Utilities don’t get a lot of love from investors.  They are the stodgiest of market sectors and tend to be purchased by the proverbial “widows and orphans” looking for a safe and reliable quarterly dividend check.  And their sensitivity to interest rates makes them closer in behavior to bonds than more cyclical market sectors such...Read More

I joined CNBC’s Bernie Lo and Susan Li and Traders Audio’s Ben Lichtenstein to weigh in on Michael Lewis’ allegations that the market is rigged. Lewis, the best-selling author of Liar’s Poker and Moneyball released his latest book—Flash Boys—this week and generated a storm of controversy by alleging  high-frequency trading (“HFT”) rigs the markets against...Read More

Watch the latest video at video.foxbusiness.com I joined Varney & Company this morning for the Half Time Report.  First item on the agenda:  Michael Lewis, best-selling author of Liar’s Poker and Moneyball, came out guns blazing in his new book, calling the market a rigged game.  Stuart Varney wants to know: Is Lewis right? I...Read More

Watch the latest video at video.foxbusiness.com I joined Charles Payne, Scott Shellady, Nicole Petallides and Lauren Simonetti today on Varney & Company’s Halftime Report. First item on the agenda: the selloff in biotech shares.  The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB) was flat today after being down heavily the past two trading days.  Biotech has been...Read More

Share buybacks.  If used correctly, there are a tax-efficient way to return cash to shareholders: a virtual dividend without the double taxation aspects that go along with a cash dividend.  And in this era of 3.8% ObamaCare “surtaxes” on investment income, a tax-free virtual dividend is all the more attractive. Alas, share buybacks are often...Read More