Apple
Why These Top Global Stocks Are So Attractive
By George Leong for Daily Gains Letter | Jul 2, 2014
One of the most common traits I find in successful companies is that they often have a multinational presence. That’s not to say that domestic-only companies are not successful, but for real growth, many of the top S&P 500 companies are global, based on my stock analysis.
Whether it’s in the industrial, technology, financial, aerospace, or healthcare sectors, the commonality is the global exposure that many of the world’s top companies all exhibit.
In fact, the failure to capitalize on foreign markets can really limit a company’s growth, according to my stock analysis.
There are only two avenues to drive revenues: A company can increase its price to the consumer, but this doesn’t always come across as being prudent. Or a second and more viable way is to expand outside to foreign markets, as my stock analysis suggests.
Companies can expand nationwide or internationally like many of the world’s multinational companies. Just take a look around and see how many American companies are found outside of our borders and spread across Europe, Asia, and Latin America. China is a perfect example of where companies go to seek added growth, as my stock analysis indicates.
Technology companies like Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ/MSFT), Google Inc. (NASDAQ/GOOG), Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ/FB), and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ/AAPL), to name just a few, all have a major global presence.
An example of moving to the global sphere too late is Target Corporation (NYSE/TGT), with its first foreign foray into Canada. It has been a bust so far, given that rival Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE/WMT) has been in Canada since 1994, being the market leader in the country and … Read More
My Top Four Internet Stocks for Years to Come
By George Leong for Daily Gains Letter | Jun 23, 2014
Since its debut in the early 90s, the Internet sector has become probably the top discovery and investment opportunity since the computer and microchip.
My four stock pillars of the Internet sector, which I feel will be the top stocks going forward for years to come, include The Priceline Group Inc. (NASDAQ/PCLN), Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ/FB), Google Inc. (NASDAQ/GOOG), and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ/AMZN). All four stocks are tops in their respective areas and offer an investment opportunity at this time.
I have talked about Google, Facebook, and Priceline as an investment opportunity in the past, so today I’m going to talk about the investment opportunity that Amazon.com has to offer. This stock has made millionaires out of many investors in the stock market. Think back to May 16, 1997, when Amazon.com closed at $20.75. I kind of wish I had taken the investment opportunity then and put my $40,000 in Amazon.com stock instead of my SUV. That money would now be worth around $600,000, with the stock now trading above $330.00 a share.
Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com
But there is always an investment opportunity surfacing in the stock market. You just need to be able to recognize it. This is what makes investing and trading such a dynamic and intriguing process.
As far as Amazon.com, despite the superlative rise in the price, I still feel the stock has plenty of upside potential going forward as an investment opportunity; albeit, as in the case of my other three top Internet stocks, the easy money has already been made.
Now, while Amazon.com looks expensive, trading at 103 times (X) its estimated 2015 earnings … Read More
The Secret Mobile Stocks
By George Leong for Daily Gains Letter | Jun 12, 2014
Many of you may think AT&T Inc. (NYSE/T) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE/VZ) are some of the best ways in the stock market to play the mobile sector, but there are other choices; it’s just that you need to leave our friendly borders.
The biggest growth area for mobile is found in the emerging markets. I’m talking about such countries as Brazil, India and, the biggest one of them all, China.
China has the most dominant mobile market in the world. There are over one billion subscribers and counting as the rural population comes on board. Think about it this way: there are more people on the country’s mobile network than in the U.S. and the European Union combined! What a massive market. And I think our readers should get a taste of it.
Now, you may think there are dozens of mobile providers—so how will you choose? But the truth is that the Chinese government decides on how many major operators are allowed. The country currently has three major mobile providers with access to the massive market potential.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ/AAPL) has significant potential in the country, especially with its recent alliance with China Mobile Limited (NYSE/CHL). China Mobile is the biggest mobile phone operator in China, with about 785 million subscribers as of April 30. That’s a lot of business.
With a market cap of around $199 billion, the company is massive. By comparison, AT&T is the largest mobile provider in the U.S. with a market cap of $181 billion, and Verizon has a market cap of $204 billion.
Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com
China Mobile has been ranked … Read More
Why Apple Stock Looks More Intriguing Now
By George Leong for Daily Gains Letter | Jun 9, 2014
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ/AAPL) gave investors some optimism after introducing its so-called “Android” killer—its “iOS8” operating system—at the Worldwide Developers Conference.
The upcoming update to Apple’s operating system incorporates some great changes, including advanced healthcare, music, and home monitoring applications.
Yet while there’s definitely some excitement from Apple users towards the new operating system, the reality is that it will likely still not be enough to knock Android off its perch as the top mobile operating system in the world, powering about 85% of all phones worldwide, based on my stock analysis.
Apple is clearly working on improving its platform and is expected to introduce a bigger screen on its “iPhones,” but my stock analysis indicates that the problem is that the cost of the phones remains prohibitive to buyers, especially in the emerging markets in Asia and Latin America.
As my stock analysis suggests, the company is still so set on protecting its margins that its iPhones remain relatively expensive versus Android and other phones. Just go to your local mobile dealer, and you will see that while the iPhone has come down in price, the associated contract continues to be quite expensive versus that of other smartphones.
I experienced this firsthand after I just switched from the iPhone to the Samsung “Galaxy.” I bought the “S4,” which is a slightly older model versus the new “S5,” but it’s an excellent phone. It uses the Android operating system, which I actually like more than “iOS7.” The only problem is that my “iPad” refuses to acknowledge my S4 as a hotspot via the Bluetooth connection, which is not surprising, given how … Read More
This Single Stock as Lucrative as a Tech ETF?
By George Leong for Daily Gains Letter | May 23, 2014
If you hold Google Inc. (NASDAQ/GOOG) in your portfolio, you own one of the best companies in the world and a top investment opportunity.
The company just surpassed Apple Inc. (NASDAQ/AAPL) to become the most valuable brand worldwide with an overall value of $158.84 billion, compared to the $147.9 billion assigned to Apple in the Millward Brown’s 2014 BrandZ rankings. (Source: “BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands,” Millward Brown web site, last accessed May 22, 2014.)
Apple’s decline in brand perception was attributed to the lack of new products by the “iPhone” and “iPad” maker, something that has previously hurt Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ/MSFT) over the past decade. Apple has been modifying its products, but there has not been an earth-shattering new product for quite some time. If Apple wants to avoid the same fate that trumped Microsoft when it only had its MS operating system, then it needs to act.
Meanwhile, Google continues to show investors and Wall Street why it deserves to be the top technology play and investment opportunity in the stock market, bar none.
Google recently split its shares on a two-for-one basis to make the stock more available as a mass market investment opportunity. The stock still trades for more than $530.00 a share, but trust me when I say that Google has excellent long-term potential as an above-average investment opportunity.
Unlike Apple at this time, Google is highly innovative and is thinking outside the box. No longer simply looking at itself as a search engine, Google has been working on numerous advanced technologies in both hardware and software, which makes it a better investment … Read More
Three Stocks to Watch as Activist Investors Unlock Value
By Sasha Cekerevac for Daily Gains Letter | Feb 5, 2014
One of the most hotly debated topics these days is the role of activist investors. Some people have the impression that an activist investor is not a positive factor when it comes to long-term investing. I disagree, as many times, the investment strategy recommended by these activist investors ends up benefiting all shareholders.
Probably the most well-known, and certainly the wealthiest, activist investor is Carl Icahn. One of the things I like most about Icahn’s investment strategy is that he is willing to buy when others are selling and be vocal about his intentions.
A perfect example of his long-term investing ideology was when he stepped in to buy shares of Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ/NFLX). If you remember a few years ago, Netflix shares were trading around $60.00 and many analysts were recommending an investment strategy to stay away from Netflix. Icahn saw an opportunity to accumulate a solid company for long-term investing purposes and has held on, making a return well in excess of 500%.
I would never recommend someone simply follow a successful activist investor like Icahn; rather, I would investigate any investment strategy he advocates to see if it matches my own risk profile. For long-term investing purposes, if I was a shareholder and he became active, I would certainly be happy.
Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com
His recent investment strategy in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ/AAPL) makes perfect sense. The recent sell-off, I believe, is an excellent opportunity for investors to take a look at Apple as a possible long-term investing option, since the current valuation is only 10.9X its forward price-to-earnings (P/E). That is an extremely attractive valuation for … Read More
Why the Tech Sector’s at the Top of My 2014 Growth List
By George Leong for Daily Gains Letter | Jan 27, 2014
The technology sector was my top growth area in 2013 and it has been since the reversal out of the recession. The euphoric buying in social media and Internet services stocks in 2013 obviously shows the immense upside price appreciation potential that lies in the technology sector.
The NASDAQ recently broke above 4,200 to a 13-year high and is within 20% of its all-time high of just over 5,100, which it achieved during those crazy and irrational times in late 1999 and early 2000. But we all know what happened thereafter, when the Internet bubble burst.
Now, while we have seen some big-league moves in some of the mobile and social media stocks, the gains are still nowhere near the ridiculous moves made some 14 years ago in the technology sector. I recall some speculators becoming millionaires via buying technology penny stocks that really had no financial history, but these companies were able to cater to the greed in investors to propel the stock market higher.
I doubt these times will surface again, but we will likely see glimpses when stocks rocket higher for no apparent reason except momentum.
Following the Internet bubble, I thought we may not see 5,000 on the NASDAQ for years. But that time has arrived, as the NASDAQ may be set to reach this former pinnacle sometime in early 2015, as long as the investment climate remains positive for stocks.
Take a look at the long-term chart of the NASDAQ below. Notice the record peak in March 2000, when stocks spiked higher.
Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com
Since the technology sector imploded and the NASDAQ bottomed … Read More
As Apple Moves into China, Market Underestimates the Icon’s Next Potential Growth
By Sasha Cekerevac for Daily Gains Letter | Jan 17, 2014
When it comes to big-cap stocks, very few are larger than Apple Inc. (NASDAQ/AAPL).
But there’s one question many investors may be asking: is there an investment opportunity in Apple’s stock at current levels? I believe there may be, even after a strong move up since hitting a 52-week low in April at $385.10.
You have to be careful when looking at big-cap stocks and whether or not there is a strong investment opportunity going forward. Just because a stock has moved up over the past year, that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily overvalued.
There is one key question that you must ask yourself as an investor: can the big-cap stocks you’re considering continue growing their corporate earnings?
At the end of the day, an investment opportunity will only pay off if corporate earnings are generated in the future. I believe that Apple is still a great value at current valuations because the company will continue to drive corporate earnings higher.
Naturally, as with all big-cap stocks, the law of large numbers comes into play. Obviously, a company that is small can grow at a much faster rate than big-cap stocks such as Apple, which has a market cap of just over $500 billion.
However, don’t discount the ability of Apple to utilize its skills at innovation and marketing in generating corporate earnings. Apple, too, sees an investment opportunity in diversifying its customer base and introducing new products.
The big news recently has been the move by Apple into China.
Apple has signed a deal with China Mobile Limited (NYSE/CHL), which has approximately 760 million subscribers. Following the announcement of the … Read More
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