Dividend Increases for the Week Ending October 3
October 4, 2014
Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending October 3. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week American Financial (AFG): now $0.25 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.22. AZZ (AZZ): now $0.15 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.14. Bank of the Ozarks (OZRK): now $0.125 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.12. Calavo Growers (CVGW): now $0.75 per share annual dividend, was $0.70. John Hancock Investments (PDT): now $0.09 per share monthly dividend, was $0.08. Kayne Anderson Energy Development (KED): now $0.52 per share
The Correction: Protection Makes Sense
October 3, 2014
When our team thinks about members, the one thing we want for them is to make money from our service. This sometimes means that we’re a bit cautious at times. For example, taking profits on Ford (F), Precision Castparts (PCP), and Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD) a couple days ago was not an easy thing to do. They’ve been huge winners. From a fundamental standpoint, we still like the companies, but market conditions and valuations cannot be ignored. Just like the profit-taking, we also think it was prudent to add protection in the form of put option contracts to the Best Ideas portfolio and Dividend Growth portfolio in light of a number of factors. The put option contracts amount to ~1.5%
The Correction: Markets Ease Thursday
October 2, 2014
The S&P 500 brushed off a sluggish open Thursday, recovering through most of the afternoon following the close of European markets. We’re not particularly fond of commenting on daily market activity, but we want to make sure readers know that we’re monitoring the correction very closely to see if things could get much worse. There are a variety of factors that could make the markets even uglier: sliding energy prices (impact on Big Oil’s profits), Ebola outbreak (impact on airlines, hotels), Hong Kong (disruptions in Asia), European weakness (risks of weaker economic activity), ISIS and Russia (geopolitical uncertainty), and the list goes on and on and on (our seven are here). One very important voice from the crowd, however, is speaking
The October Edition of the Dividend Growth Newsletter!
October 1, 2014
Please download the October edition of the Dividend Growth Newsletter .
Three Huge Red Flags for the Airlines, Hotels
October 1, 2014
The airline industry is a good barometer of global economic activity as it not only gauges leisure travel but also business activity. We picked up three important red flags recently that may weigh on shares of the airline group (and by extension the hotel space). For those that don’t know us, we’re not at all fans of the investment prospects of the airline industry, but nonetheless, we pay very close attention to airlines for unique economic insights. Read about our recent call on cyclicals here, in case you missed it. 1. Ebola. According to CNN, the first case of Ebola has been diagnosed in the US. Just like the SARS and West Nile virus before it, the news will likely
October Dividend Growth Newsletter Introduction
October 1, 2014
Dear Member, The month of September represented some tough sledding for the markets, and we think things will get worse before they get better. If you missed our write up on the seven reasons why we think we’re due for a fall, please be sure to catch up on the piece here. We made a number of changes to the Dividend Growth portfolio since the release of the previous edition of the newsletter. Let’s make sure you didn’t miss anything. For one, yesterday, we added S&P 500 SPDR put option contracts to the portfolio to protect the large gains. Specifically, we added protection in the form of 5 put option contracts on the S&P 500 (SPY), with November 22 expiration
Pay Attention!
September 30, 2014
I just wanted to send a quick reminder out there because frankly this is amazing, and I’m very, very concerned readers aren’t focusing on the right things. First, I wanted to start with a couple examples. Example 1: If you pull up a 16-page report and, let’s say, it is dated from late April, and the company had registered a 9 on the index and shares were trading $24 at the time. If the stock is now in the mid-$30s, your response should be: “Wow, the stock registered a 9 and now has advanced significantly. The methodology really highlighted this one.” Your response should not be that the report is dated from April. Micron Tech (MU). Excerpt Micron Report, page
This Just Feels Different…Mr. Brown
September 30, 2014
We think the correction is coming. Here are 7 reasons why we plan to reduce exposure to cyclicals and add some protection to the portfolios. By Brian Nelson, CFA I hope you don’t mind my using baseball analogies. Baseball and investing are perhaps the only two endeavors where if you get more than half right, you’re at the top of the list. In any case, you don’t have to be a big baseball fan to appreciate the similarities. I used an example with Ted Williams in this piece about fat pitch investing, but there’s another analogy that is worth sharing. I’ve been to the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory Tour a few times in the past couple years. My little
Yikes! Brazil’s Real Plunges; Protests in Hong Kong
September 29, 2014
Recession worries in Brazil (EWZ) sent the Brazilian real to a five-year low after poll results showed President Dima Rousseff gaining a lead over candidate Marina Silva, according to Bloomberg. Dropping a couple percent versus the US dollar today, its biggest one-day drop in three years, the Brazilian real has fallen more than 10% during the third quarter. Many had hoped a new government would spur economic growth in the country. The Brazilian economy is an important one, a component of the faster-growing BRIC nations, and many firms in our coverage universe are dependent on its resilience. This could potentially compound problems in Latin America, with Argentina defaulting on its debt earlier this year. Fundamentals at PetroBras (PBR), Gol Linhas
Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week Ending September 26
September 29, 2014
Below we provide a list of firms that raised/lowered their dividends during the week ending September 26. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week CSB Bancorp (CSBB): now $0.19 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.18. Hersha Hospitality Trust (HT): now $0.07 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.06. Hingham Institution for Savings (HIFS): now $0.28 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.27. International Bancshares (IBOC): now $0.27 per share semi-annual dividend, was $0.25. Lockheed Martin (LMT): now $1.50 per share quarter dividend, was $1.33. OGE Energy (OGE): now $0.25 per share quarterly
