Author Archive: Brett Owens

If you’re like most folks, you’re about to put your portfolio on autopilot as the lazy days of summer roll in.

It’s an easy trap to fall into, but you must not take the bait, as I’ll explain in a moment. Later on, I’ll show you two hidden dividend-growers that should be on your buy list now. Both are ready to double their payouts in short order!

First, back to the season at hand.

I can see why most folks check out around now. After all, July has been the best month for stocks over the last 89 years, and August hasn’t been too bad, either.… Read more

The stock market is high, which means yields are low. But don’t worry – we still have places to put new money for 7.5% payouts today with 20%+ upside to boot!

I count ten stocks and funds to be specific with these secure, elite payouts. And while their current yields may say “just” 7.5% on average, all ten are poised for 10%+ total returns in the years ahead.

How is this possible?

Remember, total returns are made up of dividends and price appreciation. The latter, price gains, are driven by some combination of:

1. Dividend raises, and/or
2. A discount window closing (or at least narrowing).

The Fourth of July is right around the bend, which means it’s time for financial pundits to flood readers with their favorite all-American stocks. But as I’ll illustrate in a moment via four all-American high-yield dividend stocks, there’s plenty more incentive to “buy American” than just a date on the calendar.

The U.S. is the largest economy in the world, making up 22% of the world’s nominal gross domestic product (GDP) at about $18.46 trillion as of 2016. California alone – at about $2.6 trillion – would represent the world’s sixth-largest economy if it were an independent country, snuggly tucked between the United Kingdom and France.… Read more

What do Exxon Mobil (XOM), Colgate-Palmolive (CL) and Walmart (WMT) have in common?

Their dividend growth is running on fumes.

Sure, they’re all still members of the Dividend Aristocrats – that social club of companies that have raised dividends for at least 25 consecutive years. But Exxon, Colgate and Walmart all have kept their streaks of dividend increases alive within the past year by hiking their payouts by less than 3% apiece.

Sad!

If you’re looking for serious dividend potential, I can introduce you five income gushers that are doling out annual payout increases of 20% or more. But first, let’s quantify how why dividend growth is the single most important factor for you portfolio.… Read more

I keep saying it because it’s true and critical to your retirement wellbeing  (or lack thereof)  – don’t take any dividends for granted today!

In a minute I’ll outline a 3-step “dividend disaster” test that you can quickly run on the stocks you own. I want to make sure you don’t hold the next Mattel (MAT) simply because “its yield looked good” or “so-and-so guru recommended it.”

First-level income hounds piled into Barbie’s plastic 6% yield. But when the firm “surprisingly” announced a sharp 61% dividend cut two weeks ago, shares completed a 36% dive:

6 Years of Dividends, Gone

Our Contrarian Income Report portfolio was, yet again, unique in our handling of this ticking toy bomb.… Read more

Today I’m going to show you 2 easy ways to set yourself up for safe double-digit yearly dividend growth and invite quick 100%+ upside too.

I’ll also reveal a blue chip stock that’s delivering both strong price gains and rising dividends. It will have you pocketing a nice 5%+ yield in short order.

So let’s get going, starting with…

The Dividend-Growth Signal Most People Miss

If you’ve been buying dividend stocks for a while, you probably know about the payout ratio.

It’s a sacred cow for many folks; you calculate it by dividing the total amount of dividends paid by the company’s last 12 months of net income.… Read more

As we speak, $376 billion is locked up in five of Wall Street’s most overrated, overloved funds. And the sad reality is that there’s a high chance a few thousand bucks of that are courtesy of … well, you.

The good news? I can show you seven far better options.

While Wall Street still rolls out hundreds of new exchange-traded funds every year, one of the greatest advantages for any ETF is age. Funds that got an early start have marketing advantages, media advantages and tend to come from companies that can compete on price, meaning bargain-basement fees that undercut the competition and keep newer fund providers from even bothering to jump into the space.… Read more

My friend is a young 41-year old millionaire. And the poor guy is basically broke!

Meanwhile there’s a conservative yet savvy grandma in the Midwest raking in more monthly income than my boy, on a modest $387,000 in savings.

What’s her secret? We’ll get to that in a minute. First, let’s lament my man’s millionaire curse.

His stash of cash does him no good, other than giving him something to worry about. His million-dollar problem? He doesn’t know how to turn his green pile into a steady, sustainable income stream.

And since he believes in efficient markets, he has no interest in exploring investments that could pay him 7% or 8% annually – providing him with $75,000+ in yearly income while leaving his capital intact (or better than intact) to boot.… Read more

It’s usually the last place dividend fans look for big yields and surging payout growth—but it should be one of the first.

I’m talking about the technology sector. And before you dismiss me as crazy, check out this chart.

The Home of Payout Growth

What you’re seeing here is the dividend-growth rate of the Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) compared to the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), representing the market as a whole, over the past 10 years.

Sure, the blue line is choppier than the orange one—but that’s a small price to pay for a 1,000%+ income boost!

And as I showed you on May 15, there’s a direct link between a soaring dividend and a soaring share price.… Read more

Residential real estate is hot right now – and apartment owners are making money hand-over-fist. But don’t worry, I’m not going to recommend you run out and buy an entire complex. Instead, I’ve got three apartment REITs you can buy from the convenience of your computer (or phone, for that matter!) for yields up to 7.3%.

Rents are now so high nationwide that no one person making minimum wage for 40 hours a week can afford to rent a two-bedroom apartment – a fact driven partly by low minimum pay, but also rising rents.

Not all REITs in the space are buys, of course.… Read more