Google is shutting down Google Reader. This is going to have a significant impact on how we all read our favorite blogs online. You only have a few weeks to find another RSS reader. What are you going to do when Google Reader shuts down? Google Reader is shutting its doors on July 1st, 2013.

To ensure that you continue getting the latest blog posts from The Dividend Pig and other great personal finance blogs, you will need to find another RSS Reader. Luckily, I’ve got some great recommendations for you.

Subscribe to The Dividend Pig RSS Feed!

What To Do Without Google Reader?

I love reading my favorite personal finance blogs and other great websites like the Dividend Ninja, Money Q&A, and others, and I don’t want to miss anything when Google Reader shuts down. So, what do you do now?

Find A New RSS Reader Fast!

Here are a few good alternative RSS Readers that you should consider trying out. I’ve heard some great things and just started using Feedly to follow the blogs I want to keep up with.

• Feedly – Thought to be the best alternative to Google Reader because of its speed, minimalist style, and the fact that it is FREE!! There is talk of them working on a “Pro” version that could keep them from suffering the same fate as the Google Reader.
• NewsBlur – Costs $2 per month. In the past, they used to offer a free account and may decide to do that again in the future. But, for not, $2 per month isn’t too bad.
• Netvibes – This RSS reader service has been around for a long time, but they have been focused on expensive social analytics. Although, they recently relaunched free accounts too.

Subscribe to The Dividend Pig RSS Feed!

(more…)

Post a comment »

Stock share buybacks or share repurchase plans have become all the rage on Wall Street lately with the stock market’s excellent run so far this year. In fact, in the first quarter of 2013, companies in the United States have bought back over $105 billion worth of their stock. This has edged out the payment of dividends which only accounted for a little over $70 billion in January through March of this year.

Recently, Wal-Mart announced that it will repurchase $15 billion of its shares in a repurchasing plan. This was just the latest announcement in a string recently. Others announcing repurchase plans or increasing existing plans have been the likes of Sirius XM, CVS, Monsanto, Priceline, Las Vegas Sands, and many others.

But, are share buybacks a good deal for investors? There are a few benefits of the programs to be sure such as raising the earnings per share by withdrawing outstanding shares from the market and returning earnings to shareholders. But, there are also some underlying principles of the share buybacks program that can leave investors with a bad taste in their mouths if they are not careful.

Here are a few things to consider about share buybacks…

Lack Of Ideas For The Money

One of the biggest drawbacks of a share repurchase plan or stock share buybacks is that the company does not have an idea to put their money to good use. Share buybacks are the easy option for the company when they cannot find another creative idea to put the cash to work. Why not spend that money expanding their business? Why not make an acquisition or open new stores? Why not use that money to grow through research and development? Why not use this capital to replace aging property, plant, and equipment? These are what shareholders should be screaming for the companies they own to be doing with excess cash on the balance sheet.

Companies Do Not Have To Honor Share Buybacks

Companies can announce share buybacks all they want. Like the saying goes, it’s the action that truly matters. And, far too many companies announce a large share buyback program only to not finish it. There is nothing binding to a company after they announce a share repurchase plan. It is all voluntary. Sometimes companies wise up and realize that their share buybacks are not in the best interest of shareholders. Other times they run into financial difficulties and decide not to go through with the repurchase plan. Either way it is not set in stone. The announcement of a repurchase plan should not be the driving force for investors to purchase shares in a company. At least with a failed share buyback plan the company can sneak off in the middle of the night and just not finish the repurchasing. Typically there isn’t much fanfare or gnashing of teeth when that occurs. But, that would not be the case if the money was used for a dividend instead and ultimately had to be curtailed.
(more…)

Post a comment »

This April and May, the TSX and DOW have hit their 2013 highs. For those of us who are long-term investors it’s really a moot point – it’s simply part of the business cycle. But for many investors the investing question comes to mind, Sell in May and Go Away?

A phenomenal article by Louis Basenese, chief investment strategist at Wall Street Daily, tells you exactly why you should not implement the strategy. In, Sell in May? Not According to These Three Charts, Louis clearly shows why you should ignore the short-term swings and remain a long term buy-and-hold investor.

For the opposite viewpoint, be sure to check out this BNN video with Jeffrey Hirsch, whose father originally coined the infamous Sell in May and go Away investment adage.  There is an article below the video, in which Hirsch’s firm begins to prepare by selling off their winners, and placing stop losses on other positions, as early as March.

While Sell in May and Go Away may sound like a sound investment strategy, it doesn’t always ring true every year. Sell in May creates a problem for investors who sell positions, and then go on to watch markets soar to new highs. Investors can miss out on both the dividend income and future potential capital appreciation.

One way around this is to use stop-losses to take profits on stocks that have hit new highs. But again many investors have been stopped-out on positions, only to watch their positions continue to rise. Generally winners continue to win for an extended period of time. Another strategy is to hold cash after the Christmas Rally which begins in late November to December, then deploy cash in the summer and fall if and when stocks decline. Over the last few years, August to September have been great months to purchase stocks after sudden but short market declines.

Reader’s what’s your take? Concerned about markets hitting five year highs? Selling in May or adding stop losses to your positions?

---

Weekly Reading Links

It’s that time of the week again. Check out these other great reads from around the web!

Dividend Investing – Telecom, Real Estate and Energy  @ Dividend Ninja

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Stock Analysis  @ Dividend Growth Stock Investing

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Stock Analysis  @ Dividend Monk

2013 Dividend Achievers List Updates  @ Dividend Growth Investor

Is Microsoft a Utility?  @ The Passive Income Earner

Sell In May and Go Away?  @ The Dividend Guy

How to Create a Disciplined Investment Plan  @ A Wealth of Common Sense

Life is Full of Choices. But These Money Decisions Are Easy!  @ Money Cone

Have a nice weekend everyone!

Post a comment »

April is always an interesting month on the markets, the preceding month to the infamous investing adage “Sell in May and go away”. Already we are seeing pressure on world stock prices, and global recessionary indicators. Markets have had a good run-up since June 2012. Both the DOW and TSX advanced to their 2013 highs. Both markets were due for a correction at some point. On top of that, Gold had also been hitting its highs, just shy of $1,800 USD per troy ounce. Many gold-bugs wondered whether gold would even be able to reach the 2K mark before a major pullback.

The trigger was Monday, April 15th, with the massive selloff of Gold Bullion. A troy ounce of gold closed on Monday at $1,361 USD, off -24% from its October 2012 highs. The TSX Composite Index was down -321 points (- 2.7%) for that day. Both Dividend Mantra and I took advantage of the panic selling that day, which pummelled the materials and gold sectors. He purchased shares in Australian mining giant BHP Billiton (good call Mantra). I purchased shares in the Canadian companies, Teck Resources and Barrick Gold (see link below), the latter being more of a risk play. Regardless, there are times when you make a decision – do you buy when everyone else is selling?

Check out these other great reads from around the web!

Dividend Investing for Beginners @ Dividend Mantra (A must read!)

An Investment in Exxon Mobil Stock @ Dividend Growth Investing

Dividend Stock Analysis: Canadian Utilities @ Passive Income Earner

Kinder Morgan Rewards… @ Dividend Growth Investor

High Yield Stocks Raising Dividends @ Dividend Ladder

5 Stocks Hitting New Highs @ Canadian MoneySaver

Recent Buy: Teck Resources and Barrick Gold @ Dividend Ninja

5 Dividend Stocks Trading at Appealing Valuations @ Dividend Monk

What Stocks Have Paid Dividends for Generations? @ My Own Advisor

Have a nice weekend everyone!  

Post a comment »

The following is a guest post by Ben Carlson.

Most people assume that the stock market goes in a straight line, either up or down.  But actually there have been a long periods of time where stocks have basically gone nowhere.  This happened from the late 1930s to the early 1950s and again from 1966 to 1980.  The last 13 years is also one of those periods.

The S&P 500 topped out at a level of 1,527 in March of 2000.  After a volatile period of ups and downs the index peaked at 1,565 in October of 2007.  Now after another series of ups and downs we have hit another new high of just over 1,590.

Even though we have been through a series of gains and losses over that time frame the index level is little changed.  If you stopped paying attention to the markets altogether 13 years ago and decided to check back in today it would seem as though not much has happened.  Anyone who has lived through this volatile investment period knows that is not the case.

From the 1,527 level to the 1,590 mark of today you are looking at about 4.13% in total price appreciation or 0.31% per year.  Not a great return on your capital.  In fact, it’s pretty pitiful considering that T-Bills or a money market fund would have outperformed over that period with much less risk.

But that assumes you only book gains on price appreciation.  There is another component of your stock returns that has as much or more to do with your results.  That would be the dividend yield.  Over the same March 2000 to April 2013 time frame the S&P 500 actually returned 33.83% when you include reinvested dividends.  That equates to 2.27% per year.  Still not a great return but much better than 0.21% return you get without dividends.
(more…)

Post a comment »