Chaos Is Rocket Fuel for These 2 Stocks (and Their Dividends)

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Chaos Is Rocket Fuel for These 2 Stocks (and Their Dividends)

One thing is clear from the last few weeks: The geopolitical chaos never stops.

We contrarians get that. But the first-level crowd does not. When we’re hit with a war, snap tariffs or a pandemic (ugh!), most investors panic.

And the truth is, chaos—whether it’s war in Iran or fears that AI will erase whole industries—is coming at us faster than ever.

Most people think they can handle this wave of worry. But it pays to remember the famous Mike Tyson quote: “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.”

True in life and investing. It’s just another way of saying that the same investors who think they can handle the latest “punch in the face” are often the first to turtle and sell low.… Read more

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From Bank Bloodbath to Pipeline Boom: An 8.1% Yield Escape Plan

“And what can we do to get better shots?”

Your fulltime income strategist and part-time basketball coach asked his team of fifth and sixth graders for their ideas. Or, at least, tried to.

Then a ball bounced. After coach specifically said hold balls for a second time. This third infraction ended the conversation.

“That’s it—on the line. Start running.”

When coach says run, the players don’t really have a choice. Get moving in practice or lose playing time in the games they all love.

Likewise, when the government tells an industry that there is a cap on their profits, well, they’d better get moving too.… Read more

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This Cheap Dividend Just Jumped 13.6% (and We’re Buying)

As contrarians, we love it when a solid dividend grower drops on headline-driven fear.

And I see the recent decline in shares of Visa (V)—a Hidden Yields holding that hikes its payout double-digits yearly—as our next opportunity to cash in as the mainstream crowd frets.

You probably know that the stock fell on President Trump’s talk of limiting credit-card interest rates to 10% for one year. Investors, in typical “knee jerk” fashion, swiftly sold off this reliable payment toll booth.

That’s too bad for them—but it’s great for us. We now have a chance to buy a stout dividend grower at a bargain.… Read more

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This “Sleepy” Yield Hides a 14% Raise – and Even More Upside

Washington has a debt problem going into 2026. To put it mildly.

Policymakers are desperate to boost demand for US Treasuries. Higher Treasury prices mean lower Treasury yields. Lower yields translate to reduced interest payments for Uncle Sam on his huge federal debt pile.

The interest payments are what policymakers care about. The total debt is mind-blowing and will never be paid down. The interest, on the other hand, is an annual budget item.

How to reduce the interest via lower bond yields? Leave it to the Washington suits, who “did their thing” with the bills coming increasingly due. They engineered new demand for their government IOUs.… Read more

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This Stock’s 0.68% Yield Is a Lie (It Really Pays 5X That)

Today we’re going to look at a stock you probably own now (or have in the past)—Visa (V).

Truth is, this “go-to” S&P 500 name has a BIG secret:

Its “measly” 0.68% dividend yield is nonsense. In fact, I’d go as far as to say it’s a complete misdirection. 

Buy—or worse, avoid—Visa based on that low yield and you’ll completely miss out on a terrific stock I see completely crushing the market in the years ahead.

Because here’s the real truth about “Big V”: It actually yields 5X what the free stock screeners say it does—and no one realizes it.… Read more

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Why I’m Choosing a Measly 0.66% Dividend Over a Well-Known 6% Payer

If you’re like me, when you see an outsized dividend yield, you stop and immediately do the mental math. How much would we get back in payouts from, say, a 9.3% payer if we were to invest $10,000? Or $20,000? Or $100,000?

But savvy contrarians we are, we know to push back on this initial reaction and look deeper.

That’s because of something I know pretty much goes unsaid among contrarian income investors like us: Those big yields can be (and usually are) a danger sign. Truth is, a rising dividend is only one possible reason for a high payout.

And in fact, it’s the least likely one.… Read more

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When a 0.8% Dividend Beats 10% (The Story of Kohl’s Stock Vs. Visa)

We’ve all loved watching our dividend payers soar since the August 5 crash. (To be honest, we might have liked a bit more time to shop the bargains!).

But that’s investing. And I do have two pieces of good news on that front:

  1. There are still some cheap—and growing—dividends on the table (we’ll name one below, as well as a “dividend dog” to dump right away if you own it).
  2. This latest market bounce is broad based, as opposed to most of the last couple years, when tech was running the show: 

Good “Breadth” Bodes Well for More Gains

Here we can see the jump in the S&P 500 as a whole (in orange) versus its return on an equal-weight basis (in purple).… Read more

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This “Stealth” Dividend Strategy Can Crush ETFs, Deliver 379%+ Payout Growth

Look, I know pretty well everyone loves ETFs—mainly for the cheap management fees.

But here’s the thing: ETFs—especially dividend-growth ETFs—are almost always a raw deal. You’re better to go with carefully chosen individual stocks instead.

Today I’m going to prove it, with two popular ETFs whose lousy performance is costing investors thousands in lost gains. So we’re going to “swap” these losers for two terrific stocks whose payouts have exploded 379%+ in the last decade.

Their secret? An eye-opening “Dividend Magnet” pattern no one’s talking about (but as you’ll see in a moment, they should be).

Let’s start with the laggards, then move on to the Dividend Magnet—and these two overlooked individual stock buys.… Read more

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3 Toxic ETFs to Sell Yesterday (and 3 Picks Growing Payouts Up to 420%)

Look, I get it: many folks love ETFs, mainly because of the cheap management fees.

I mean who doesn’t love a deal? And it is true that ETFs’ fees are a fraction of those levied by the typical mutual fund or closed-end fund (CEF).

Trouble is, most ETF buyers get exactly what they pay for! Some of the worst performers in ETF-land are dividend-growth ETFs, which sound like a nice “1-click” way to load up your portfolio with soaring payouts.

Too bad they can’t stop tripping over their own feet!

Look at how three major dividend-growth ETFs, the iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (DGRO), Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG) and ProShares S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats ETF (NOBL), have fared in the past year:

Stocks Lap Dividend-Growth ETFs

As you can see, the S&P 500 (in orange) blew past this trio, with a 24% total return.… Read more

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This Is Where We’ll Find Winning Stocks (and Surging Dividends) in ’24

Let’s cut to the chase on dividend investing in 2024: our strategy this year will be all about interest rates.

Sure, there are other trends out there, like AI. And yep, there’s some steak behind the sizzle.

But when it comes to grabbing fast-growing—and high-yielding—payouts at the right times, rate moves will rule the roost. That’s not much of a surprise, really, as stocks have hung on Jay Powell’s every utterance for the last couple years.

But here’s the twist: Powell won’t be the headline-grabber in ’24. Look for him to fade into the background, with the Fed likely to move rates lower, maybe by a percent or so.… Read more

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