Value stocks right now are generally out of favor as the big Wall Street money has been flowing toward and into hot tech and social media names. To a contrarian frame of mind, that could mean the time is right or about right to consider equities with the classic valuation metrics. A good start would be to find those trading with lower-than-the-market price-earnings ratios. To continue, it’s a good idea to seek those low p/e stocks that represent companies with little or no debt on the books. Which of those pay dividends? There’s more to it than just the three…

While hot tech and social media stocks like Amazon and Meta Platforms continue to make new highs, there is one sector failing to keep up: restaurant stocks. Some of these names — like McDonalds — used to be considered must-owns for portfolio managers looking to outperform the averages. Judging by these price charts, those days may be over. 5 Restaurant Stocks In Recent Decline. Arcos Dorados Holdings (Nasdaq: ARCO): The price in mid-December dropped below the mid-September support where the red-dotted line is placed. The 50-day moving average in May crossed below the 200-day moving average. The stock briefly rallied…

What’s better than monthly dividends that add up to 7.2% to 15.4% yearly yields? Cheap monthlies thanks to a high level of fear amongst vanilla investors. We contrarians do our heavy shopping when the crowd is fearful. We have some attractive dividend opportunities today in quarterly payers. But hey, why settle for every-90-day divvies when we can get paid on the month, every month? Monthly dividend stocks pay us on the same schedule we receive our bills, which is convenient no matter our age but downright helpful once we hit retirement. But when it comes to explaining the difference, I…

We hear a lot of chatter in the business media about productivity these days—specifically how it could decline in the US (and, by extension, hit our gains from stocks—and stock-focused CEFs). Today we’re going to look at why this fear is overblown, and how we income investors can profit—and collect a 6.7% dividend at a 13% discount—off that disconnect. US productivity, for its part, rises by about 2% on average per year. As we discussed a couple weeks back, the S&P 500 has posted a 10.4% annualized gain since the late 1980s, and we can say that rising productivity accounts…

I was recently speaking with a woman who is in committed relationship, but there is a significant asset and income disparity between her and her partner. She wants to take the next step in their relationship but worries about all the legal and financial ramifications that come with marriage, so we discussed the possibility of a domestic partnership. Here are the financial and practical considerations in choosing between marrying your partner and choosing a domestic partnership. Tax Implications Many people associate marriages with tax benefits. With some exceptions, filing joint taxes can lower tax rates and result in increased deductions.…

Shares in Burberry strutted higher on Friday as the company announced better-than-forecast sales for the end of 2024. At £12.38 per share, the FTSE 250 fashion house was last dealing 15.7% higher in end-of-week trading. Sales continue to fall at embattled Burberry but at a lesser rate than analysts had predicted. Retail revenues were down 7% in the three months to December, to £659 million. This was down 3% at stable exchange rates. Comparable store sales were down 4% year on year. Market consensus had suggested a fall of around 12%. Asia Leads The Drop Poor demand in Asia Pacific…

Tariff Day has left us with Canada and Mexico in the crosshairs. With North American trade in focus, this may actually give a respite to stocks with supply chains elsewhere and light a fire under them. Today we’ll talk about two dividend growers that have serious upside. One has a supply chain independent of Canada and Mexico, while the other has no manufacturing worries but some misguided RFK fears. The pair returned 138% and 199% during Trump 1.0, and, if history rhymes, the duo could return triple-digits again during Trump 2.0. ADI Returned 138% During Trump 1.0 Our first stock,…

Key News Asian equities were mixed overnight as Hong Kong, Mainland China, Thailand, and South Korea all underperformed while Taiwan was closed. The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), People’s Bank of China (PBOC), Ministry of Finance (MoF), Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, and the National Financial Supervision Administration held a joint press conference to discuss the “Implementation Plan for Promoting the Work of Entry of Long-Term Capital”. The conference was held at 9 am to ensure nobody missed it, though, in an unfortunate pattern, the delivery failed to meet expectations as both Hong Kong and Mainland China slid…

In the most recent election, the country overwhelmingly chose a Republican president, Senate, and House of Representatives. There were several reasons for the landslide victory, including out of control spending in Washington and a massive federal debt. Over the years, and especially during the pandemic, the federal government amassed an enormous amount of debt putting significant pressure on succeeding generations. With the new DOGE commission under the Trump administration, we could see a return of fiscal sanity in Washington. However, even if Washington begins to act with fiscal prudency, the enormous debt will take years to pay and in the…

“America First” echoed through the World Economic Forum as President Trump delivered a stark message to global business leaders: manufacture in America for low taxes, or face tariffs. This renewed protectionist stance highlights a persistent challenge in international trade – what happens when partners don’t play by the rules? While free trade agreements promise mutual benefits through comparative advantage and open markets, the reality often diverges from this ideal. Countries frequently employ tactics like dumping – selling products below their domestic market value – or providing government subsidies to gain unfair advantages. These practices can devastate domestic industries and distort…