No one knows what will happen when the West retaliates against Syria's Bashar al-Assad for his use of chemical weapons. This is bringing a wave of uncertainty over how Syria will impact markets.
If history is any guide, the markets will plunge when the missiles start flying.
Sooner or later, an activist investor will target a stock you own.
Activist investors have been more active than ever before over the past year and increasingly have gone after some of the most commonly held stocks in Corporate America, including Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL), The Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG), and J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP).
"No company, no matter how large, is beyond the reach of activists," Claudia Allen, a partner and head of the corporate governance practice at Katten Muchin Rosenman, told USA Today. "We are seeing some of the iconic names in Corporate America confronted by activists."
By now most investors realize what this scenario can mean to a company: Stocks can spike (or plunge), and the heads of CEOs may roll.
Just this year, top activist investors have made a lot of waves in the market. A few of the more prominent examples:
Some investors think Wall Street chaos is a sign to bail on stocks, not to load up on the best stocks to buy when things go south…
These are the investors who left the markets last week amid the latest antics: the Goldman Sachs trading glitch; minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve's July meeting, which sent stocks on a rollercoaster ride; and the three-hour Nasdaq shutdown.
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You've heard stories about him before – the savvy stock analyst who gets his hands on the hottest new smartphone before Verizon's first bulk order ships… only to smash it to bits so he can see what's inside.
The idea is simple: If you know which company manufactures a small – but key – component in the product, you can invest in it and make a bundle.
It's true. In technology, the people who manufacture the devices within the devices make a huge amount of money. Their investors do, too… especially when they get in right at the beginning.
That's why this is such a big moment for us.
Right now, I'm looking down the barrel of a device that will be made by the trillions – and in demand in every single sector of the economy. From agriculture, to smartphones, to eyeglasses, and even to diapers.
Imagine a device that in the next two years will become ubiquitous. Meaning that within five feet of your person, at any one moment in time, you'll likely find 20 or 30 of these devices.
That's how big this revolution is. I want you to remember that you heard it here first. I want you to see the numbers, too.
Getting in on this now is like getting in on Intel in 1970, when the $110 billion giant we know today sold its first chip.
When investors think of Latin American stocks to buy, they usually first think of Brazil. Brazil is the largest country in South America and is part of the BRICs group of emerging nations that were once thought to be the world's premier growth opportunities. While many think that Brazil will eventually get its act together […]
Legendary commodity investor Jim Rogers sees some serious problems stemming from the situation in Syria and the end of the Fed's generous flow of money.
In an interview with Reuters on Tuesday, Rogers said "oil and gold will go much, much higher" due to a "market panic."
"I own oil, I own gold, I own things like that and if there is going to be a war, and it sounds like America is desperate to have a war, they're going to go much, much higher," Rogers said. "Stocks are going to go down, some of the markets that I'm sure are already going down, commodities are going to go up. I'm not particularly keen on war, I assure you, but it sounds like they want it."
Rogers continued, "No matter how well the plans are made, strange things happen in war and who knows what unintended consequence will come."
Equities have been hit hard over worries of a war with Syria. The rout started late Monday following comments from U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry that the United States has a moral obligation to act on Syria's chemical weapon attacks. Selling picked up steam Tuesday with the Dow plunging 170 points.
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There are events unfolding right now that show you need to know how to invest in a market correction…
First, this bull market – the most unloved bull market in history, according to Money MorningChief Investment Strategist Keith Fitz-Gerald – has continued for 54 months now. That's a full 11 months longer than the average bull market run since 1953.
Second, the forces keeping this bull market going are almost completely divorced from any economic reality.
Unemployment and underemployment – the sheer number of Americans who've flat out given up looking for work – remains appallingly high, at 14%. Economic growth, limping in at under 2% per year, is anemic.
Yet, the markets have surged for more than four and a half years… hitting as high as 15,628… shattering all records as they go.
Log in to your brokerage account… Call your broker… Request a plan prospectus from your pension administrator… Jump online and review the holdings in your "target retirement" funds, ETFs, variable annuities…
Do whatever it takes to find out – today – how much exposure you have to real estate investment trusts (REITs), and mortgage REITs in particular.
Money Morning Capital Wave Strategist Shah Gilani talked with FOX Business' "Varney & Co." today (Tuesday) about a huge red flag in the housing recovery.
Shah has found that we may be on the cusp of a double-dip in home prices.
Gold is down about 17% in 2013, but here's why gold prices are up today – and will continue their rise…
On Monday, as gold inched toward $1,400 an ounce, bulls claimed the yellow metal was entering a third-quarter bull market – and Tuesday's gold-price gains helped it get there.
Comex gold surged $24.40 to $1,417.50 an ounce in mid-morning trading Tuesday, and spot gold soared $13.50 to $1,419, a three-month high.
The precious metal is now up some $200 an ounce, or 20%, from June's three-year low of $1,179.40. A 20% gain equals a bull market.
Propelling gold prices Tuesday was a move from "risk-off" trades into safe haven assets.
All three major U.S. benchmarks were off sharply Tuesday, piggybacking the swoon that began late Monday, as investors grow increasingly concerned the United States and its allies are organizing military action against Syria.
