Markets will likely remain uncertain for some time. That means daily swings will occur, punctuated with moments of extreme fear or greed. Traders can take advantage of the swings in both directions. And investors can use drops to buy great companies at a fair price. A great company, such as one with a strong brand and a history of consistent dividend growth, will rarely trade at a great price. But they’re also usually overpriced, and it takes market fear to knock it down to a fair one. A combination of a falling share price amid a slight rise in revenues has takenConstellation Bra...

Wall Street is fond of saying that investors shouldn’t look to catch a falling knife. However, once a stock has had a big drop, fears of a further decline tend to leave investors on the sidelines. That can mean missing out on the early part of a rally off extreme lows, which can be a big part of a total bull rally. That means it’s often ideal to buy when there’s still some lingering fear. Right now, the regional banks are teetering. However, it’s been a few weeks since any bank failures. And it’s clear that big banks are willing to store excess deposits with smaller institutions to a...

There’s a common strategy for a company to take a short position in a company, then issue a research report explaining why. Typically, such reports will take company statements and claim that they’re embellished in some fashion. Often, these reports aren’t true, or have an element of truth to them that are grossly exaggerated, even if allowed under accounting standards. But in the short term, shares can get knocked down, allowing the short seller to profit quickly. The most recent short seller attack has come forC3.ai (AI). The artificial intelligence company has now shed 30 percent ...

Many companies hire as they need to when growing like gangbusters. But when things go down, it’s a time to assess the size of a company and its needs, no matter what sector it’s in. For some companies, the worst bloat can come from its executive offices. The growth of middle management can cause a big payroll expense to build up, and take away capital from lower-level workers that make a company’s success possible. That’s why a number of big-name, labor-intensive companies have announced cuts in the past few months. One of the latest,McDonald’s (MCD), even temporarily closed corporat...

The end of the first quarter of the year saw the Nasdaq rebound more than 20 percent off of its lows from last year. Technically, that means the index is in a new bull market. And that’s no surprise when looking at some of last year’s hardest-hit tech stocks. A few have managed to nearly double off their lows. And they could move higher, as the flood of money hasn’t hit this space yet. One company that’s benefited from this trend is streaming giantNetflix (NFLX). Shares are nearly double off of last year’s lows. Plus, the company’s bond rating was just upgraded to investment grade. T...

Some companies tend to be growth plays. Others can be steady. A few are more cyclical, having obvious booms and busts. Tech companies that fall out of favor can become cyclical companies, provided they manage to find new products to invest in to get back on the growth track, even if it’s just for a few years. Playing this cycle can lead to bigger returns than buying and holding, particularly if buying near the start of a new cycle higher. Chipmakers tend to be long-term growth plays with deep cuts when the cycle isn’t in boom mode. But companies that adapt can perform well.Intel (INT...

Ultimately, companies exist to provide a product or service that satisfy the needs of their customers. Sometimes, that need is simply to find a way to do more with the same… or less. That’s why companies that drive innovations can be big winners over time. Customers flock towards services that can provide cost savings. And that can translate into big profits for the companies that are providing that innovation. Following where the investments in money-saving ideas go can lead to those profits. While some companies may start a new initiative, chances are a big company will look to inc...

The market drop that started over a year ago has morphed into fears into specific sectors, such as banking. But other industries have likewise dropped to the point where investors can buy $1.00 in assets for less than $1.00. One measure of a company’s assets is its book value, or the value of its assets per share. Investors may be able to buy up bank shares for far less than book value right now – but that book may include non-performing loans. In other sectors, the story is different. Media companies have been hit by a slowing economy, which tends to mean fewer advertisers and lower...

During a market pullback, investors tend to gravitate towards well-known companies with strong brands. Many of those companies, in turn, do what they do thanks to a strong network of suppliers. That can include anything from providing raw commodities to nearly-finished goods. Since these companies aren’t as well known, they tend to sell off during a market downturn, and then can benefit proportionately from the market rebound. So it’s no surprise that some analysts may be targeting them for big returns now. One supplier seeing an analyst upgrade is glassmakerCorning (GLW). The compan...

Investors are shying away from tech investments as interest rates rise. However, there are many ways to profit in tech in the years ahead, and finding reasonably-priced companies that can grow market share at today’s prices should fare well. While the market has flirted with artificial intelligence (AI) stocks so far this year, that space is far from proven. A more proven space is cloud storage, which continues to grow, even as tech firms slow down and announce layoffs. The cloud division atOracle (ORCL) makes the database software company look compelling now. One analyst even upgrad...