Author Archive: Brett Owens

A “great reset” is underway in our economy. We were reminded of that yet again last Friday, when select stocks sailed through an otherwise brutal half-holiday on Wall Street.

Financial talking heads bemoaned the losers. But who cares about these dinosaurs? We contrarians should pay attention to the winners—and their stocks—because that’s where fortunes will be made.

I’ve seen this trend unfolding firsthand. My second software company, which focused on marketing for e-commerce stores, launched a Shopify (SHOP) app in 2013. At the time, Shopify was a fledgling platform that helped retailers sell their wares online.

We were a startup ourselves, newly minted a year prior.… Read more

No matter the financial headlines, all roads will—eventually—lead to (even higher) inflation. So, we should use pullbacks and rallies alike to make sure we are inflation-protecting our retirement portfolios.

We’ll talk specific stocks and funds in a moment. First, let’s review the mechanics of money printing.

The accommodative Federal Reserve has already increased the M2 Money Supply by 38% since the start of 2020! That’s a lot of dough that has flowed into the financial markets. With the Fed continuing to stand by to support the stock and bond markets, we should look past current concerns and realize that the “solution” to any setbacks will be more easy money.… Read more

What if I told you that, in a market this expensive, there are nine dividend stocks with price-to-earnings (P/E) ratios under nine?

And that this low P/E ratio paid 6.9% per year in dividends?!

If I didn’t research and write it, I wouldn’t believe it myself. But in a minute I will share the details on this 9-pack, which yields 4.2% to 19.2%.

We’re unlikely to see these hidden gems touted on mainstream financial websites. With the S&P 500 in the stratosphere, these ground-level bargains are being overlooked. But we contrarians see these dirt-cheap dividend stocks that:

1. Boast P/E ratios that average just 8.5.

Successful dividend investing is simple, though not necessarily easy. There are nuances which trip up many investors (including most professionals!). These twists and turns create opportunities for contrarian-minded income investors like us.

So, ready to retire on dividends? Follow these five steps and we’ll do it together. Let’s start with an obvious yet underappreciated rule for income investors.

Step 1: Count Your Dividends

Since we focus on high yield, most of our returns come from the “yield” component of stocks. For example, we added this high-paying bond fund to our portfolio 2016 and its price-only returns look quite pedestrian.… Read more

We’ve just hit the best time of the year to roll out one of our most potent dividend “hacks.” Timed just right, it’ll deliver us stout payouts yielding upwards of 5%—and growing triple-digits, too.

Best of all, we can “work” this proven dividend-growth system in just two quick steps, which we’ll dive into now. Then I’ll name three stocks you can buy today to give yourself a shot at “front running” double-digit payout hikes—and swift capital gains, too!

Step 1: Buy Just as a Dividend Hike Is Announced

We’ll start by “timing” our buys just as dividend hikes are announced. That’s a veteran move because a company’s shares almost always rise with its payouts, and there’s often a lag between the announcement of the hike and a rise in the stock.… Read more

“Regular” REITs typically buy physical properties, find someone to manage them, and lease them out. They collect rent checks and avoid paying taxes on most of these profits if they pay most of their earnings out as dividends (per the terms of their tax loophole, which frees them from paying taxes if they distribute 90% of their profits as payouts). This is the reason REIT stocks typically boast big yields.

Mortgage REITs (mREITs), on the other hand, don’t own buildings. They own paper. Specifically, they buy mortgage loans and collect the interest. How do they make money? By borrowing short (assuming short-term rates are lower) and lending long (if long-term rates are, as they tend to be, higher).… Read more

I stopped pulling my suitcase and fumbled for my phone. “Owens.”

“Hey buddy,” I replied to my childhood friend. “If it’s loud… well I’m in Vegas. On the Strip actually, walking to my hotel to check in.”

It was almost 80 degrees. Your income strategist was sweating through his shoes and pants and, more concerning, he’d forgotten his hat—which meant the top of his increasingly exposed head was being slowly but surely sizzled by the desert sun.

But “shortcuts” back through the casinos would require re-masking up, per Nevada state law. Plus, they are loud. And my boy wanted to talk about cryptos, even though he’d done very little investing through his entire life.… Read more

Let’s beat back this Fed-fueled market—where everything seems pricey—with three proven strategies that prime us for 100%+ gains, and 100%+ dividend growth, too.

One of them is a nifty ploy that sets us up to “front run” a 100%+ return by getting in companies about to split their businesses. At the end of it all, we’ll end up with two growing dividends instead of just one! (We’ll cover the two telltale signs of a looming split in a bit.)

These three strategies are the inner workings of my Hidden Yields dividend-growth service, which has delivered a 14.7% annualized return since launch in September 2015.… Read more

The long-awaited infrastructure bill has passed. Let’s talk about the six best dividend stocks to capitalize on this spending.

Here’s where the larger chunks of money are going:

• $110 billion to build new roads, bridges and other major infrastructure
• $66 billion to improve passenger and freight rail
• $65 to upgrade America’s broadband infrastructure
• $65 billion to upgrade and build up the electric grid
• $55 billion to improve America’s water infrastructure
• $39 billion to modernize public transit
• $25 billion to repair and maintain airports
• $17 billion to update port infrastructure
• $7.5 billion to build a network of electric vehicle chargers
• $7.5 billion to create low-emission buses and ferries

Most of this “obvious” government spending is going to industrials and materials firms.… Read more

Thank you to our 1,405 Contrarian Income Report subscribers who attended our “VIP” Q4 webcast a couple of weeks back! We chatted about bond funds paying 9%+, Federal Reserve “fueled” funds for 54% yearly returns, and more.

Prior to the webcast, we collected over 30 questions from thoughtful subscribers. We addressed most of these on the call. However, during the session, 70 more great income questions came in!

As promised, I read everyone one. Let’s chat about the most common questions today.

Q: I’m 64 years old and am just concerned about retiring on dividends. I own PCI which pays a high dividend but trades at a high premium.… Read more