With the stock market starting to show some love for smaller companies, it could also be a time to look towards investing overseas. That’s because the market’s returns have been dominated by big-cap tech stocks domiciled in the United States. Investing internationally offers investors global diversification. And with inflation on the decline globally, and with global central banks nearing a point of interest rate cuts, international stocks stand to benefit in the years ahead. While investing internationally can be challenging, investing in well-established businesses can be a great w...

After dominating market returns for the past 18 months, tech stocks are starting to take a breather. But the overall market continues to trend higher, thanks to a rotation underway. Investors are finally taking some profits in tech and moving that cash into lesser-loved stocks. Those stocks tend to be a bit slower moving, but after tech’s latest outperformance, they may take the lead in the second half of the year. That could mean good returns in more value-oriented stocks. One such value play here is Johnson & Johnson (JNJ). The healthcare giant is flat over the past year, but j...

Investors must often contend with different market cycles. Even in a bull market, some sectors will lead at times. Tech has been leading for some time. Now, its returns have started to slow. But other sectors are starting to join the market rally. That’s good news, as it opens up new investment and trading opportunities alike. Many sectors are great at outperforming the market over time, even if their monthly returns aren’t anything special. For instance, health insurance companies tend to beat the market over time. But the key word is over time. That could be good news for companies...

Fees, surcharges, fines, taxes, and other add-ons are a perpetual annoyance. However, for investors, companies that are able to charge extra fees, or increase their fees substantially over time, may be on to something. That’s because companies that can charge more and still keep their customers are likely on track to perform well as a business. And that means investors should be able to see increasing profits and a higher share price over time. With earnings season underway, a big way banks can earn big bucks is with increased fees. For investment bank Goldman Sachs (GS), those fees ...

Earnings season for the second quarter of 2024 are underway. Earnings season gives individual stocks the most volatility, and for good reason. If traders are wrong about how a company’s performance is playing out, big moves can be made in shares. Earnings season typically kicks off with data from the big Wall Street banks. They’ve seen extra scrutiny recently, thanks to the fact that inflation has remained high, as have interest rates. Both tend to weigh on a bank’s profitability. While a bank is happy to lend at high rates, investors haven’t been interested. In turn, inflation remai...

Consumer spending has been slowing down for months. One recurring theme is that consumers are reluctant to buy given the rapid price inflation of the past few years. With consumers holding back on spending, companies will have to find ways to lower prices or create new bargains to bring consumers back. Those that can get there first could stand to gain substantial market share, especially in the consumer-goods space. One possible winner is PepsiCo (PEP). While the company’s second-quarter earnings indicated that sales were weak, Pepsi is planning on lower-priced offerings. That could...

While fears of fatigue in the AI space have grown in recent weeks, the start of earnings season is pushing that idea off, at least for now. That’s because AI-related companies are reporting strong earnings. Even better, companies are reporting strong sales. Since earnings can be cleverly adjusted by accountants, sales indicate raw cash flow before any potential accounting shenanigans. And with sales still soaring in the chip space, the sector isn’t quite ready to trend back down yet. Semiconductor manufacturerTaiwan Semiconductor (TSM) gave chip stocks a boost this week, allowing the...

Somehow, the artificial intelligence trend is here to stay. Most tech trends often fizzle out somewhat quickly. But with many companies insisting that AI is the real deal, and investing accordingly, it’s clear we’re in the early stages of a long-term tech trend like the rollout of the internet, even if it will take some time. One sign that we could see a continuation is that some major laggards in the AI space are now poised to take the trend further in the years ahead. For instance, consumer tech giantApple (AAPL) is on track to become the first U.S. company to hit a $3.5 trillion m...

While the world is always changing, there are many cyclical trends that play out while that happens. Commodities move on a long cycle, but tend to have years of a bullish uptrends before years of pulling back. It’s common for stocks to rise at the start of the year, then pull back a bit over the summer. This summer, one market sector that hasn’t gotten much interest is starting to go back to its historical trend. That trend is the movie theater business. Box office numbers are trending up again. While not back to their 2019 peak, the strength at the box office could continue to benef...

Is the economy turning over? It’s possible. Friday’s jobs data suggests that the slowdown is underway. And it may slide into a recession if left unchecked. That suggests that investors may want to lighten up on winning tech stocks. It also suggests that better investment returns may come from more defensive stocks going forward. These are companies that can continue to grow their earnings steadily, even in a declining economy. The latest earnings report suggest that some defensive plays are better than others. For instance, global beverage giantConstellation Brands (STZ), just report...