You Can’t Spell Mania without AI: 4-Stock Play Yields 7.4%

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I don’t always buy into stock bubbles. But when I do, I prefer dividend plays.

We can’t spell “mania” without AI, of course. Artificial intelligence has been the flavor of 2023. But what if—what if—the excitement around AI accelerates into 2024?

It could happen. Last week I spent half of a recent post-holiday-light-viewing dinner discussing AI with a friend. My buddy is increasingly looking to AI tools like ChatGPT and Bard to help run his services business. After all, why not—they are improving by the week and cheaper than humans. There is some steak behind the AI sizzle.

(What did we spend the other half of dinner doing?… Read more

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I staggered out of my Uber into a sea of orange. My next challenge—a monolithic 100,119-seat stadium—loomed in the distance.

Ever regret something instantly? That was me. Dumb decision. Zero chance your dividend guy could make it in and out of that sports palace.

Fortunately, as if sent from above, my new hype man walked by.

“That’s dedication!” An orange-clad Texas Longhorn fan and fellow father pointed at my CAM walker boot. Which, of course, housed my relatively newly-reconnected Achilles. Which was quickly appreciated outside Darrell K Royal Texas Memorial Stadium.

“Hardcore, man,” my new BFF reiterated. “I respect that.”

I tapped my chest and pointed back at him.… Read more

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There is another.

Yoda

The Jedi Master had last week’s 8.4% dividend in mind, no doubt. David Friar’s Nuveen Nasdaq 100 Dynamic Overwrite Fund (QQQX) is an elite 8%+ payer worthy of a discussion.

But yes, Yoda, there is another. A rival ETF, also based on “the Qs”—the Nasdaq 100. The Force must be strong with this one—it yields 12.7%.

Is this for real? Or a Hollywood fairy-tale?

Well, let’s go back to David, QQQX’s manager. His elite 8%+ yield is no joke either. He’s doing something that many of us have dabbled with. He buys tech stocks and sells (“writes”) covered calls on his positions.… Read more

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The bond market is blowing up many retirement portfolios. Let’s make sure yours is outrunning inflation, rates, and everything else—with these yields up to 25%.

(That’s not a typo. We’ll talk 25% dividends in a moment. First, let’s address the fixed-income elephant in the room.)

The 10-year Treasury is rapidly running towards 3%—a level it hasn’t hit since 2018. The Fed’s hawkish stance has created a mass exodus in bonds, sending the T-note up from 1.5% at the start of the year to nearly 2.9% in just a few short months.

Now, that’s definitely no reason to start jumping into government debt.… Read more

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I’m an investor in Invesco QQQ, a fund that gives me access to Nasdaq-100 innovations like volumetric video technology.

My fellow hoops fans watching March Madness are seeing a million commercials for Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ). They feature flashy camera angles with average investors “dropping knowledge” about the tech stocks they are proud to own via this ETF.

In the spot, the investor humble brags about her “volumetric” video technology investment. English translation: The use of many cameras at different angles to make a sporting event look three dimensional on TV. (Last week, ESPN broadcast a professional basketball game for the first time using this technology.)… Read more

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Many financial advisors doubt that we can retire comfortably on a million dollars, let alone $500K.

Let me outline our compelling dividend counterpoint—a five-stock portfolio with an average yield of 12.3%.

This generates more than $60,000 in annual income on a $500K portfolio, or a sweet $123,000 in dividends on that million-dollar nest egg. And, most importantly, this “retire on dividends” strategy leaves the principal untouched.

Contrary to popular opinion, we have a pool of dividend candidates. Let’s start with the 879 dividend-paying stocks that yield more than 3% and work our way up the chain:

Believe It Or Not, 50 US Stocks Yield 10%+

Note: U.S.-listedRead more

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“Is $1 million enough to retire on?”

Paul Katzeff of Investor’s Business Daily asked me earlier this month. He was especially keen on high-paying ETFs that would throw off enough dividends to fund a nice retirement.

For example, we chatted about the Global X Nasdaq 100 Covered Call ETF (QYLD), which sells covered calls on the Nasdaq index itself to create cash flow.

QYLD’s trailing yield is a sweet 11.8%, which means million-dollar positions would have generated $118,000 in dividend income alone. Plus, the principal grew, too, thanks to price gains. The Nasdaq has been on a tear since last year, helping QYLD to 21.2% total returns (including dividends) over the past twelve months.… Read more

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I had just spent my whole paycheck at Whole Foods. My wife was not amused.

“Brett,” she paused and trailed off, a telltale sign that I was in the hot seat.

“You don’t have to buy everything organic. Some stuff…” she searched for words, shaking her head.

I flailed for a life raft: “But isn’t organic good?”

“Some fruits, sure,” she conceded. “And vegetables. But not all of them. Like avocados, and bananas—they have thick skins, so it really doesn’t matter if they are organic or not.”

“And cookies. Cookies are a highly processed food. Why are you bothering with organic?”… Read more

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Here at Contrarian Outlook, our beat is income, and we’re often asked for analysis on high-yield ETFs. Today, we’ll look at three funds paying up to 11% (yes, that’s no typo).

I appreciate the ETF popularity. They’re cheap. They’re tax-efficient. They’re  well-marketed. They’ve got cutesy tickers.

But income investors who blindly buy into the hype, unfortunately, are not getting the most dividend for their dollar.

The real dividend deals are found in ETFs’ lesser-known cousins, closed-end funds (CEFs), which often dish even bigger payouts (and a monthly cadence, to boot). CEFs can also trade at discounts to their net asset values, because they fly under Wall Street’s radar.… Read more

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Most investors buy stocks and hope they’ll go up in price. They do nothing in the interim to generate cash flow from those stocks while they sit in their portfolio.

Dividends are a good start. But did you know that it’s possible to accelerate many payouts by writing covered calls?

“Write” what?

I’ll explain. And I’ll also highlight some popular exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and closed-end funds (CEFs) that will help you generate 10% cash yields or better from this income strategy without actually handling an options contract yourself.

A call option is a contract that gives its buyer the right to purchase a stock from the seller for a certain price within a certain period of time.… Read more

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