This 60% Tech Yield Is Getting Attention (Is It Safe?)

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This 60% Tech Yield Is Getting Attention (Is It Safe?)

We all love high yields—but every now and then we run across one here at Contrarian Outlook that’s so high it’s a blaring warning sign.

Case in point: the 60.4% yield (no, I didn’t misplace a decimal there!) on a tech-focused fund called the YieldMax TSLA Option Income Strategy ETF (TSLY).

That’s right: buy this one and, going by the headline yield, you could recover your upfront investment in less than two years through dividend payouts!

But, well, not so fast: because in this case (as in pretty well all cases when dividend yields strain the bounds of reality), some income-hungry investors are being drawn to a high yield that not only can’t last, but masks poor long-term performance, too.… Read more

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This Bad Dividend Decision Pays Up to 76%: Be Careful

Ten years ago, the city athletics director wrote:

Hi Guys,
I need to place an order for championship softball shirts. It should say West Sacramento’s Summer 2014 C/D Division Champions. Bad Decisions.

Bad Decisions was our team name, a nod to our personnel. I mean that in the most endearing way possible, of course. A lineup filled with guys light on responsibility (at the time) who enjoyed the postgame rehydration process as much as the in-game competition:

With two kids, my postgame rituals are different these days. First, a trip out can only occur after our final YMCA basketball game on Saturdays—my third and final game to coach that day.… Read more

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How to Invest Like a Billionaire (and Get 5% Tax-Free Dividends)

I’m guessing you heard about the plunge in Tesla (TSLA) stock spurred by founder Elon Musk’s recent tweet asking if he should sell 10% of his shares.

(The tweet—a poll of Twitter users—garnered a positive response, by the way; Musk says he’ll abide by it.)

I know—another bizarre Musk tweet doesn’t seem to mean much to us income investors. But this one is different, because as hard as it may be to believe, it’s telling us one thing: buy municipal bonds—an asset class many investors dismiss as “sleepy.” That’s not true: there’s a reason why “munis” are favored among billionaires, starting with their huge tax-free dividends.… Read more

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2 Guaranteed Ways to Lose Money Now (and 2 Great Buys for 7.5% Dividends and Upside)

Flipping through my stock screener earlier this week, I ran across two of the best examples of bubbles-in-the-making I’ve ever seen:

Looking to Lose Money? Invest Here.

Those would be Tesla (TSLA), in blue above, and Virgin Galactic (SPCE), in orange.

Bubbles, of course, are nothing new: Nobel Prize–winning economist Robert Shiller explained them in his 2000 book, aptly titled Irrational Exuberance:

“Errors of human judgment can infect even the smartest people, thanks to overconfidence, lack of attention to details and excessive trust in the judgments of others, stemming from a failure to understand that others are not making independent judgments but are themselves following still others—the blind leading the blind.”… Read more

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A Country Club Investing Secret for Safety, Income and Growth

Stocks or bonds? With the market off to an inauspicious December start, you may be thinking about shuffling some money from equities into income.

But rich guys and gals know better than to choose. They blend the best of both worlds to collect interest and enjoy share price upside! And we can too.

Their secret tickers? Convertible bonds. (Before the holidays you may be tempted to add some convertibles to your portfolio simply so that you can brag about them to friends and family!)

Convertible bonds, like the preferred shares we have discussed recently, pay regular interest. In this way, they act like bonds.… Read more

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This Top “Convertible” Bond Trades for Just 87% of Book Value

Stocks or bonds? For income-focused investors, why not blend the best of both worlds to collect interest and enjoy share price upside?

This is the goal of convertible bonds, a “country club” favorite. (Before the holidays you may be tempted to add some convertibles to your portfolio simply so that you can brag about them to friends and family!)

Convertible bonds, like the preferred shares we discussed last week, pay regular interest. In this way, they act like bonds. You buy them and “lock in” regular coupon payments.

But convertibles are also like stock options in that they can be “converted” from a bond to a share of stock by the holder.… Read more

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Asset Allocation 101 for Dividend Investors

Last week, we outlined a smart, sound retirement income strategy funded by dividends alone. Now, let’s talk growth.

We’re already well ahead of the flawed 4% fallacy – the notion that you can (or should) sell some capital every year for retirement income. With our “no withdrawal” technique, we’re already keeping our capital intact – and collecting 8% yields to boot!

Believe it or not, we can do even better with some savvy asset allocation. If you’re not yet as filthy rich as you hoped you’d be by now, don’t worry – we still have plenty of time to get you there.…
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