Shares of utility companies have been hit hard this year thanks to worries of an interest rate hike and the drop in energy prices, a key component in what utilities can charge. Companies in the formerly hot renewable energy space have been hit even harder in recent months. Read More

As predictable as some market cycles are, they always seem to catch investors off guard. Mr. Market, senile old man that he is, just can’t seem to get past the euphoric buying around peaks and the panic selling around troughs. Smart investors know they don’t have to time… Read More

The markets continue to fluctuate between positive and negative territory for the year. Relatively good economic data in the United States is working against higher interest rates and slower global growth. I have been mostly positive on the markets this year. Economic growth has kept sales rising and… Read More

The markets continue to fluctuate between positive and negative territory for the year. Relatively good economic data in the United States is working against higher interest rates and slower global growth. I have been mostly positive on the markets this year. Economic growth has kept sales rising and… Read More

While investors are worrying about the direction of the general market, a few industries have been under the gun for a year or so already. Any industry tied to energy or commodities, for instance, has felt the sting of slowing Chinese growth and lower energy prices.  I’m optimistic… Read More

While investors are worrying about the direction of the general market, a few industries have been under the gun for a year or so already. Any industry tied to energy or commodities, for instance, has felt the sting of slowing Chinese growth and lower energy prices.  I’m optimistic… Read More

Large swings in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and other major market averages always seem to increase the level of fear in business news headlines. Here are some good ones we’ve seen in the past few weeks: “Panic selling returns to fragile markets” “Investors urged to avoid panic… Read More

Timing a short squeeze can be tricky. Jump in too soon and you could be sitting on dead money until management improves its outlook. Wait too long and you risk missing most of the upside. The most unloved companies are usually unloved for a reason — whether thanks… Read More

The odds of a September interest rate hike surged to 52% on Wednesday, up from 38% at the beginning of the week. The jump — which came on the back of surprisingly strong U.S. service-sector growth and comments by Atlanta Federal Reserve President Dennis Lockhart — caused some rate-sensitive stocks… Read More

The historic rise in the U.S. dollar has been a major overhang on the market for nearly a year.  According to FactSet Research, the U.S. dollar has appreciated by 19% against the euro and 16% against the Japanese yen in the past 12 months. This has regularly been cited as… Read More

The historic rise in the U.S. dollar has been a major overhang on the market for nearly a year.  According to FactSet Research, the U.S. dollar has appreciated by 19% against the euro and 16% against the Japanese yen in the past 12 months. This has regularly been cited as… Read More

Recent market commentary is starting to remind me of the periods in 2000 and 2008 just before the bottom dropped out of the market. Leading up to the bursting of the tech bubble, for example, analysts increasingly ignored valuation and warnings that earnings expectations were too high.  Similarly, housing prices… Read More

As an economist for the state of Iowa, I learned that economic stimulus can affect growth — but only if given time to work. Of course, patience is not something investors or the markets are known for.  The lagging nature of stimulus on the economy can be excruciating for those… Read More

As an economist for the state of Iowa, I learned that economic stimulus can affect growth — but only if given time to work. Of course, patience is not something investors or the markets are known for.  The lagging nature of stimulus on the economy can be excruciating for those… Read More