Tuesday, November 26, 2024
With inflation running rampant, the Federal Reserve is responding by ratcheting up interest rates. The result is that mortgage rates have more than doubled over the last year. Higher rates have pushed many potential buyers who could have afforded to buy in 2021 out of the market in 2022. For a $300,000 mortgage, a buyer […]
Volatility is back to high levels after the Fed sounded increasingly hawkish after last week’s FOMC meeting. At least one volatility ETF, the ProShares VIX Short-Term Futures ETF (VIXY), saw an unusual increase in options volume during the period. However, it seems there was a fair amount of put buying, suggesting traders believe volatility may […]
Even with rates going higher, fixed income ETFs don’t tend to move all that much. One way to amplify your cash flow from a fixed income product is by using options. Last week, some appeared to have sold 25,000 put spreads in the Invesco Senior Loan ETF (BKLN). BKLN has only moved in a $2 […]
Preferred stock shares feature a mix of common stock and debt security traits. In other words, they’re the best of the stock and bond worlds, and offer excellent, secure yields… if you understand how they work. So today, let’s dig into that – and see the two best preferred stocks to buy today… Preferred stocks […]
I am always hunting for ideas that can boost portfolio returns for individual investors. I read, I ponder, I imagine, I study, and I test these ideas. Many of them end up in the junk pile as good ideas gone bad—these are usually the ones that sounded the most exciting when I first had or […]
When it comes to the companies that produce batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) and industrial users, many investors don’t think very far past Tesla (TSLA) and its famed gigafactories. But the industry is a lot more than just Tesla—in fact, it’s filled with a number of exciting young companies. One of the most exciting is […]
There’s a ton of macro factors going on with Europe and the US. Energy issues… Obvious war going on in Ukraine… Mass inflation on all goods… But I’m looking at something else. The Euro compared to the US dollar. On the next page, my free weekly video discusses how the Euro correlates to movement in […]
From the 1980s until crude oil crashed in 2015, the master limited partnership (MLP) structure dominated energy midstream—your gathering, pipeline, processing, and storage companies. Midstream revenues come from committed fee structures and are very predictable and MLPs pay tax-advantaged distributions, so the structure can be very profitable for the sponsor/general partner/owner. But many investors don’t […]
There is no doubt that in an inflationary environment—such as the one in which we find ourselves now—consumer spending habits are affected. As prices continue to rise, people will stop to consider the things they really need versus the things they would like to have. For example, when it comes to food, people simply must […]
A large block trade was placed last week in the beleaguered exercise equipment maker, Peloton (PTON). The 30,000 contract diagonal call spread may suggest there is some medium-term upside in the stock. The trade also implies there is a limit to how high the stock may climb over the next year and a half. The […]
