The Great Retirement Debate: Roth IRA vs. Traditional IRA
We have about a month until tax returns are due. It’s time to make those last-minute tax moves. Naturally, one of the best (and easiest) moves to make is to top up your IRA or Roth IRA for the year. For tax year 2020, you can contribute up to $6,000 to an IRA or Roth...
Why a Market Pullback Should Develop This Week
Moving averages (MAs) are a popular technical indicator. They are widely used to define whether we’re in an uptrend or downtrend. A moving average is an average of the closing prices. It moves with the data and always uses the most recent closes. For example, a...
ETF Better Buy: Small-Cap Value (SLYV) vs. Large-Cap Growth (SPYG)
The 2020 coronacrash marked a turning point for small-cap value stocks. In the two years prior to the February 19, 2020 “top,” the SPDR S&P 500 Growth ETF (NYSE: ) trounced the returns of the SPDR S&P 600 Small-Cap Value ETF...
Earnings Edge: 2 Regional Banks Set to Break Out — or Break Down
April means we get earnings reports for the first three months of the year. And the first major companies up are the bank stocks… Over a dozen bank stocks are set to report earnings this week, including giants Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: [rwc_multi_symbol...
Money & Markets Watchlist
Spice up Your Portfolio With One Surging Housewares Stock
I love to cook. After a hard day at work, it’s relaxing to mix ingredients, concoct new recipes and watch my family enjoy what I have created. I’m not a Top Chef by any stretch of the imagination. But I get a lot out of cooking. During the COVID-19 pandemic, eating at...
ETF Better Buy: Small-Cap Value (SLYV) vs. Large-Cap Growth (SPYG)
The 2020 coronacrash marked a turning point for small-cap value stocks. In the two years prior to the February 19, 2020 “top,” the SPDR S&P 500 Growth ETF (NYSE: ) trounced the returns of the SPDR S&P 600 Small-Cap Value ETF...
Earnings Edge: 2 Regional Banks Set to Break Out — or Break Down
April means we get earnings reports for the first three months of the year. And the first major companies up are the bank stocks… Over a dozen bank stocks are set to report earnings this week, including giants Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: [rwc_multi_symbol...
3 Top Value Buys Target Infrastructure, Semiconductors and Housing
In this episode of The Bull & The Bear podcast, we've got three value stocks to buy. Smart investors look for stocks with good value. Undervalued stocks have lots of room to run, adding profits to your portfolio. Chief investment strategist Adam O’Dell, Green Zone...
How to Use Green Zone Ratings to Look up Stocks
We use Adam O’Dell’s Green Zone Ratings system every day here at Money & Markets. If a stock is on our shortlist, the first thing we do is find out how it rates in our system. And we’ve made it easy for you to do the same! Research analyst Matt Clark’s new video...
Prep Your Portfolio for Biden’s $2T Infrastructure Plan
It’s still early, and there will no doubt be a few revisions before it becomes law … if it becomes law. But details of President Joe Biden’s infrastructure spending plan are in. To start, it’s ambitious. Titled the “American Jobs Plan,” Biden himself billed it as a...
Cannabis Legalization Update: What New York’s Breakthrough Means
Since our last Marijuana Market Update, we have major developments to report on cannabis legalization in several states: New York, South Dakota, New Mexico, Virginia and more. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdPdE2oAdn4 I’ll start with New York. New York, South Dakota...
Why a Market Pullback Should Develop This Week
Moving averages (MAs) are a popular technical indicator. They are widely used to define whether we’re in an uptrend or downtrend. A moving average is an average of the closing prices. It moves with the data and always uses the most recent closes. For example, a...
Don’t Tell the Fed, but the Smart Money Expects Inflation
Last week I wrote about how smart money is buying gold. This is based on data from the futures market, where large traders are required to report their positions every week. But it’s not just gold. Smart money is buying other commodities. And, as consumers know,...
Coinbase IPO: Your Guide to 2021’s Most-Hyped Offering
It’s a huge week for initial public offerings as one of the largest IPOs to date is expected to be priced. Investors will also get a look at the strength of the U.S. housing market. Here’s more of what to look for in the week ahead on Wall Street: Coinbase IPO: What...
Buy This Sector ETF Before Interest Rates Crash Again
After watching interest rates rise, a lot, off the coronacrash bottom, folks wonder: “What happens if they keep rising?” But I think: “What if they start to fall again?” See, my technical analysis of the 10-year Treasury rates suggests the recent climb has gone too...
Don’t Fight the Fed’s Loose Money Supply Policy
Old traders like to say: “Don’t fight the Fed.” This could be the most important factor in the stock market right now. This saying means that the Federal Reserve is strong enough to drive trends in the stock market. When the Fed is following an easy money policy,...
Bullish Market Breadth Trend Is Great for Stocks
Diversification is a cornerstone of the investment strategies of many investors. To diversify a portfolio, investors, in effect, spread their bets. In practice, this means buying some tech stocks, some homebuilders and buying stocks in various sectors. There is logic...
S&P 500 Companies Are Bullish for 2021; A Tech IPO With Promise
Earnings and revenue guidance are up among S&P 500 companies for the first quarter of 2021. A Chinese mobile charging device provider is on the calendar to price its initial public offering (IPO). Here’s more of what to look for in the week ahead on Wall Street:...
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Vehicle Miles Show if the Economy Can Recover
Vaccinations offer the promise of an economic recovery. When enough people receive their shots, we should know how the new normal looks. For now, it seems safe to assume that the new normal will be different than life before COVID-19. Some people will choose to...
Through Math Magic, Economic Data Looks Great
Jobs are coming back as the economy continues to recover from last year’s economic shutdowns. At least that’s what the data says. But the data might simply be showing recovery because last year was so bad. Help wanted ads have always been a leading indicator of...
Inflation Ebb and Flow a Risk in Emerging Markets
As the global economy grows increasingly connected, the risk of contagion is growing — meaning investors should pay attention to emerging economies. Right now, risks are growing in those markets. Emerging markets are those with globally average incomes. They fall...
The First Warning Sign of Double-Dip Recession
Every month, headlines summarize employment data, inflation numbers and other economic data. Only the most popular economic reports make the news. Other announcements are followed only by economists and investors looking for potentially profitable insights or to avoid...
Stimulus Will Overheat the Economy
Congress recently approved $1.9 trillion in new stimulus spending to help individuals and businesses adversely affected by economic shutdowns. Data suggests the spending might not be needed. As a group, households are doing fairly well despite what the headlines...
Why Powell & the Fed’s 3.5% Unemployment Goal Is a Fantasy
Before Jerome Powell became Chairman of the Federal Reserve, the goal of Fed policy was clear. In 1955, Chairman William McChesney Martin explained: "The Federal Reserve … is in the position of the chaperone who has ordered the punch bowl removed just when the party...
Stimulus Won’t Stimulate the Economy — or Stocks
Checks for almost everyone are now the weapon of choice for Congress — this time to the tune of almost $1.9 trillion. Many families will receive their third check in a year from the government this week. Headlines tell us the checks are targeted to families in need....
The Great Retirement Debate: Roth IRA vs. Traditional IRA
We have about a month until tax returns are due. It’s time to make those last-minute tax moves. Naturally, one of the best (and easiest) moves to make is to top up your IRA or Roth IRA for the year. For tax year 2020, you can contribute up to $6,000 to an IRA or Roth...
Self-Employed Taxes: Legally Shed Thousands Off Your Bill
Last week I shared some of my favorite ways to take an ax to your tax bill. And the good news, of course, is that we have an extra month to do it. The IRS extended the tax filing deadline to May 17. We’re all obligated to pay income taxes. It is, alas, the price we...
Protect Your Nest Egg: 3 Tax Tips for the Extended Season
You might have seen the news that the federal income tax filing deadline was extended to May 17. If you’re like me — it still feels like mid-January, and I’m wondering where the past two months went — that’s good news. It gives us a little more time to do some...
3 Simple Tips to Become a Humble Investor
Once in a while, I read something that I wish I had said myself. https://twitter.com/BrianFeroldi/status/1368664500849635328 To summarize Brian Feroldi’s tweet, the correction we’ve seen in tech and growth stocks might be finished. Or, for all we know, this may be a...
3 Ways to Invest Your Stimulus Check
Chances are good you’ll get a stimulus check in the coming days. Nearly 160 million Americans can expect checks of up to $1,400 after President Joe Biden signed off on the latest $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package recently. I don’t know how much sense the stimulus...
Buffett’s Annual Letter: Wise Words for Your Retirement
Warren Buffett recently issued Berkshire Hathaway’s (NYSE: ) annual letter. And as with every edition the Oracle of Omaha has penned over his six decades at the helm, you can bet that millions of investors are picking over every word...
Fear the Bear: The Dangers of a Buy-and-Hold Nest Egg
The market “always” rises 8% to 10% per year over time. You’ve heard that for most of your adult life. You’ve read it in glossy financial planning literature your financial advisor gives you. You’ve seen it in Vanguard mutual fund commercials. The problem with the...