Best stocks to buy for the week ending Dec. 13, 2013: With many investors taking a guarded stance ahead of the Dec. 17-18 Federal Open Market Committee meeting, both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 Index slipped 1.7% last week, logging a second weekly decline.
It was the benchmarks' first back-to-back weekly loss in more than two months. The Nasdaq also dipped, ending the week with a 1.5% loss.
However, 2013 has been good to investors overall. Stocks are up some 24.5% year to date, and deals on Wall Street are getting harder to find. Indeed, only 48 stocks in the broad-based S&P are recently in the red, according to Bespoke Investments.
But you can always count on Money Morning to find the best bargains and the biggest opportunities to help you score maximum profit. Here's a recap of the best stocks to buy now that we shared with readers last week:
- Money Morning Defense & Tech Specialist Michael A. Robinson recently found inspiration for a brilliant stock pick while stringing up Christmas lights. Looking at the LED (light-emitting diode) lights he was hanging around his house, he contemplated the state-of-the-art technology they use, for which a massive potential market exists. Even beyond consumer applications, the auto industry, commercial buildings, and even billboards and streetlamps will one day use this technology, growing it into a billion-dollar-plus industry by the end of the decade. So light up your investment portfolio with Robinson's favorite play...
- Robinson also wrote about the blockbuster videogame market last week. Market research firm Gartner reports the global videogame market will hit $93 billion this year, an 18% increase from last year's $79 billion. And plenty of growth still lies ahead. Robinson revealed his top pick for the one gaming stock you have to own for potential big gains with limited downside risk. Robinson also detailed on FOX Business News why he thinks Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN), which shipped more PlayStation 4's on release day than any gaming console in history, has more upside, too.
- "Tax loss harvesting" is a December tradition that involves selling positions that have returned sizable profits and offsetting those gains - which otherwise would have generated hefty capital gains - by selling big losers before the year ends. With all three major benchmarks logging record gains on numerous occasions in 2013, winners are in ample supply. Yet "believe it or not, there are actually plenty of companies that have been cast aside in this year year's record-setting bull run," writes Money Morning Chief Investment Strategist Keith Fitz-Gerald. He shares three last-chance deals that can bring tidings of profit and joy to your portfolio this month.
- "All things tech are going to be good markets for the next five to 10 years," Money Morning's Keith Fitz-Gerald told Stuart Varney of FOX Business' "Varney & Co." last Monday, detailing why tech is one of the most profitable markets to be in today. He has some very interesting predictions for tech behemoths Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) and Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT). Fitz-Gerald also shared his thoughts on Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) with Varney in a separate interview and discussed the Internet giant's recent purchase of concert-streaming startup Evntlive. Find out what he believes is Yahoo's best asset.
- SYSCO Corp. (NYSE: SYY) last week inked a deal to buy U.S. Foods Inc. for some $3.5 billion from its private equity owners. The agreement combines the top two U.S. food distributors and creates a company commanding at least a quarter of the $235 billion North American market. News of the deal sent Sysco shares up as much as 25% to a record high last Monday, and if Sysco can live up to the hype associated with the agreement, shares could continue to climb. Find out all the details of the deal and what it means for Sysco here.
- Speaking of food, snack and soft drink giant PepsiCo. Inc. (NYSE: PEP) was also featured in Money Morning last week. While The Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) might have an edge in the cola wars, Pepsi is the better stock to buy now. Here's why PEP has the profit advantage.
- Precious metal investors have had a tough year. Gold is down some 27% and silver is down 36%. Yet silver bugs are taking advantage of rock-bottom prices, snapping up American Silver Eagle coins at a record-setting rate this year, according to the U.S. Mint. Money Morning's Resource Specialist Peter Krauth points out that silver is currently priced below cost, and he explains why silver prices have a lot higher to go.
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