Since last month’s issue, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has gained around 800 points. Employment continues to improve, along with retail sales and housing starts.
Despite the unstable political environment, investors seem to be trending more positive about markets and the economy. That sentiment was reflected by investors and advisors at the World Money Show held earlier this month in Orlando. My two workshops were well-attended, and the crowd was optimistic, but cautious.
As well, I met with several of our contributors, who all told me they were bullish in the intermediate- and long-term. The bullish sentiment has extended to the majority of advisors, as you’ll see in our Market Barometer. Also, our contributors—as shown in our Market Views section—leaned more bullish this month.
Further reflecting market optimism, our Spotlight Stock is a company that is joining with 40 other companies who have announced spin-offs so far this year. A conglomerate that has a very successful record of strategic acquisitions, the company is now ready to realign its vast array of products and services into two companies, each focused on specific market areas. My Feature article explores one of those divisions, which is immersed in a rapidly-growing tech niche.
And speaking of Growth, our selections this month include retail, fitness, technology, transportation and food ideas. In Healthcare and Biotechs, you’ll find companies in the medical devices and vaccine sectors.
A more optimistic investment climate often brings interest in small-cap stocks, and our contributors found a variety of companies for your review this month, including businesses in the pharmaceutical, food, semiconductor, electronic manufacturing and financial industries. We also offer a couple of larger financial stocks in the next section.
Our Technology picks include hardware, software and communications companies. And while Energy is still cheap, so are the stocks in that sector. Here, you’ll find a solar and oil services company. Value stocks took a back seat to growth last year, but are now seeing momentum. Our contributors offer a telecom, brand marketing and an exchange stock that are all trading at discounted levels.
In Funds & ETFs, our selections include growth, international, mid-cap, dividend and natural gas choices.
While at the Money Show, I had the chance to meet with some prospective contributors to our newsletters, and I’m pleased to announce that Vahan Jangigian, editor of Bottom Line’s Money Masters newsletter, has agreed to come on board as a regular contributor. I’ll be revealing some additional advisors soon. As well, several of our contributors have recently published books, and I will begin reviewing those in my blog in the very near future.
