(New York)

Safe and stable income is the name of the game for many investors, especially as the country ages. That means many advisors are on the look out for stocks that can offer that combination. With that in mind, here is a list of ten safe dividend stocks. The “safe” in this context means stable dividends. It should be noted that the S&P 500 is only current yielding around 2% as a whole, but there are many stocks with over 3% yields. Here is the list: AbbVie, Broadcom, SL Green Realty, Regions Financial, Phillips 66, Marathon Petroleum, T. Rowe Price Group, PNC Financial Services, JPMorgan Chase, Comerica.

FINSUM: This is a nice diversified group. One thing we like in S&P 500 dividend stocks is that they tend to be value picks as well, since higher dividends are often a buy-product of previous share price declines.

(Washington)

US investors got spooked yesterday by the Democrats’ “healthcare for all” proposal to bring universal socialized care to all Americans. The big fears manifested themselves in insurance stocks, which were hit considerably. However, the proposal has little chance of getting approved as it will certainly be blocked by the Senate. Even if a Democratic president gets elected, it is unlikely the Democrats would gain the 60 seats in the Senate necessary to approve such a move. Therefore, most analysts expect insurance stocks to recover, though not immediately.

FINSUM: We do not think that this plan will come to pass any time soon, but we do think the country is headed in that direction because of the leftist leanings of Millennials, who will slowly gain political power.

(New York)

Stock investors may have largely moved on from day to day concerns about a pending recession, but important parts of the bond market are still signaling a downturn is coming. For instance, the 1 to 5-year spread in Treasuries inverted at then end of December, and despite the Fed making a big policy u-turn, has remained inverted ever since. The spread is currently minus 7 basis points. It is important to remember that the entire yield curve does not invert at once, it happens in stages, and this particular measure has proven to be a good recession indicator in the past.

FINSUM: It is alarming to us that this remains inverted despite the drastic change at the Fed. From here forward we expect the curve to be very data dependent, as if economic data is worsening, we expect more and more of it to invert.

(New York)

Another month, anther patch of really rough data on the US real estate market. New data from December has just been released, and shows a clearly negative trend for the market. Housing starts dropped 11.2% in the month, and overall, the market saw the worst price growth (4.7% in major metropolitan areas) since 2014. Stock market turbulence and higher rates plagued the market at the end of 2018.

FINSUM: We have seen many months of deteriorating real estate performance. The big question now is whether the market can rebound in time for the peak spring selling season.

(New York)

If you hold bank shares, now might be a good time to pay attention. JP Morgan just put out a warning yesterday, and it is the type that seems likely to be representative of the whole industry. The bank warned of a “high teens” percentage fall in trading revenue. Most analysts have been expecting much more modest falls of around 3%.

FINSUM: Trading revenue falls tend to sweep across the big banks all at once as they are all subject to the same market conditions and underlying investor sentiment.

(New York)

If that headline seems like a head scratcher, it is meant to be. Barron’s ran a curious article today which argues that weak forecasts for earnings might actually be a good catalyst for higher stock prices. That seems to defy logic, but would be a continuation of a trend that has been in place for a few years. When companies broadcast weak earnings to come, it tends to make investors nervous, leading to oversold conditions. As you might expect, oversold markets tend to lead to bull runs.

FINSUM: This is a tenuous relationship, but when that has been apparent for the last few years. Stocks do like to climb a wall of worry, and this would be a good wall.

(New York)

Stocks are off to a very strong start this year, but it is hard to remember a time that they looked so vulnerable. Investors may be happy with the 10%+ gains in the S&P 500, but the reality is that stocks could nosedive at any moment. In a sign of how grave the risk is, we challenge you to ask yourself—what is a risk that could make stocks plunge 10% in a day? We are willing to bet 90% of you said “the Fed suddenly restarting hikes”. The core of this rally has largely been predicated on the Fed suddenly reversing course, letting investors breathe a sigh of relief that the central bank won’t hike the economy into recession.

FINSUM: The truth is that the Fed could reverse its position at any moment, which would probably cause a big downturn in markets. That said, we don’t think they will do anything so drastic.

(New York)

As part of our ongoing coverage of the best funds we found and met with at the recent Inside ETFs conference, we want to today suggest our readers take a look at TTAC, TrimTabs Asset Management’s US-focused quality ETF. The fund is predicated on providing investors with the highest quality stocks. In order to do so, TrimTabs focuses on free cash flow, strong balance sheets, and reducing share count. Free cash flow is a particularly important component as it is one of the hardest for companies to doctor, meaning it is a reliable indicator of quality. In order to implement this strategy, the fund uses a quantitative rules-based approach with human overlays that allow for flexibility in terms of sectors, industries, and market caps. TTAC seeks to outperform the Russell 3000 by holding the 100 companies in the index which best embody its investment criteria. The fund has about $125m in AUM and has an expense ratio of 0.59%.

FINSUM: We were very impressed by the folks at TrimTabs. Not only does the CIO, Theodore (Ted) Theodore have the best name in the business, but their enduring passion for their strategy was compelling. We feel this fund has a smart approach and is very competently managed. Definitely worth a look.

(Washington)

Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer, is set to hold his first and only public hearing on Thursday, when he will testify in front of the House about his dealings with President Trump. Cohen is reportedly going to directly accuse Trump of criminal activity in addition to testimony regarding “lies, racism, and cheating”. He will not be speaking about Russia matters under the purview of the Mueller investigation. The White House commented that “Sadly, he will go before Congress this week and we can expect more of the same … It’s laughable that anyone would take a convicted liar like Cohen at his word, and pathetic to see him given yet another opportunity to spread his lies”.

FINSUM: This is either going to be a media firestorm or a dud. If Cohen doesn’t say anything new, it will be hard for the media to make much of it.

(London)

The journey of Brexit has been long, winding, and utterly confusing at times. However, it is all headed for a dramatic conclusion. PM May has called for a Parliamentary vote on her plan on March 12, just a couple of weeks before the UK is supposed to formally depart the EU. However, the pushback on the left has been so strong that opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn now looks poised to call for a second referendum on EU membership. He announced the position yesterday, marking a major change in position.

FINSUM: We absolutely dismiss the view that holding a second referendum is “undemocratic”. The vote was almost three years ago now and no one could have foreseen the deal Britain might get, so it only makes sense to have another vote.