I don’t think it’s the only cause of the volatility we’re seeing now, but the global markets are clearly worried about the escalating war of words raging between the United States and North Korea.
It’s getting ugly, it’s got investors worried, and I don’t expect it to subside anytime soon. When the media gets their hooks into a story like this… well, we’re not likely to catch a break in the pace of ‘round-the-clock news.
Unfortunately for most investors, making significant (read: expensive) investing and trading decisions based on emotion and news cycles is one of the fastest, most surefire ways I know of to lose money.
So this makes for a great “Trading 101” lesson, and even better, it’s the perfect opportunity to put on some protective profit plays on a collection of solid buy-and-hold stocks.
Get Protection and Profit Potential with LEAPS
Before the latest threats from Kim Jong Un came in, and in response to North Korea’s ongoing intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) testing and violations of United Nations (UN) resolutions, the UN Security Council unanimously passed a resolution imposing new sanctions on North Korea.
They’re intended to put a serious squeeze on North Korea’s coffers. These are the strongest sanctions ever imposed, targeting what few legitimate exports North Korea has and prohibiting countries from hiring any additional North Korean workers.
As you saw, North Korea's immediate response was, "the U.S. mainland will sink into an unimaginable sea of fire," and there are reports now claiming that it has the capacity to launch a miniature nuclear warhead inside of a missile.
Now, in spite of heated exchanges between U.S. President Donald Trump and the North Koreans, the fact of the matter is that people in the U.S. government and military are doing everything possible to de-escalate and protect.
That means defense companies are going to be seeing a continued increase in their sales and revenue.
So they’re definitely the place to park some money, both to hedge against a volatile market in which plenty of other stocks could sink, and to make some real money while defense stocks buck sentiment to soar.
And according to my Money Calendar, these are the top eight defense stocks trading at or near their 52-week highs…
About the Author
Tom Gentile, options trading specialist for Money Map Press, is widely known as America's No. 1 Pattern Trader thanks to his nearly 30 years of experience spotting lucrative patterns in options trading. Tom has taught over 300,000 traders his option trading secrets in a variety of settings, including seminars and workshops. He's also a bestselling author of eight books and training courses.
Tom, In an effort to reduce your cost of the LEAP, would a spread be advantageous. Especially if using a 2018 or 2019 expiration? For example on LMT using a Jan 2019 310/330 spread outlay is $1,300.
I can understand why these particular stocks are showing so much progress. I am glad have this profitable market information and I plan to act on it
Thanks, Nelson
I want in on this!