Opinions

sold a whopping record 51 million “iPhones” and 26 million “iPads” in its fiscal first quarter, which is great stuff at first glance. So why did investors scramble for the exits. The problem is that the market expectations placed on Apple are enormous. But that’s what happens when you’re the

Can you believe the mainstream headlines these days? I’m reading about the Dow Jones Industrial Average going to 19,000… I’m reading that stocks are rising because the amount of stocks for investors to buy has diminished… It’s all rubbish! The chart below of the Dow Jones Industrial Average breaking above

Never mind the record breaks on Monday. The bulls are screaming “higher.” Dow 20,000, S&P 500 2,000, here we come. Wall Street is giddily raking up profits. There’s going to be some happy Wall Street workers when the year-end bonuses are announced. One of my friends works at a major

There are records being set everywhere, but where it counts—the financial results from corporations. However, there are some exceptions to this trend. Tyson Foods, Inc. (TSN) is one of the biggest processors and sellers of meat and countless prepared food products sold in more than 90 countries. John W. Tyson

It was a regular flight for me to Miami…a late Saturday afternoon two weeks ago. As our flight approached Miami International Airport, the captain announced we would soon be starting our descent. Then something happened that I thought was strange. We started circling in the air. Not once or twice,

Get ready for the massive consumer push by the Chinese over the upcoming years and decades as the government strives to drive the economic engine via consumer spending. The modification to the current one-child policy, which I recently discussed in these pages, will help create an even bigger middle class

The most important financial metric for a business person investing in stocks is what corporations actually say about their businesses. The numbers are the real news in a sea of noise that can distract you from what is actually happening in the business world. There have been some massive frauds

Central banks around the global economy are involved in a race that will not end well. Of course, I’m talking about the race to the bottom of currency devaluation, which is being achieved through the printing of more and more paper money backed by nothing. Almost weekly, I hear news

In the first 10 months of this year, the U.S. Mint sold 39.2 million ounces of silver in coins. In the same period last year, the Mint only sold 28.94 million ounces of silver in coins. A general negativity by investors surrounding silver this year has not stopped people from

This market has been due for a major correction for quite some time. The marketplace expected it (including myself), but what we got instead was share price consolidation with continued leadership from blue chips and small-caps. Countless stock market indices are right close to their highs, including the S&P 500,

The housing market looks like it may be ready to fall. While the homebuilders may face some hurdles, the area of housing that I feel is a buying opportunity is the home supplies and services stocks. The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE/HD) is the “Best of Breed” in the housing market,

Stocks are at a crux now. While investor sentiment continues to be bullish, we are clearly seeing some hesitation on the charts, especially with the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The Dow Industrial, a barometer of companies that form the backbone of American business, is stalling and cannot seem to retrace

As everyone is celebrating the market at record highs, another record was just broken and no one appears to be celebrating it. Of course, I’m talking about the fact that the U.S. government debt total has just exceeded $17.0 trillion. No one should be really surprised, since we continue running

The easy money will continue to be pumped into the economy by the Federal Reserve, but the difference, I think, will be that the soft tone will have less of an impact on the stock market than in the previous years. As was widely expected and to no one’s surprise,

If volatility is the name of the game with stocks right now, consistency of performance is a very attractive asset. Over the last several years, few companies have been able to deliver consistently rising financial metrics like Starbucks Corporation (SBUX). The company’s sales, earnings, and dividends continue to increase, even

I kind of thought that buying in the stock market was somewhat euphoric and based more on the Federal Reserve’s easy money policy than solid underlying fundamentals. A good indicator of excess in the stock market is when initial public offerings (IPOs) surge by ridiculous amounts on their first day

Another day and another record-high stock market is what it seems like these days. That must mean that the economic recovery in America is close at hand, right? Not so fast; the data on job creation appears to show that the situation is actually worsening. Job creation is crucial to

Can it be true? The U.S. Department of the Treasury has reported that for the federal government’s fiscal 2013 year, which ended on September 30, 2013, the U.S. government budget deficit was $680 billion—the smallest budget deficit in five years. (Source: Bureau of the Fiscal Service, October 30, 2013.) Should

American Express Company (AXP) just hit a new record high on the equity market. By most accounts, the company had a good third quarter. The stock’s been upgraded by the Street with rising earnings estimates and share price targets. Management said that its credit quality and top-line growth were the

There’s some buzz surrounding the video gaming market again with the pending releases of the “PlayStation 4” by Sony Corporation (NYSE/SNE) and the “Xbox One” by Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ/MSFT). As I recently discussed, the release of new gaming and entertainment consoles generate excitement and drive up the demand for games.