There Will Be Volatility

By Brian Nelson, CFA Last year, 2022, was a big test for equity investors, and the downside volatility that we witnessed during the year wasn’t comfortable, to say the least. Following the COVID-19 crash and rebound during 2020, and then the market surge in 2021, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say many investors’ heads are probably still spinning from all the volatility witnessed to start this decade. That said, part of what we’ve been warning about the past few years with respect to the equity market, especially in Value Trap, is that the proliferation of price-agnostic trading (e.g. quant, machine/algorithmic trading, etc.) will only lead to more and more market volatility, so while we were somewhat surprised by last … Read more

Video: A Call for More Policy Action in a Post COVID-19 World

Image: There may no longer be any basis for believing in efficient markets. Investors were bidding up the price of the wrong company because of confusion over its ticker symbol. This is just one example of how markets are inefficient.  Bailouts coupled with Fed and Treasury stimulus from COVID-19 will have profound implications on investment behavior, with expectations for indexing and quantitative strategies to continue to proliferate. New rules may be required to ensure that investors’ interests are truly being put first. President of Valuentum Brian Nelson presents a call to action. To watch the video >> Tickerized for the following: AMTD, BLK, DNB, FDS, IBKR, LPLA, MCO, MORN, NTRS, RJF, SCHW, SPGI, TRI, TROW, VALU –— Valuentum members have … Read more

Dividend Increases for the Week Ending August 2 Included Illinois Tool Works and Union Pacific

Below we provide a list of firms that upped their dividends for the week ending August 2. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports, please click here. Arbor Realty Trust (ABR): $0.13 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.12. B&G Foods (BGS): now $0.32 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.29. Carlisle Companies (CSL): now $0.22 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.20. CBOE Holdings (CBOE): now $0.18 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.15. Chemed Corporation (CHE): now $0.20 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.18. Comfort Systems: (FIX): now $0.055 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.05. Energizer Holdings (ENR): now $0.50 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.40. Ethan Allen Interiors … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week Ending February 14

Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending February 14. 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 1st Constitution Bancorp (FCCY): now $0.09 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.07. Agnico Eagle (AEM): now $0.20 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.17. AllianceBernstein (AB): now $0.85 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.63. Amtek (AME): now $0.18 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.14. Ares Management (ARES): now $0.40 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.32. Auburn National (AUBN): now $0.255 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.250. Barrick … Read more

Stock Market Outlook for 2021

By Valuentum Analysts February 8, 2021 2020 was one for the history books. We covered our thoughts and reflections on the past year in our “2020 Won’t Soon Be Forgotten” article (link here), and now we are looking towards the future. Global health authorities should be able to bring an end to the ongoing coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic sooner than many had expected as several vaccines have already been improved for emergency use and several others appear increasingly likely to get approved. Global vaccine distribution activities are currently underway, and this should allow the world to slowly return to pre-pandemic activities. Before then, immense stimulus measures launched primarily in developed nations should support global economic activities until the public health crisis … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week of February 3

Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending February 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                AFLAC (AFL): now $0.42 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.40. ALLETE (ALE): now $0.6775 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.6500. American Financial (AFG): now $4.00 per share special dividend, was $0.63. Avista (AVA): now $0.46 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.44. Bank of Botetourt (BORT): now $0.1925 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.1850. BCE (BCE): now CAD 0.9675 per share quarterly dividend, was CAD 0.9200. … Read more