Our Capital Wave Strategist, Shah Gilani, is known for making big, bold predictions. Facebook's meteoric rise after a mediocre IPO, the Dow's rise to 21,000 (he's since predicted 30,000, and we're sure it'll get there), the "Retail Ice Age," and the "Amazon-ization" of America are just a few of his most recent.
Now, admittedly, big predictions are a dime a dozen on Wall Street - and cheaper than that in the financial media.
But there's a really big difference here...
Shah's predictions tend to come true. And they tend to make his readers a ton of money when they do.
For instance, his Zenith Trading Circle readers had a chance to rake in 995% on a single trade because his research showed the grocery chain Kroger was going to tank, and that's just what it did. During the month of May, his recommendations returned 98% on average.
That's the kind of predictive power we want to harness for our Members, so I sat down with Shah briefly to talk about where he sees two of his biggest, most important calls going this year and beyond.
The phrase "no ceiling" is one you'll want to remember as we get started here...
These Have Money-Doubling (and Tripling) Potential
Greg Madison: Thanks for taking the time to talk to us about these picks, Shah.
Shah Gilani: Of course! Anytime.
GM: Now, one of your most well-known calls here at Money Morning and on FOX Business has been your long-term, bullish outlook on Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT). You were recommending the stock when it was in the $25 to $30 range. As of yesterday morning, it's on the verge of $75.00 per share. What was it about "Mr. Softy" that you liked so much?
SG: This goes back a few years. I had a conversation with [FOX Business Network's "Varney & Co." host] Stuart Varney about the stock. I wasn't even expecting a question about it, but before the interview, he asked me what I thought, and I said it was going to double. So, when we were on the air, he asked me about it for his audience.
I was down on former CEO Steve Ballmer; I took a negative view. I think he wasted a lot of time and talent and that he had to get out of the way. The company was just waiting to start a growth phase. So, when they announced Satya Nadella would be in charge, I felt that the company would not have any "legacy issues" with Ballmer.
With Nadella, I thought there were engineers excited to do more and that a management shakeup would be a catalyst. With their movement toward cloud computing, I loved the fact that they wanted to go in on the service. Sure, they were late compared to their competitors. But they didn't tiptoe. They went all in, even though Amazon was so far ahead.
Building up their ecosystem was a big deal. This is what the new direction had become. With the kind of cash flow that this firm generates, they can buy anything that they want to get into and command some of the market share. I was happy to see all those changes come.
GM: What's the "buy and hold" case for owning it today? Where do you see Microsoft heading next?
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SG: This stock is also a great one to own because of its cash generation and dividend. I do not see a ceiling for this company at this point.
Microsoft is going back into a growth phase. If they continue to increase their share of the cloud business, and all indications - like the June layoffs - are that that's what they're doing, they will continue to do well. But it's not just cloud. I own a Surface Pro, and I like what they are doing. Their hardware is greatly improving, and they'll be a strong player in that space. I also see a lot of upside in their enterprise software business. Those three areas are exciting.
GM: Your Zenith Trading Circle readers just had the opportunity to make 995% by playing Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) puts. Not only did the grocer have a bad earnings report, but it was also hurt by the news that Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) was set to purchase Whole Foods Market Inc. (Nasdaq: WFM).
But just a few weeks before both announcements, Barron's had said that the grocery business was "Amazon-proof," which we now know is wrong. You're an expert on retail. Is there any company that is "Amazon-proof?"
SG: There are a few, for example, auto repair companies. But as far as the auto parts retail business, no there are not. The parts business is not Amazon-proof.
People didn't expect what happened with Amazon and Whole Foods, but they should have expected it. I did. Amazon was already in the meal-kit business, for example, and they were testing store concepts. Amazon has the luxury of testing as an intermediary. If they like the products they are selling, and they are successful, they use economies of scale to do it themselves and create their own brands. It's a pretty incredible model; bad news for traditional grocers, but good news for folks looking to trade that downward slide.
They have an enormous competitive advantage, and it's impacting so much of the retail industry. Some of the biggest paying trades in my trading research service have come from playing the downward spiral of America's mightiest retailers.
I call it the "Amazon-ization" of the U.S. economy.
I do think there will be a long-term issue at some point. There are going to be naysayers who are going to talk about antitrust issues. They will be compared to Standard Oil and AT&T as they encroach on everyone's space. I don't know when that would happen, but they're going to get bigger and bigger. Other companies are not going to be able to compete. Until then, Amazon is a great buy at these levels.
GM: Thanks, Shah. Our Members reading this can learn more about your Zenith Trading Circle by clicking here. The average gains were running at 44% per day in June (including partial closeouts), and there are lots more juicy targets in Shah's crosshairs.
Note: Paid-up readers of the Money Map Dispatch will be getting even more from this interview, like Shah's simple solution for fixing our "too big to fail" banks and stopping the banksters once and for all. You can learn how to get the Dispatch right here.