The fast food industry is one of my favorite areas of the broader financial markets. The business models for the companies in this industry are extremely sound. The products they make have three tremendous factors that make them successful; they are relatively inexpensive, they are very filling, and they have an addictive nature. These factors have driven the profits of this industry for years. The two major players in this industry are McDonald's (MCD) and YUM Brands! (YUM). Both of these stocks have been moving strongly upward since the begging of last year. I would like to analyze both these companies and see how they stack up against each other as well as the broader market.

McDonald's

Company Overview: McDonald's continues to thrive despite an increasingly challenging environment for restaurant operators. Although we doubt the company can duplicate the 1,000 basis points of operating margin expansion it

The first month of 2012 has been a strong one for the markets. This January has seen the S&P 500 rise by 5.4% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 3.99%. In fact this has been the strongest January in 15 years. One interesting aspect of this rally is that some of the worst dogs of 2011 have led the charge upward. I would like to take a look at 4 of these companies and see if this upward trend can be expected to continue for the foreseeable future. The four companies that I have chosen to look at are First Solar (FSLR), Bank of America (BAC), Netflix (NFLX), and Caterpillar (CAT). All of these stocks have been on fire in 2012 with an average return of 41.81%. To understand why the market is rising we need to look at the underlying elements of the rise.

The popular sentiment seems

Today I wanted to focus on three stocks that have continued to push on their 52 week highs. All three of these companies have had a fantastic year. As the United States economy continues to recover, these companies are primed to ride the market even higher.

One scary part about these stocks is the lofty valuation metrics that they currently possess. As practical investors, we need to be able to realize when a stock has the strength to move higher and when it has peaked. A strategy that I like to use with solid companies like these is to buy on the pullbacks, thereby lowering your cost basis. Now I want to take a more in depth look at these three companies.

McDonald's (MCD)

Company Overview: McDonald's generates revenue through company-owned restaurants, franchise royalties, and licensing pacts. Restaurants offer a uniform value-priced menu, with some regional variations. As of

Jim Cramer is fond of saying that there are broken stocks and then there are broken companies. Broken stocks are defined by a falling share price of a company that is fundamentally sound. These are companies that you want to be involved with. You like the underlying strength of the business and have an opportunity to pick up the shares cheaply. Broken companies are fundamentally flawed institutions and have been beaten up by the market for valid reasons.

So now it is time to decide which of these categories Research In Motion (RIMM) falls in. RIMM's share price has been consistently. In the past year it was down $42.63, or just over 75%, and it is down 90.21% from its 5-year high of $148.13. This is clearly a stock that has fallen on hard times. It is trading at a depressed multiple of 5.5. The market cap has dropped all

Sirius (SIRI) satellite radio has been on an interesting trip in 2011. The purpose of this article will to be to focus on the path Sirius has taken and where I think it is headed in 2012. As Sirius is one of the most polarizing stocks out there I hope to stir up some commentary that will help to broaden the discussion.

Brief Summary: Sirius merged with XM Satellite Radio in July 2008, after a lengthy regulatory review. The company provides a subscription-based digital radio service whose broadcast signals originate from orbiting satellites. Its primary means of distributing satellite radios is through the sale and lease of new vehicles. Sirius has agreements to offer its hardware with every major automaker as factory or dealer-equipment.

Fundamentals

• Price to Earnings (TTM – F) = 44.75 – 26.1
• Price to Cash Flow = 21.1
• Debt to Equity = 4.4
• Market Cap = 6.7

With the new year quickly approaching I’ve decided to look at an area that I haven’t spent much time writing about; speculative stock ideas. My own ideas on the topic of speculative investing mirror those of famous hedge fund manager and TV personality Jim Cramer. This theory implies that you should hold no more than 10% of your overall assets in speculative material.

Speculative stocks give your portfolio an amount of excitement. They provide the possibility of outstanding returns while increasing the risk level of your holdings. The make up a valuable section of your portfolio and will keep you interest focused on your stock choices. Speculating on stocks is fun, but we need to remember to keep it within reason.

AeroViornment (AVAV)

Overview: Based in Monrovia, Calif., AeroVironment designs, tests, and manufactures diversified technological products. These include small, unmanned, remote-control military aircraft and rapid battery-charging stations, though the company's

Building for retirement early enables you to increase the chances of your future prosperity. The longer you have to accumulate assets and build your net wealth, the better. While there are many fine stocks out there, I believe there is no such thing as “buy and hold forever”. As investors, we need to constantly reevaluate our portfolios-- semi annually at the very least. Throughout this article I will explain how I am building my portfolio, what sectors I think have long term sustainability, and finally-- how to allocate your assets depending on your position in life.

Hierarchy of Building for Retirement

1. 401(k) (up to employer match)
2. IRA (up to contribution limit)
3. Diversified Brokerage Account

1) If you are lucky enough to have a job in this tough economic environment, then you this first part is for you. Many companies provide their employees with a 401(k) retirement plan. Some employers

The leaders of the European Union have officially underwhelmed the financial markets expectations of a comprehensive fiscal solution. This inadequacy has put downward pressure on the financial markets as well as the euro. They have also pushed Italian bond yields back into unsustainable territory. Italy has 320 billion euros worth of debt to roll over next year. The majority of analysts believe that they will not be able to do this unless their interest rates drop down toward 5%, a far cry from 6-7% rates of today. 26 of the 27 countries agreed to a pact has no legal enforceability this fact is disconcerting. The United Kingdom’s decision to abstain from the pact stops it from becoming part of the EU’s treaty. The eurozone’s refusal to deal with this crisis in a more direct and comprehensive way has persuaded me to become more negative for the first quarter of 2012.

The Main Focus

The EU leaders failed to get a consensus of the 27 member nations in terms of treaty changes to tighten the union’s fiscal coordination. Instead they have decided to form a pact that will tighten the rules on national fiscal policy. So far 23 of the 27 nations have agreed to this understanding. There are rumors that it could be as many as 26 by later in the day Friday. Also, all 17 members using the euro have agreed to this accord. The UK was an outspoken opponent of this idea. This was made absolutely clear by Prime Minister David Cameron when he stated, “We’re not in the euro, and I’m glad. We’re never going to give up the kind of sovereignty that these countries are having to give up.”

The “Pact”

• Unprecedented intervention in national budgets
• Countries that run deficits of more than 3% will be

My Favorite 5 of Fortune’s Top 10 Stocks of 2012

This morning on Squawk Box, Fortune magazine released a list of their top 10 stocks picks for 2012. Fortune took a more value-based approach to stocks this year compared to the growth choices it put forth in 2011. This was a great surprise to me, as I am very familiar with many of these companies and have even written about a few of them. I picked my favorite 5 (in bold, below) of Fortune’s 10 choices.

• Apple (AAPL)
• Microsoft (MSFT)
• Royal Bank of Canada (RY)
• Enbridge Energy Partners (EEP)
• Caterpillar (CAT)
• Lockheed Martin (LMT)
• Intel (INTC)
• Goodyear Tire (GT)
• Halliburton (HAL)
• Johnson Controls (JCI)

Apple Overview: Apple designs consumer electronic devices, including PCs (Mac), tablets (iPad), phones (iPhone), and portable music players (iPod). Its iTunes online store is the largest music distributor in the

The goal of this article is to construct a fictional portfolio comprising 10 diversified dividend stocks. I will diversify the holdings by focusing on unique sectors of the economy. The companies will be selected by looking at underlying fundamental factors as well as upcoming macro events. The ten sectors that I chose to look through are: Healthcare, Telecommunications, Utilities, Tobacco, Technology, Energy, Defense, Financials, Basic Materials, and Fast Food. For each sector I will give my top 3 companies. Of the 10 companies in the portfolio, 5 are dividend champions (25+ years increasing dividends), 2 are dividend contenders (10-24 years increasing dividends), 1 dividend challenger (5-9 years increasing dividends), and 2 companies with less than 5 years increasing. For the 2 companies with less than 5 years I have included links to the companies’ investor relations website so you can see the movement of their payouts over the past few

Global markets surged higher this morning after news broke that the world’s central banks will work together to increase global liquidity. The players in this game are the Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank, the Bank of Japan, Bank of England, Bank of Canada and the Bank of Switzerland. They plan to accomplish this goal by lowering interest rates on dollar swap lines by 50 BPS. This was necessary due to the freeze in lending that was occurring in the European financial system. The news of this action sent the euro skyrocketing against the dollar.

This coordinated action represents a significant commitment to the solvency of the world’s money markets. It is a preemptive strike that will hopefully restore confidence in Europe’s financial system. What worries me is that the central banks felt that things had deteriorated to such a level that this action was necessary. Apparently, these large European

Today I would like to talk about one of my favorite industries: telecoms. With their large dividends and predictable activity of increasing their payouts telecommunications companies look to be a very profitable area for an investor looking for steady income payments. I picked five of the largest players in the industry and have focused on some of their more important fundamentals.

Some key factors I am considering:

Debt to Equity: The debt-to-equity ratio is a leverage ratio indicating the relative proportion of shareholders' equity and debt used to finance a company's assets. It reveals how a company has financed its assets. A low debt-to-equity ratio indicates lower risk because shareholders have claims on a larger portion of the company's assets. I normally look for a number below 60%.

Dividend Yield: The dividend yield is the sum of a company's annual dividends per share divided by the current price per

I know the first thing that will come to mind for many younger investors: "We are young, do we really need to worry about retirement yet?" The answer is an overused phrase, "it is never too early". I understand that this article will fall on many deaf ears as it is not as sexy as the new hot growth stock that can triple your investment in a year. Still, I believe that the general lack of understanding of retirement planning among the younger investing cohort more than warrants the effort.

Some areas of interest that I will be taking a look at are diversification, prudent asset and insurance planning, and the use of IRA's and employer sponsored retirement plans. While one strategy does not fit all retirees, this article will provide some basic guidelines that should apply to everyone.

There are 3 major things that every individual should

Recently there has been a tremendous amount of fear abound due to the significant volatility in the markets. The 10-year Treasury is currently yielding just over 2%. With these facts in mind, many analysts have been recommending high-quality income stocks that reside in defensive industries. One of these areas is the consumer staples sectors.

Consumer staples represent a wide range of industries that manufacture and sell food/beverages, tobacco, prescription drugs and household products. I want to analyze these 5 conglomerates to see if any of them have attractive valuations that encourage investment.

The major financial measurements that I will be looking at:

Debt to Equity: The debt-to-equity ratio is a leverage ratio indicating the relative proportion of shareholders' equity and debt used to finance a company's assets. It reveals how a company has financed its assets. A low debt-to-equity ratio indicates lower risk because shareholders have claims on a

One of the most important aspects of any investment portfolio is the idea of diversification. Simply put, you do not want to have all of your eggs in one basket. Commonly diversification is referred to as one of the only free lunches in the investing discipline. To reach this end I am analyzing 10 companies that represent a wide range of industries and sectors. Eight of these ten stocks are income producing dividend stocks.

The eight dividend producing stocks that I chose all have yields exceeding 3%. Another common thread is solid price-to-owner’s earnings ratios in the range of 15-20. The majority of these companies also have solid histories of paying and increasing their dividends.

It may strike some readers odd that I chose to include a speculative stock in this basket of otherwise stable revenue producing equities. This is an idea that I have borrowed from one of my

The market today is a very scary place to be. The tremendous amount of fear present has boosted the VIX index up into the 40's. This implies that there will continue to be a large amount of volatility over the next thirty days. With the European markets in traction and disappointing economic data leaking out of China, I think it would be advisable to look at some industries that are defensive in nature. The five industries that I chose are the Tobacco, Healthcare, Telecoms, Energy and Utilities.

Some key metrics that I am focusing on:

• Debt to Equity: The debt-to-equity ratio is a leverage ratio indicating the relative proportion of shareholders' equity and debt used to finance a company's assets. It reveals how a company has financed its assets. A low debt-to-equity ratio indicates lower risk because shareholders have claims on a larger portion of the company's assets.
• Dividend

Today, I want to look at the group of companies known as dividend challengers. These companies have been able to increase their dividends for a time frame of anywhere between 5-9 years. For these companies, the stability of dividends is a fantastic asset to their overall values.

The more fear creeps its way into the market; the more I want to look at some solid income producing stocks with strong cash flows. In my previous article on S&P Dividend Champions I explained why I think cash flows are a stronger indication of a dividend issuers' strength than income statements are. These companies also have some of the lowest price-to-owners earnings ratios of any on the list.

Some key metrics that I am focusing on:

• Debt to Equity: The debt-to-equity ratio is a leverage ratio indicating the relative proportion of shareholders' equity and debt used to finance a company's

Yesterday Amazon (AMZN) introduced its much anticipated new tablet, the Kindle Fire. This is Amazon's first foray from e-reader into this new tablet industry. Many analysts that follow Amazon have been calling this tablet the first serious contender to the wildly popular Apple (AAPL) iPad. I will be analyzing the technical aspects as well as the price point implications of these devices.

Some Technical Aspects of the Kindle Fire:

• 7-inch color LCD two-touch display
• Weighs just 14.6 ounces
• It does not come equipped with a camera or microphone
• No 3G connectivity
• Dual-core processor
• Runs on the latest Google Android system
• Supports Adobe (ADBE) Flash

Analysis: While the Fire looks intriguing, it simply does not match the iPad from a technical point of view. It has a smaller, less desirable 7-inch screen compared to the iPad's 10-inch screen. The Fire also does not come equipped with a camera or a

Dividend Champions represent some of the most stable income producing stocks in the market. These companies have been consistently increasing their dividends for over 25 years. The ability of these companies to pay dividends through a period of slow growth is something that I am looking for.

The more research that I do, the more I've come to believe in the importance of the free cash flow metric when analyzing potential dividend investments. This represents the owner's (shareholders) earnings in the company. I am of the opinion that it is more useful than income statements when evaluating a company. This is due to the fact that it is more difficult for a company's management to manipulate than income statements are.

Some key metrics that I am focusing on:

• Debt to Equity: The debt-to-equity ratio is a leverage ratio indicating the relative proportion of shareholders' equity and debt used to