The United States market has shown robust performance, rising 3.4% over the last week and an impressive 35% over the past year, with earnings expected to grow by 16% annually. In such a thriving environment, growth companies with high insider ownership can be particularly appealing as they often indicate strong confidence from those closest to the business.
The United States market has shown robust performance, rising 3.4% over the last week and an impressive 35% over the past year, with earnings expected to grow by 16% annually. In such a thriving environment, growth companies with high insider ownership can be particularly appealing as they often indicate strong confidence from those closest to the business.
(RTTNews) - European stocks closed on a mixed note on Thursday with investors mostly making cautious moves, digesting corporate earnings updates and regional economic data, while continuing to focus on geopolitical news.
(RTTNews) - European stocks closed on a mixed note on Thursday with investors mostly making cautious moves, digesting corporate earnings updates and regional economic data, while continuing to focus on geopolitical news.
May arabica coffee (KCK26 ) today is down -7.30 (-2.40%), and May ICE robusta coffee (RMK26 ) is down -38 (-1.08%). Coffee prices are under pressure today from a stronger dollar. The dollar index ($DXY ) recovered from a 6-week low today and moved higher, sparking long liquidation in coffee...
May arabica coffee (KCK26 ) today is down -7.30 (-2.40%), and May ICE robusta coffee (RMK26 ) is down -38 (-1.08%). Coffee prices are under pressure today from a stronger dollar. The dollar index ($DXY ) recovered from a 6-week low today and moved higher, sparking long liquidation in coffee...
MicroStockHub/iStock via Getty Images In 2016, I made a life-changing decision: I took a sabbatical, put my family in a small RV, and we drove all the way to Costa Rica. Upon my return in 2017, I officially quit my job as a private banker at National Bank and started working full-time on my baby: Dividend Stocks Rock. I also decided to manage my pension account held at the National Bank. I’ve buil...
MicroStockHub/iStock via Getty Images In 2016, I made a life-changing decision: I took a sabbatical, put my family in a small RV, and we drove all the way to Costa Rica. Upon my return in 2017, I officially quit my job as a private banker at National Bank and started working full-time on my baby: Dividend Stocks Rock. I also decided to manage my pension account held at the National Bank. I’ve built and managed this portfolio publicly since 2017 to create and track a real-life case study. In August 2017, I received $108,760.02 in a locked retirement account. Locked means I can’t add capital to the account, and growth is only generated through capital gains and dividends. I don’t report this portfolio’s results to brag about my returns or to suggest you follow my lead. My purpose has been solely to share with our members how I manage my portfolio with all the good and the bad that inevitably takes place each month. I hope you have learned and will continue to learn from my experiences managing this portfolio. Q1 2026 In Review I’ve been fully invested in stocks since 2003, and the market never ceases to amaze me. When you ask me what I think will happen “this year” or what will be the best sector to invest in, I always answer the same way: Your guess is as good as mine You know why? Because we never know what will happen next! Once again, the stock market confirms that I am right. There is no point in trying to figure out what will happen over the next 12 months. But first, the results! Performance in Review Let’s start with the numbers as of April 6 th , 2026 (before the bell): Original amount invested in September 2017 (no additional capital added): $108,760.02. Current portfolio value: $321,406.88 Dividends paid: $5,329.86 (TTM) Average yield: 1.66% 2025 performance: +7.34% VFV.TO= +12.18%, XIU.TO = +28.88% Dividend growth: +1.5% Total return since inception (Sep 2017- November 2025): +195.52% Annualized return (101 months): 13.74% Vanguard S&P 500 Index ETF ( VFV:...
Built on tar swamps and two tortuous decades in the making, LACMA’s latest addition used twice as much metal as the Eiffel Tower. How did America supersize revered architect Peter Zumthor? Driving down the palm-lined strip of Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, a striking new crossing heaves into view. A ribbon of glass leaps over the road, sandwiched between two gigantic planes of concrete. As you...
Built on tar swamps and two tortuous decades in the making, LACMA’s latest addition used twice as much metal as the Eiffel Tower. How did America supersize revered architect Peter Zumthor? Driving down the palm-lined strip of Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, a striking new crossing heaves into view. A ribbon of glass leaps over the road, sandwiched between two gigantic planes of concrete. As you get closer, the bridge swells out in sinuous arcs, swooping back on itself to inscribe an amoebic, shape-shifting blob, spreading out like an inkblot. From some angles it has a retro-futuristic air, recalling a Jetsons airport terminal, or one of California’s “Googie” style gas stations . From others, the curving roof looks like a great big tongue, flaring out to give the neighbours a raspy lick. This concrete colossus is home to the new David Geffen Galleries of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (Lacma), a $724m mothership designed by the fabled Swiss architect Peter Zumthor . It is less a museum than a mighty piece of infrastructure, a 110,000 sq ft warehouse-cum-bridge, jacked up nine metres in the air and looming above the street with a brooding, muscular heft. Two decades in the making, and subject to tortuous years of delays, controversies and cost escalations – building on a tar swamp in a seismic zone is not straightforward – it finally opens this weekend. The Fitzcarraldian feat is the brainchild of Michael Govan, who became Lacma’s director in 2006 with an ambition to build a museum like no other, using the promise of a dazzling structure to lure donations of artworks and dollars ($125m came from LA county, the rest was fundraised). Govan cut his teeth at the Guggenheim, and on Frank Gehry’s Bilbao outpost, where he clearly got a taste for the transformative fairy dust of signature architecture. He later moved to Dia:Beacon, in New York’s Hudson Valley, where he commissioned Zumthor for a project that was ultimately unrealised . At Lacma, he was determined to ...
Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a 10-day ceasefire starting on Thursday, US President Donald Trump announced, in a move that could ease some of the tension straining Washington’s temporary truce with Tehran. Trump said the ceasefire, which comes into effect at 5pm EST, followed what he described as “excellent conversations” with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Jo...
Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a 10-day ceasefire starting on Thursday, US President Donald Trump announced, in a move that could ease some of the tension straining Washington’s temporary truce with Tehran. Trump said the ceasefire, which comes into effect at 5pm EST, followed what he described as “excellent conversations” with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun. “These two Leaders have agreed that in order to achieve PEACE between their Countries,...
A Chinese ship has tested a new device capable of slicing through submarine data cables thousands of meters beneath the ocean surface. That demonstration may exacerbate security concerns over a spate of suspected sabotage incidents targeting undersea communications and power cables from the Baltic Sea to the Pacific Ocean. The trial took place at a depth of 11,483 feet (3,500 meters) during a deep...
A Chinese ship has tested a new device capable of slicing through submarine data cables thousands of meters beneath the ocean surface. That demonstration may exacerbate security concerns over a spate of suspected sabotage incidents targeting undersea communications and power cables from the Baltic Sea to the Pacific Ocean. The trial took place at a depth of 11,483 feet (3,500 meters) during a deep-sea science expedition involving the Chinese research ship named Haiyang Dizhi 2, according to the South China Morning Post . That ship is equipped with a 150-ton crane, a 10-kilometer fiber optic winch, and a helicopter landing platform. It has shown the capability to deploy deep-sea remotely operated vehicles in previous missions . The South China Morning Post cited a report in the China Science Daily, an official, Chinese-language news publication run by the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The latter claimed that “the sea trial has bridged the ‘last mile’ from deep-sea equipment development to engineering application.” Read full article Comments
Guido Mieth/DigitalVision via Getty Images This year is shaping up to be one of the more exciting years in post-pandemic investing. While 2025 saw tariff madness and trade wars, 2026 appears to be hosting a more kinetic type of conflict. Most recently, President Trump has ordered a naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most significant acts of economic disruption in modern naval histo...
Guido Mieth/DigitalVision via Getty Images This year is shaping up to be one of the more exciting years in post-pandemic investing. While 2025 saw tariff madness and trade wars, 2026 appears to be hosting a more kinetic type of conflict. Most recently, President Trump has ordered a naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most significant acts of economic disruption in modern naval history. Trump’s daring use of warfare to reshape the global energy economy has generated volatility far away from where the missiles are landing. Some folks are undoubtedly looking at current events with a desire to sit this one out. Things are looking a little spicier than my taste buds have a liking for, and more of my assets are moving towards cash and cash alternatives. Among the traditional options are high-yield savings accounts and money market mutual funds, both of which offer unique forms of principal protection while also offering a relatively high yield. However, what these two options lack is liquidity. A high-yield savings account doesn’t generally offer the ability to invest, and a money market mutual fund trades just like that—a mutual fund. Another option one may consider is an exchange-traded fund, specifically the iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF ( SGOV ). This article will follow up on my prior coverage and explain why SGOV remains a top cash alternative. Review Of Prior Coverage I have covered SGOV twice on Seeking Alpha, most recently in November 2024 . This article included a relatively comprehensive overview of the portfolio, expense structure, and distribution setup of the fund. SGOV is an exchange traded fund sponsored by BlackRock ( BLK ), one of the world’s largest asset managers. The fund is part of the iShares core lineup, which is designed to track indices and charge rock bottom expense ratio. Across the lineup, each fund charges a competitive fee. In the case of SGOV, this fee is just nine basis points, cheaper than most money market funds. SGO...
vaeenma/iStock via Getty Images Introduction & Investment Thesis The software complex came again under pressure last week after Anthropic launched its own Managed Agents platform while revealing staggering ARR growth of $30B , overtaking OpenAI and positioning itself as an absolute beast of an AI beneficiary, while markets still wait for the long-expected AI inflection in the cloud software indust...
vaeenma/iStock via Getty Images Introduction & Investment Thesis The software complex came again under pressure last week after Anthropic launched its own Managed Agents platform while revealing staggering ARR growth of $30B , overtaking OpenAI and positioning itself as an absolute beast of an AI beneficiary, while markets still wait for the long-expected AI inflection in the cloud software industry. While the complex has staged a spectacular rally after Tech-Software Sector ETF IGV ( IGV ) created a lower low (for 2026) on April 10th, with the ETF rising 12% in just three trading sessions and outperforming the bounce in S&P 500 ( SPY ), SMH ( SMH ), and QQQ ( QQQ ), I think the reversal in sentiment is likely triggered by the severe undervaluation in the software segment at the moment. At a fundamental level, we still need a couple/few quarters of fundamental evidence of accelerating RPO (Remaining Performance Obligations), strengthening NRR (Net Retention Rate), and stable margins across companies to help investors find footing on how to value the sector and the companies within it in the Agentic AI era. In the meantime, I will discuss my three SaaS positions in the portfolio that include ServiceNow (NYSE: NOW ), Palantir (NASDAQ:PLTR), and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT ) and how I’m thinking about my capital allocation strategies amid the volatility and growing AI disruption risks. SaaS Ran Out Of Gas Last Week; It’s Picking Up Steam Again In my previous post on the software industry , I had explained how Agentic AI (with Anthropic Claude Cowork and OpenAI Frontier) is rewriting the software tech stack, whereby the classic system of records is pushed down the stack and the incremental AI value created in software goes towards agents. In this world, the classic UI/UX layer of software companies gets abstracted away as AI agents autonomously execute workflows without a human being ever logging into the software tool, thus disrupting the predictable “seat-based” pricing m...
Police enhanced security in front of the Chinese Embassy in Japan on March 24, 2026. Photo: VCG The Chinese Embassy in Japan has accused Tokyo of neglecting repeated terrorist threats against its diplomatic mission after an armed Japanese soldier breached the diplomatic compound. At a press conference on Thursday, Chinese Chargé d'Affaires Shi Yong revealed that the embassy received two separate t...
Police enhanced security in front of the Chinese Embassy in Japan on March 24, 2026. Photo: VCG The Chinese Embassy in Japan has accused Tokyo of neglecting repeated terrorist threats against its diplomatic mission after an armed Japanese soldier breached the diplomatic compound. At a press conference on Thursday, Chinese Chargé d'Affaires Shi Yong revealed that the embassy received two separate threats from individuals claiming ties to Japan’s Self-Defense Forces (SDF) surrounding a physical intrusion late last month.
A higher paycheck did not ease the pressure. Orimar, calling from New Brunswick, Canada, told "The Ramsey Show" she and her husband were bringing in about 9,700 Canadian dollars ($7,050) a month, including rental income, but still felt overwhelmed after...
A higher paycheck did not ease the pressure. Orimar, calling from New Brunswick, Canada, told "The Ramsey Show" she and her husband were bringing in about 9,700 Canadian dollars ($7,050) a month, including rental income, but still felt overwhelmed after...
⚽ Europa League updates; kick-off 8pm BST ( first leg: 1-1 ) ⚽ Aston Villa v Bologna – updates | Live scores | Mail Scott Six months ago this happened … … which has got to augur well for Nottingham Forest (even if it didn’t serve as much of a promising harbinger for poor old Sean Dyche). Throw in the fact that Porto have played 24 competitive matches in England and have yet to win one (D3 L21) and...
⚽ Europa League updates; kick-off 8pm BST ( first leg: 1-1 ) ⚽ Aston Villa v Bologna – updates | Live scores | Mail Scott Six months ago this happened … … which has got to augur well for Nottingham Forest (even if it didn’t serve as much of a promising harbinger for poor old Sean Dyche). Throw in the fact that Porto have played 24 competitive matches in England and have yet to win one (D3 L21) and all signs point to YES for Vítor Pereira and his charges. The winner of this tie gets to play the victor of Aston Villa and Bologna, and the prospect of an ATVLand rammy for a place in the final is almost too much excitement for a brain to contain. So come on Forest, giddy up Villa, let’s make this happen. Kick-off is at 8pm BST, with the scores level at 1-1 after the fiasco-tinged first leg. It’s on! Continue reading...