Kind of a waiting game for the stock market today as the Dow fell 14 points on holiday light volume. The advance/declines were negative. Summation index still heading lower. The technicals for some of the stock indexes are finally getting oversold on a daily basis. However tomorrows employment report should set the tone for the open on Monday. I have no idea what that will bring. We'll see what happens in Europe tomorrow, have a long weekend and go from there. GE was off 1/4 today on light volume. The weekly charts appear to have rolled over here. That would not bode well for the overall market if it continues. I will have to reassess my idea for the May calls here. Getting oversold on the daily charts. Gold bounced back a little over $15 today and the US dollar was higher as well. The XAU was off 1 3/4. ABX down 5/8, GG fell 1/3 and NEM dropped 3/4. Volume was still pretty good despite the holiday mode of the markets. The gold shares are very oversold and the Gold/XAU ratio is off the charts to the buy side. I will have to consider getting the calls here again but that hasn't worked lately. Mentally I'm feeling OK. I will be going over the charts this weekend and try to come up with some type of game plan for next week. 2 weeks to go in the April option cycle. My trading hasn't been very good lately and that will have to change for the better. It's a long weekend and time for a rest.

Top Selling Warren Buffett Books

Warren Buffett, the billionaire head of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) (BRK-B), is a top investor, trader, and author. These are the top selling Warren Buffett books, some are written by him and some are about him.

by Buffett

The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing. A Book of Practical Counsel (Revised Edition) Warren E. Buffett (Collaborator)

The Essays of Warren Buffett : Lessons for Corporate America Warren E. Buffett (Author)

Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger, Expanded Third Edition Warren E. Buffett (Foreword)

Los ensayos de Warren Buffett (Spanish Edition) Warren E. Buffett (Author)

about Buffett

Trade Like Warren Buffett

The Warren Buffett Way, Second Edition

The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life

The Winning Investment Habits of Warren Buffett & George Soros

The New Buffettology: The Proven Techniques for Investing Successfully in Changing Markets That Have Made Warren Buffett the World's Most Famous Investor

Warren Buffett Speaks: Wit and Wisdom from the World's Greatest Investor

The Tao of Warren Buffett: Warren Buffett's Words of Wisdom: Quotations and Interpretations to Help Guide You to Billionaire Wealth and Enlightened Business Management

By Stockerblog.com

It looks like perhaps we're in store for an extended sell-off as the Dow fell 124 points today on average volume. The advance/declines were 4 to 1 negative. We did finish off of the lows but the action was decidedly negative. Yesterday we were down but did finish well off the lows. However today did not follow through to the upside. The summation index continues lower. We would have to have the stock indexes hold right where they are for the action to remain sideways. Doesn't feel like it. GE was down 1/4 on average volume. The May calls have gotten cheaper and may even get cheaper still. I will probably try this trade when the technicals get oversold. We're almost there. Gold continued lower, falling over $50 on the futures due to the Fed fallout from yesterday. The dollar also gained more ground today. The XAU dropped 6 1/3. ABX down 1 2/3, GG fell 2 3/8 and NEM off 1 7/8. Volume was heavy and it could have been a downside blow-off. Or not. GLD broke the near term support at 158. I will have to rethink my overall scenario for gold and the gold shares going forward. Obviously my thoughts here have been bullish but that has been wrong. Mentally I'm feeling tired, did not sleep enough. The stock indices are perhaps on the verge of an extended decline. That's a guess as usual. Some of the daily charts have pulled back to their 50 day moving averages. It will be telling if they hold or not. Gold is falling apart here and I don't think I'm ready to step in just yet. One trading day left in the week and the employment report coming out on the holiday. Things seem a bit more interesting than usual.

How to Beat CD Yields and Get Income Monthly

The average one-year yield for a bank certificate of deposit is currently 0.34%. Even if you tie up your funds in a five-year CD, the average yield is still only 1.15%. So what is an income investor to do? One very popular alternative is the closed end bond fund. One of the best features of this type of investment is the fact that many of them pay dividends monthly. Another monthly dividend alternative is the real estate investment trust.

Monthly dividend investments can return your capital faster, and can provide faster compounding. The monthly payments can also reduce volatility. Fortunately, there are over 150 different stocks that pay dividends monthly. Actually, even though these investments are often referred to as stocks, they are technically closed end bond funds, real estate investment trusts, oil income trusts, and closed end income stock funds, which pay dividends every month.

These monthly dividend investments can be found at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com, which lists almost 200 different companies that pay dividends monthly, over 50 of which have high yields in excess of 7%.

One example is The MFS Multimarket Income Trust (MMT) pays a yield of 7.1%. It invests in fixed in fixed income investments throughout the world. The stock trades at a 0.8% discount to net asset value. The company, which has been around since 1987, has a management fee of 0.82%.

Gas Natural Inc. (EGAS), previously called Energy, Inc., It is a distributor of natural gas in Montana, Wyoming, North Carolina, and Maine. It was founded in 1909. The stock pays a yield of 4.9% and sports a price to earnings ratio of 14.1.

The Advent Claymore Convertible Securities & Income Fund (AVK) sports a yield of 6.6%, sells at about a 11.4% discount to net asset value, and carries a 0.92% management fee. This closed end fund, founded in 2003, invests approximately 60% of its portfolio in convertible securities and 40% in lower-grade non-convertible income securities.

LMP Real Estate Income Fund Inc. (RIT) is a way of investing in real estate and receive monthly income. It is an exchange traded fund that invests in real estate related companies including real estate investment trusts. It carries a yield of 7.9%, and has paid dividends since 2002. It is trading at a 14.9% discount to net asset value. The management fee is 1.2%.

Pengrowth Energy Trust (PGH) is a Canadian oil royalty income trust that yields 7.5%. The company was founded in 1988. The company explores, develops, and produces oil and natural gas reserves in western Canada.

Realty Income Corp. (O), one of the few stocks with a single letter stock ticker symbol, yields 5.1%. This real estate investment trust which specializes in commercial retail real estate, has been around since 1969. The stock trades at 18.2 times forward earnings.

When looking for monthly dividend investments investors should avoid investments with high management fees, limited liquidity, ones that trade at a premium to net asset value, and the ones using excessive leverage. The municipal bond closed end funds may trigger the Alternative Minimum Tax; check with your accountant about this possibility.

A list of over a couple hundred monthly dividend stocks, including many that have yields of 6% or more, is available at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com. Keep in mind that very high yields may not be sustainable.

Disclosure: Author did not own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com

A downer for the markets today as the Dow fell 65 points on slightly better volume than yesterday. The advance/declines were about 2 to 1 negative. The Fed beige book was a mover today as we sold off on the expectation that the easing is done. Well rates are at zero, so the easing has been done for a while. But the markets need excuses to move and that was todays. We were off more than 100, so a comeback was made. The summation index is still trending down. I expect the rest of the week to be quiet but I thought that yesterday as well. GE fell a touch on light volume. The technicals have rolled over here and I'm still looking for an entry point for the May calls. The game plan is to own the calls before the earnings report on expiration Friday. We'll see. Gold got hammered today after the Fed minutes. The precious metal was down $7 on the futures but lost another $25 in the aftermarket. The US dollar in contrast had a very strong day. This doesn't bode well for gold in the near term. The XAU fell 5 1/2. ABX off 1 1/4, GG shed 2 1/2 and NEM dropped 1 3/4. Volume was good to the downside. I had to dump the ABX April calls for a 30% loss. What had been a profitable trade turned into a loss rather quickly. However I was slow to get out as well. I'm still interested in the May gold share calls but I'm going to have to see how todays negative action plays itself out. Mentally I'm feeling OK, slept well enough. Although I'm still looking for higher prices here for the stock indices there is a possibility that we simply move sideways for a time. The month of April sometimes plays out like that. The technicals for the stock indexes are either overbought or mid-range. I'm still a believer for the GE May call trade for now. The recent ABX trade loss could have been avoided with better timing and tactics but that is always the case. The entry there was lazy and the exit wasn't quick enough. That is a recipe for failure. I'll have to regroup and try to do better the next time. If GLD breaks through 158, then I think the time for being long gold will have to wait. So I'll keep an eye on that. The Gold/XAU ratio has remained in the strong buy zone for so long that it is beginning to seem irrelevant. I'll probably stay on the sidelines for the rest of this week and go from there.

The Dow started off the shortened holiday week with a gain of 52 points on light volume. The advance/declines were about 3 to 1 positive. No news to speak of today. The technicals are still overbought for the stock indexes. However I'm still looking for higher prices going forward. I suppose we'll simply wait for the employment report on Friday although the markets are closed that day. Could be interesting. GE was off a touch on light volume. I'm waiting on the May calls there to get to a price that I'm willing to pay. Gold was up around $7 on the futures as the US dollar was lower. The XAU gained 3 1/2. ABX up 3/4, GG rose a buck and NEM added 7/8. Light volume here. My ABX calls are still in the black but the option premium is not moving as much as I would like or expect. Perhaps this is simply a case of it being a holiday week and the major players have found other ways to occupy their time. That's a guess as usual. The technicals have turned to the upside for the gold shares and that's a positive going forward. I'd still like to try the May gold share calls if the opportunity presents itself. I'm holding the April ABX calls for now but may simply dump them this week. Mentally I'm feeling OK, slept well enough. Perhaps todays market action will turn the summation index back to the upside. The positive beginning of the month money flows should stave off any major decline this week but you never know. We've got the Fed beige book tomorrow but the last time we got this, it was a non event. The Gold/XAU ratio is still in the buy zone but it has been for weeks. I'll be watching how the ABX calls move and take it from there.

Stocks Going Ex Dividend the Second Week of April 2012

Here is our latest update on the stock trading technique called 'Buying Dividends'. This is the process of buying stocks before the ex dividend date and selling the stock shortly after the ex date at about the same price, yet still being entitled to the dividend. This technique generally works only in bull markets. In flat or choppy markets, you have to be extremely careful, and may need to avoid the technique during those times.

In order to be entitled to the dividend, you have to buy the stock before the ex-dividend date, and you can't sell the stock until after the ex date. The actual dividend may not be paid for another few weeks. WallStreetNewsNetwork.com has compiled a downloadable and sortable list of the stocks going ex dividend during the next week or two. The list contains many dividend paying companies, all with market caps over $500 million, and yields over 2%. Here are a few examples showing the stock symbol, the market capitalization, the ex-dividend date and the yield.

Abbott Laboratories (ABT) ex-div date: 4/11/2012 yield: 3.4% market cap: $95.0B

Shaw Communications Inc. (SJR) ex-div date: 4/11/2012 yield: 4.6% market cap: $8.8B

Consolidated Communications Holdings Inc (CNSL) ex-div date: 4/11/2012 yield: 7.9% market cap: $584.3M

SAIC, Inc. (SAI) ex-div date: 4/11/2012 yield: 3.6% market cap: $4.5B

Saul Centers Inc (BFS) ex-div date: 4/12/2012 yield: 3.6% market cap: $775.4M

ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (ARR) ex-div date: 4/12/2012 yield: 17.9% market cap: $1.2B

Harsco Corporation (HSC) ex-div date: 4/12/2012 yield: 3.6% market cap: $1.9B

The additional ex-dividend stocks can be found at wsnn.com. (If you have been to the website before, and the latest link doesn't show up, you may have to empty your cache.) If you like dividend stocks, you should check out the high yield utility stocks and the Monthly Dividend Stocks at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com or WSNN.com.

Dividend definitions:

Declaration date: the day that the company declares that there is going to be an upcoming dividend.

Ex-dividend date: the day on which if you buy the stock, you would not be entitled to that particular dividend; or the first day on which a shareholder can sell the shares and still be entitled to the dividend.

Monthly Dividend Stock List
Record date: the day when you must be on the company's books as a shareholder to receive the dividend. The ex-dividend date is normally set for stocks two business days before the record date.

Payment date: the day on which the dividend payment is actually made, which can be as long at two months after the ex date.

Don't forget to reconfirm the ex-dividend date with the company before implementing this technique.

Disclosure: Author did not own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com