see it. We’re in a vicious bear market, one that is likely to get worse before it gets better. While last week’s rout, the worst in stock markets since the depths of Covid, was caused by the self-inflicted misery of tariffs, the deep decline also reflects the inevitable collapse that afflicts overpriced stocks that are priced for perfection—once perfection…

Wall Streeters knew President Trump was going to levy tariffs on countries near and far. They were aware that the list would include long-time trading partners. They expected that standing trade agreements would be disregarded. Plus, they knew Trump would use reciprocal, higher tariffs if another country introduced or upped tariffs on U.S. goods. And they knew all of this would be done without the Congressional input or approval. So, why did the stock market plummet? Was Warren Buffet the only person taking preventive action by selling stocks to raise cash? The answer is likely that Wall Streeters thought President…

It is true: these four stocks with low price-earnings ratios greatly outperformed most other stocks on Friday and all hit new 52-week highs. The reasons for each may vary but generally it’s likely that investors felt that these names would not be greatly affected by the Trump tariffs and the ensuing global trade war. That a stock could move higher in price while the major stock market indexes dropped dramatically is some kind of achievement. Further research into each situation is probably required but it’s enough to begin with to see such strength in the face of such market weakness.…

The European Union responded to President Donald Trump’s tariff proposals with anger and talk of retaliation but with details remaining elusive, the first attempts at risk assessment for automakers pointed to Porsche and Stellantis as the most exposed exporters to U.S. risk. Experts at investment bank UBS said they expected tariffs on both sides of the argument to be bid up in early negotiations but to settle back to between 10 and 15% by the end of the year. It’s too early to predict how European automakers in the U.S. will respond. In the short-term they could raise prices or…

The only thing I love more than dividends is dividend growth. And ‘tis the season for payout raises as first-quarter earnings season kicks into gear. I have my eye on companies that have recently announced dividend hikes of 28%, 52%, even 150%. If we get similar dividend growth this time around, great—more money in our pockets. But just as important is the confidence they’d be communicating with big raises amid an extremely uncertain economic environment. Regular readers know about my “Dividend Magnet” strategy—three signs that can lead to massive price gains. The most important sign is dividend growth, which is…