These “Boring” Funds Crush Stocks, Yield 7.3%+

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These “Boring” Funds Crush Stocks, Yield 7.3%+

When you think about the biggest returns you could get on the market today, what do you think of? Tech? Biopharma? Gold stocks?

What about utilities?

This “boring” sector is known for high-yield stocks with little volatility. The (usual) downside to that income is lackluster capital gains, with many utilities staying range bound for years.

Except when they don’t.

Today we’re going to look at two utility funds that, over time, have crushed the S&P 500: the Cohen & Steers Infrastructure Fund (UTF) and the Reaves Utility Income Fund (UTG). Over their near 20-year histories, these funds have returned an annualized 11% per year.… Read more

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3 “No-Brainer” Dividend Growers to Buy on This Pullback (37% Upside)

If you’re like most income investors right now, you’ve got one eye on this twitchy market—and the other on red flags like slumping manufacturing numbers, chaos in DC and even the dreaded inverted yield curve.

I’m worried, too. But our best play here is not to sit in cash. With your mattress full, you’ll be forced to stand by as inflation drains your savings.

Worse, you’re certain to miss the next rebound. Because that’s the real mistake perma-bears always make: staying out of the market too long!

That’s why the smart move here is to buy. But we’re still going to take out some portfolio “insurance” by focusing on “crash-resistant” stocks.… Read more

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Warning: This “2-Step” Retirement Blunder Will Cost You 9.8% Dividends

I run into a lot of investors who think retirement investing is a two-act play.

In Act 1, when you’re younger, you try to balloon your nest egg with high-risk growth stocks that pay little (and often no) dividends.

Then, in Act 2, as you near—and enter—retirement, you pivot to the big dividends you need to pay your bills.

Trouble is, this approach exposes you to far too much risk, so today I’m going to show you a better way.

Your Best Play: Big Dividends and Growth—Right Now

I’m talking about 10 funds that can hand you dividends up to 9.8% right now, plus annual returns of 10% or more.… Read more

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Warning: These 10 Funds Could Pull a 2008 Repeat (sell now)

I want to show you 10 funds that yield up to 9.4%—and that you should sell now (or steer clear of if you don’t own them).

Of course, near-10% yields are attractive, and I often see attractive funds yielding as much as (and more than) the 10 funds I’ll reveal in a second. But sometimes a big yield is too good to be true, and that’s the case here.

The reason I’m saying this now? These funds have been on a tear in the last few months, which is far out of character for both them and their asset class.

I’m talking about utilities funds.… Read more

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The 5 Best Stock Funds for 9.9% Dividends and 10% Upside

For those of you shaking your head at your portfolio’s low yield, you can actually 2X or 3X your portfolio’s yield and improve your upside potential to boot using this strategy. And it’s actually simpler than traditional stock picking.

Many income investors have mistakenly parked their capital in “safe” consumer staples like General Mills (GIS), Kimberly-Clark (KMB) and Procter & Gamble (PG) in search of yield and security. Their money was safe, all right: their cash went nowhere – straight sideways – for the last five years!

They’d have been better off “outsourcing” their dividend decisions to the great Mario Gabelli.… Read more

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3 Post-Midterm Buys for 6.5% Dividends and 240% Payout Growth

Now that the election’s over, it’s time for us contrarians to get greedy!

And I’ve got just the thing: 3 hated buys we can use to rack up serious gains and dividends while the rest of the herd struggles to get its bearings.

Where do these 3 cash machines come from? The defense and infrastructure sectors.

Now you might see where I’m coming from on infrastructure. Probably the one thing Republicans and Democrats agree on is that our ramshackle roads, bridges and power plants need a lot of work.

More on this, including a rock-solid play for 6.5% dividends and “steady as she goes” upside, at the end of this article.… Read more

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These 8.9% Dividends Are Shockingly Cheap Following the Crash

If you’re still fearful about stocks as we pick up the pieces from the market’s grim October, let me ease your mind with one chart:

Stocks Still a Long-Term Winner

As you can see, that’s the market’s return over the last 10 years. As you can also see, stocks have returned nearly 2.5 times a person’s original investment in just a decade! Few other investments can make that claim.

The real problem? Income.

The average S&P 500 stock pays a lousy 1.9%, but let’s say you need 8% of your portfolio in monthly income to pay your bills in retirement. If you buy the popular SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and withdraw 8% monthly, you’ll be forced to sell in a falling market like the one we’ve seen.… Read more

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3 Ways to Cash in on Rising Rates (and Collect 7.4% Dividends)

It’s a question I get from investors all the time (including subscribers to my CEF Insider service): how should I invest when interest rates rise?

Because fear of rising rates is common among investors, there’s a hidden trap here: if you react to this worry, you will lose money. Instead, you need a second-level understanding of rates so you can bet against this fear and make money. (I’ll also give you 3 great buys that let you quickly and easily pull this off below.)

What Most People Get Wrong About Rising Rates

Here’s the common thinking on rates: as they head up, rising yields on US Treasuries will make these investments more attractive than large-cap US dividend stocks.… Read more

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5 CEFs Set to End 2018 With Big Gains (and 8.2% dividends)

We’ve seen a lot of volatility and fear in 2018, and that’s handed us a great buying opportunity—particularly in the 5 unloved funds I’ll show you below.

Make no mistake: each of these 5 despised funds is poised for serious upside before 2018 is out … and they’ll pay us 8.2% average dividends, to boot. That’s enough to hand you $3,400 a month on a $500k nest egg! Before we get to them, let’s take a look back at the year so far and see what’s handed us this terrific opportunity.

History Is Set to Repeat

If you bought closed-end funds (CEFs) back in early March, when the market tanked and I urged investors to buy, you’d be enjoying a nice double-digit total return in just 6 months:

Hated CEFs Turn the Corner

Why did these 3 funds—the Reaves Utility Income Fund (UTG), the Cohen & Steers Infrastructure Fund (UTF) and the DNP Select Income Fund (DNP)—all of which I recommended back on March 1—soar?… Read more

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2 “Fire Sale” Dividends Up to 10% to Buy Now (with upside)

One of the most reliable income-producing sectors has been hit hard over the past year, handing you a terrific shot at outsized dividend yields running all the way up to 10%.

In a moment, I’ll show you two funds that let you grab these huge income streams at a big discount—and one that looks like a strong buy but is way overpriced and headed for a fall. You’ll want to keep that one as far away from your portfolio as possible.

The sector all three of these picks come from is utilities—one of only two sectors of the S&P 500 that’s down over the past year (the other being consumer staples), with a 2.6% overall decline.…
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