Author Archive: Michael Foster

We all know financial stocks have gone through the roof since President Trump’s win. So the question becomes: what do we do with these companies now?

There’s no one answer for every financial stock, of course. Some are still great, undervalued buys—but there are two that have gotten grossly overvalued and should be avoided, or sold if you hold them. (Below, I’ll reveal 2 better high-yield stocks to buy instead.)

These 2 Financials Are Headed for Trouble

Bank of America (BAC) is the first bank on my hit list.

A Breathtaking Rise

After spending most of 2016 in the red, BAC has soared more than 37% in three months.… Read more

Real estate investment trusts (REITs) just don’t get the respect they deserve. And that’s too bad, because owning just a handful can make a huge difference in your investment returns.

I’ll reveal four of my favorite REIT buys now in just a moment.

First, let me explain why I’m pounding the table on the sector today.

The main reason: REITs often pay dividend yields far above your average S&P 500 stock. What’s more, they’re obligated to pay out 90% of their taxable income as dividends, which forces management to take a disciplined approach to growth.

In addition, REITs give you a very liquid way to invest in physical assets; your shares represent a part of the actual buildings the trust owns.… Read more

Many people think a conservative, disciplined approach to retirement will help you reach your financial goals. They’re wrong.

If you invest too conservatively, you’ll never retire. At the same time, if you educate yourself about the financial options out there and invest accordingly, you can retire much, much earlier.

Let’s take a look at the math.

Higher Returns, Earlier Financial Freedom

In the chart above, I’ve broken down how much money you need according to how much you spend per month and what rate of return you get on your investments.

At one extreme, if you spend $1,500 per month and get a 9% annual rate of return, you need just $200,000 to retire.… Read more

Goldman Sachs recently recommended over 80 stocks that are poised to jump during President Trump’s administration.

That’s a lot of stocks. Not all of them are dividend payers, and many of them have already jumped dramatically in the last few weeks, bringing them at or near their 52-week highs.

You might think this means it’s too late to buy into the Trump rally, but it isn’t.

I’ve gone through Goldman’s picks and selected a dozen high-quality, low-priced stocks with a history of strong dividend payouts and the potential for dividend growth. Half the portfolio has a history of very high dividend growth, while the other half has very good dividend coverage and the potential for future dividend growth.… Read more

Today I’m going to show you two business development companies (BDCs) that were great buys once but now need to be banished from your portfolio right away.

They’re all good companies, but recent market fervor has caused them to be way overpriced. And while the bull run has been good for all BDCs, there is still one I still see as underpriced relative to its potential. More on that in a moment.

This Popular Name Is Headed for a Fall

First, we need to talk about Main Street Capital (MAIN), one of the best-performing BDCs out there … and one of the world’s most crowded trades.… Read more

Inflation hasn’t been a problem for a long time. In fact, central banks around the world have been fighting deflation, as low growth, pessimistic expectations and slumping oil prices kept prices in check since the 2008/09 crash.

That’s changing, and more people—from economists to everyday consumers—see inflation heating up. That makes now a great time to buy into an asset class few investors pay attention to. I’ll explain why, and name two of my favorites, in a moment.

First, back to inflation: according to the New York Federal Reserve, consumers now expect prices to swell by 2.8%—the highest reading since the middle of 2015.… Read more

I’m sure you’ve heard that you can’t beat the market. It’s the prevailing wisdom—and it’s why passive index funds are more popular than ever.

But by that logic, picking stocks is pointless. And actively managed funds? You’ll find no joy there, either, because most managers underperform … and charge you outrageous fees for doing so.

That pretty much leaves us with one option: stick all our cash in a low-fee passive fund like the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI) and call it a day, right?

Wrong.

The truth is, there are literally hundreds of funds out there that have been outperforming the market for a long time. … Read more

If you want to diversify, get high-quality dividend growth and avoid risky speculation, the SPDR S&P Dividend ETF (SDY) may seem like a no-brainer.

But buying this fund would be a big mistake.

Today I’m going to show you why … and help you avoid a couple other seemingly obvious moves that could steer you into big trouble in 2017. Further on, I’ll reveal a terrific fund to buy now and tuck away for two decades or more.

First, back to SDY, which has handily beaten the S&P 500 over the past decade:

A Long-Term Outperformer

At the same time, more dividends have been paid out, and SDY’s payout is now larger than the broader market’s:

A Strong Income Stream

So why not just buy this fund and call it a day?… Read more

2016 is in the books, and the S&P 500 gained over 11% on the year. That’s great news if you’re already in the stock market … but it’s bad news if you’re looking to buy.

The market’s price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio is now 26.1, which is 17.6% higher than it was at the beginning of the year. In other words, if you buy stocks now, you’re paying nearly a fifth more for those companies’ earnings than you would have nearly 12 months ago.

Stocks Getting Expensive

Making matters worse is the fact that the S&P 500 has soared over 8% in the last two months alone—accounting for much of the year’s total gains.… Read more