One of the biggest trends of the past 15 years has been the growth of apps, particularly smartphone apps. However, investing in that trend has been a challenge. Outside of owning a smartphone manufacturer or developer likeApple (AAPL), there hasn’t been one specific way to play that trend. For the next generation of apps, led by AI technologies, there are now several opportunities emerging. Many are from deep-pocketed companies that already provide back-end software services. For instance,Adobe (ADBE) is best known for its PDF reader. But the company provides a number of solutions fo...

There are many ways for a company to deliver value to shareholders. Once a company reaches a certain size, growth becomes more difficult without coming up with new and potentially expensive initiatives. That’s why many large companies start paying a dividend. Companies have another trick up their sleeve too. That trick is the share buyback program. As long as a company isn’t using debt to retire shares, it can have a great long-term impact on prices. Payment processing companyPayPal Holdings (PYPL) is looking to add another $5 billion to their buyback program, a sign that company man...

It’s likely that the AI trend has staying power. But many AI stocks have gone nearly vertical in recent weeks. That suggests the space is ripe for a pullback that could bring down valuations quickly, and set up a further run later in the year. Such a move already occurred after a short rally in AI stocks to start the year. Now, investors have more companies working on AI initiatives to invest in, which creates a better watch list of opportunities. One company that looks ready for a pullback with an eye towards buying for the long term isOracle (ORCL). The company has shifted towards ...

Sometimes, it seems like a company can do no wrong. That’s when it’s a dangerous time to invest. That’s because good news pushes prices higher. But once buyers are exhausted, even more good news is unlikely to move prices higher. The reverse also holds true. When a company has had a series of poor earnings reports or other bad news, one more event likely won’t move things too much lower. Entertainment giantThe Walt Disney Company (DIS) has been hit with a lot of negatives in the past year. Streaming subscribers have slowed. The company’s legal carveout in the state of Florida has bee...

Traders are starting to bet more on a soft landing for the economy, rather than a heavy recession. That’s good news. It also means that some sectors should perform better than expected in the months ahead. One area is construction. From increased infrastructure spending to a housing boom, there are plenty of ways to play the trend. The top way is to invest in commodities that rise in response to a strong economy. The key commodity is copper. The metal’s relatively low cost and utility for a variety of purposes makes it a solid indicator as to the performance of the economy. In the...

With tech stocks largely back in fashion, there are a few laggards out there. They may be the better opportunity going forward. That’s because laggards have better valuations, having not run up as much. And they may surprise investors with strong operational performance. That’s especially true when contrasting some of the biggest players year-to-date, and especially where investors aren’t that excited for a specific company at the moment. Investors don’t need to find the most boring stock, just one that’s less exciting. One example isAdvanced Micro Devices (AMD). The chipmaker is up ...

The latest inflation data continues to slow. Prices are now rising at their lowest rate in two years. But they’re still rising. And inflation is cumulative. So chances are, we’ll still have to deal with rising costs for everyday goods. Many consumers are shifting their spending from brand-name products to store-brands. The price is a bit lower, and sometimes those products are even made in the same factories. One company that creates store brands isTreeHouse Foods (THS). The private label food manufacturer and distributer works across the packaged food chain. They’ve been a big wi...

Every day brings several reports about companies embracing artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. Some may see a genuine long-term opportunity. Others may see an opportunity to turn their share price around as the market loves this current tech trend. While big-name tech stocks have largely moved higher, there’s now some potential pockets of overvaluation with the biggest moves so far. That’s creating an opportunity for smaller plays, particularly for companies already rolling out AI tools. One such player isSalesforce (CRM). The company just announced its AI Cloud service for cu...

The past few weeks has seen an explosion of interest in artificial intelligence (AI) and chipmaker stocks. That’s allowed a few big-cap tech names to lead the overall market higher. And since the stock market is weighted by market cap, it may have even kept stocks from dropping so far this year. With the move higher fizzling out, it’s possible that investors are looking to new leaders to keep the 2023 rally going. One company looks set to take the leadership mantle. Streaming giantNetflix (NFLX) has more than doubled off the lows it set nearly a year ago. But it’s also well off the h...

Most investment analysis tries to put a company into either a growth category, or a value category. Fortunately, some stocks offer both at the same time. With some sectors of the market rallying strongly and value out of reach, being able to buy value while also seeing a move higher is huge. And with a solid valuation, the share price can move higher from both higher earnings growth and a higher valuation multiple as the company grows. One company exhibiting this growth now isOxford Industries (OXM). Trading at less than 10 times earnings, and yielding about 2.5 percent, it sounds li...