Personal Finance News

Warren Buffett, chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B), is renowned for his ability to find bargains, but with markets at record highs, cheap stocks are getting tougher and tougher to find.

That's true even within Berkshire Hathaway's own portfolio.

Indeed, several Buffett stocks have gained some froth of their own. Many, however, still look plenty cheap for new money. After looking at where shares trade relative to expected earnings, in comparison to their own historical valuations, and vs. the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index, numerous Berkshire Hathaway holdings still appear downright cheap.

We sorted through all 48 stocks in the Berkshire portfolio to find the biggest bargains left standing after the market's amazing run so far in 2019. Here are the cheapest Warren Buffett stocks right now.

Read more: https://www.kiplinger.com/slideshow/investing/T052-S001-10-cheapest-warren-buffett-stocks/index.html

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Stocks are sitting atop the clouds. All three major indexes have recently surged to surged to all-time highs amid strong signals that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates soon. Standard & Poor's 500-stock index just closed above 3,000 for the first time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average recently made its first finish above the 27,000 mark.

But the question of whether the markets can maintain these lofty heights is something you should seriously consider when making stock picks over the next few weeks.

Consider this: More than three-quarters of S&P 500 companies have issued negative earnings per share (EPS) guidance for the second quarter thanks to trade uncertainty and lingering concerns about global growth. (Those earnings reports will be rolling out over the next couple months.) And while Wall Street is absolutely pricing in an interest-rate cut, no one yet knows for sure whether the Fed will cut, and how deeply it will cut if it does.

So tread carefully in the second half. The key is to find stocks that are not just primed to continue outperforming, but also less vulnerable to slumping along with a broader-market pullback. One way to do this is to seek out stocks with a strong Street sentiment. TipRanks tracks more than 5,200 analysts and compiles their ratings to deliver a picture of just how optimistic (or pessimistic) the pros are about most companies you can invest in.

These are the seven top stock picks for the second half, according to analyst ratings doled out over the past three months.

Read more: https://www.kiplinger.com/slideshow/investing/T052-S001-analysts-7-top-stock-picks-for-2019-second-half/index.html

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The stock market's major indices are at or near all-time highs, and as stocks go up, dividend yields go down. As a result, many of the best dividend stocks to buy right now sport relatively modest yields.

That's OK. Because your focus also should be on dividend safety and payout growth that will enhance your yield over time.

Not every stock has been caught up in 2019's surge to new peaks. GameStop (GME), CenturyLink (CTL), Vodafone (VOD), Pitney Bowes (PBI), L Brands (LB), Deutsche Bank (DB) - all of these well-known companies have either cut or outright suspended their dividends this year. Those moves were a blow to all existing shareholders, but especially those who were relying on the income from these sometimes generous dividend payers to tackle regular expenses in retirement.

How do you ensure the dividend stocks you're invested in won't do the same? One way is to monitor the DIVCON system from exchange-traded fund provider Reality Shares. DIVCON's methodology uses a five-tier rating to provide a snapshot of companies' dividend health, where DIVCON 5 indicates the highest probability for a dividend increase, and DIVCON 1 the highest probability for a dividend cut. And within each of these ratings is a composite score determined by cash flow, earnings, stock buybacks and other factors.

These are 13 of the safest dividend stocks to buy right now. Each stock has not only achieved a DIVCON 5 score, but a composite score within the top 15 of all stocks that DIVCON has evaluated. This makes them the crème de la crème of dividend safety - and more likely to keep the dividend increases coming going forward.

Read more: https://www.kiplinger.com/slideshow/investing/T018-S001-13-super-safe-dividend-stocks-to-buy-now/index.html