My Personal Strategy for 7.6% Dividends, 95% Upside

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: October 15, 2019

I don’t know why you’d mess around with dividend reinvestment plans (DRIPs) when you can “automatically” bag a 7.6%+ income stream and 95% upside with the strategy I’ll show you now.

Better yet, this outsized cash flow drops into your account every month! It takes almost no work. (Just one small, but potent, step, which I’ll show you shortly.)

Before we get to that, let’s look at how easy it is to use this strategy to grab dividends 4X bigger than the sub-2% payouts most folks bring in today.

This simple setup seems a lot like a garden-variety DRIP, but it has one quick “hack” that amps up our dividend and sets us up for fast 95% upside, too.… Read more

These 335 Funds Have Never Lost (and yield 7%)

Michael Foster, Investment Strategist
Updated: October 14, 2019

If you’re stuck with measly dividends from stocks or Treasuries, closed-end funds (CEFs) are the answer.

After all, these funds yield an amazing 7%, on average, and they let you buy in at a discount (most CEFs trade for less than their net asset value, or NAV).

The One CEF Question I Get a Lot (and the Surprising Answer)

A reader or subscriber to my CEF Insider service will sometimes ask me: can I lose money with CEFs?

The technical answer is, yes, of course—as with any investment, you can lose money. Even when you put your money in the bank, there’s a risk of losing it if the bank goes under and the FDIC collapses.… Read more

3 CEFs (with 7.4% average dividends) That Will Turn You Off ETFs Forever

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: October 13, 2019

You’ve probably heard by now that investing just got a little bit cheaper. Now cheaper isn’t necessarily better, especially for those of us hunting for safe, meaningful yields to fund our retirements.

We’ll get to our diversified 3-click, 7.4%-yielding portfolio (including a couple monthly payers) in a moment. But first, more on the no-commission craze.

Following in the footsteps of Robinhood, Interactive Brokers (IBKR) announced a “Lite” version of its platform with commission-free stocks and ETFs. Then Charles Schwab (SCHW) announced it would offer commission-free stock, ETF and options trading, with TD Ameritrade (AMTD) and E*Trade (ETFC) in tow.

Online brokerages have been pushing selects sets of commission-free ETFs for some time.… Read more

How to Play Tech for 6% Dividends and 300% Upside

Michael Foster, Investment Strategist
Updated: October 10, 2019

New funds are rare in the closed-end fund (CEF) world. But there’s a new kid on the block throwing off a monthly 6% dividend. Today we’re going to run through this new fund to see if it might have a place in your portfolio.

6% Dividends and Netflix-Like Growth—in 1 Fund

I’m talking about the BlackRock Science and Technology Trust II (BSTZ), launched in mid-May of this year.

The unique thing about BSTZ is right in its name: it’s no stodgy income play: its portfolio is packed with some of the fastest-growing tech plays out there.

I’m not talking about Apple (AAPL), Netflix (NFLX) or Facebook (FB).Read more

“Basement Beta” Dividends Stocks: Steady No Matter What

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: October 9, 2019

Worried that potential impeachment trials are going to pressure your retirement portfolio? It’s a fair concern. So, let’s talk about ways to protect our stocks and bonds from political drama.

First, let’s dispel the myth that the news drives the markets. Markets are smart, and they usually “sniff out” eventual outcomes before they become obvious to the broader public. They benefit from the wisdom of crowds, watching as individual market participants who “know something” put their money where their mouth is by buying or selling.

My favorite example is from World War II. Former hedge fund manager Barton Biggs, author of the excellent Wealth, War and Wisdom, notes how the stock market amazingly identified in real-time that the Battle of Midway was the turning point of the war for the US.… Read more

3 “No-Brainer” Dividend Growers to Buy on This Pullback (37% Upside)

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: October 8, 2019

If you’re like most income investors right now, you’ve got one eye on this twitchy market—and the other on red flags like slumping manufacturing numbers, chaos in DC and even the dreaded inverted yield curve.

I’m worried, too. But our best play here is not to sit in cash. With your mattress full, you’ll be forced to stand by as inflation drains your savings.

Worse, you’re certain to miss the next rebound. Because that’s the real mistake perma-bears always make: staying out of the market too long!

That’s why the smart move here is to buy. But we’re still going to take out some portfolio “insurance” by focusing on “crash-resistant” stocks.… Read more

This “Billionaire’s Favorite” (Legally) Snubs the IRS and Yields 5.1%

Michael Foster, Investment Strategist
Updated: October 7, 2019

If you’re like many folks, you might be looking at your stock gains this year and dreading the tax bill headed your way in 2020.

That makes now a great time to consider the only (tax-) free lunch in investing: municipal bonds. I’ll name one play on these retirement-changing investments in a moment. This unusual fund yields an outsized 5.1% today and sets us up for a “steady as she goes” triple-digit gain, too.

First, let’s talk a little more about the tax side of “muni” bonds: these investments pay a 100% tax-free dividend (so their “real” yields could be much higher for you, depending on your tax bracket).… Read more

4 Market-Shattering Yields: 2 Contenders, 2 Pretenders

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: October 4, 2019

A blue-chip dividend portfolio pays about 2% today. Put a million bucks into a bucket of these stocks and you’ll bank just $20,000 in yearly dividends. That’s barely extra change–on a million invested!

There’s a better way. I prefer to focus on stocks and funds that simply aren’t as familiar as the big names to most investors. They do offer growth potential. But most importantly, they don’t sacrifice yield for perceived safety. In fact, they yield roughly 3x to 4x the blue-chip stocks, providing a lot more retirement-income cushion in years where the market stalls.

Most people love the idea of this Perfect Income Portfolio, yet millions of retirees across the country find themselves piled into the same group of overowned, overpriced blue chips because the “traditional wisdom” says that’s what retirement is supposed to look like.… Read more

This Amazing Fund Spiked 338% (and Pays 8.6% Dividends Monthly)

Michael Foster, Investment Strategist
Updated: October 3, 2019

Buy funds with the lowest fees and you’ll retire earlier. That’s the so-called “wisdom” in investing, right?

Too bad it’s dead wrong.

Today I’m going to show you how. I’ll also name an incredible fund that racked up a monster 338% return in the last decade, crushing its “dumb” index-fund alternative by nearly 4 to 1!

Plus, this unsung income play pays a safe—and growing—8.6% dividend (paid monthly, no less). That’s enough to hand you $3,583 every month on a $500K nest egg.

Leaving $1,000,000 on the Table

Before we get to that, let’s look at how obsessing over fees can cause you to miss out on thousands of dollars—maybe even a million!… Read more

Credit Crisis Concerns? These Are the Worst 1,894 Bonds to Own Now

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: October 2, 2019

We all love 7% yields here. But how do you feel about Sprint’s 7.88% bonds that mature in September 2023?

Well, the company might make it until then. Shares trade for pocket change at just over $6. Equity investors in Sprint (S), however, have been (wait for it) sprinting to the exits lately:

The Stock Feels the Weight of Sprint’s Debt

For a position this risky, I’d want to watch it closely. I’d also want to be able to sell it at the first sign of distress.

Unfortunately, that isn’t going to be possible. If you own the Sprint 2023’s, you’ve got company–$320 million to be specific!… Read more