Ocean’s Twitter
My feelings are hurt today, dear reader.
There was a massive Twitter Inc. (Nasdaq: TWTR) hack yesterday. All the big names were invited: Kanye West, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Barack Obama, Jeff Bezos — it was a veritable who’s who of Big Money movers and shakers.
It was the Twitter scam of the century … and Great Stuff wasn’t invited!
Apparently, our account wasn’t considered important enough to hack. And here, the internet always tells me that stock market memes are the currency of the future!
Lesson learned: Don’t believe everything you read on the internet.
I can’t believe it’s 2020 — where practically everything that could go wrong has gone wrong — and we still have to remind people to stay skeptical online.
In case you’ve been hiding under a rock lately (and who’d blame you?), let me fill you in on the Twitter heist of the century.
Someone or a group of someones compromised Twitter employee credentials and accessed internal tools and systems. That someone then hijacked verified accounts to post a message that anyone who sent in a bitcoin payment would receive double the amount back. (Nigerian princes have to stay crafty these days.)
Here’s an example from Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) Co-Founder Bill Gates:
“Bill” has given out free cash on Facebook for years. I guess it was just a matter of time before he switched to Twitter. (Not really.)
By the way, if you are a Twitter investor, don’t let this news shake you. If Facebook can come back from Cambridge Analytica, this little bitcoin stunt will be nothing but a blip for Twitter.
Back to the point at hand. No one is giving out free money … except maybe Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. And none of us are important enough to get him to pony up for our investment accounts.
But Great Stuff is free! Doesn’t that count?
I hear you and thank you! Heck, even reader Tony D. once told us that Great Stuff “might be the best free newsletter out there.”
But we don’t give away free cash. Well … I mean … it’s like free cash when you invest in our free Great Stuff Picks. We’ve had a few triple-digit winners this year. Just saying.
Anyway, if you want to make real money, you have to spend real money. And that doesn’t mean sending bitcoin payments to random people on Twitter.
The real potential for your investment dollar lies in energy technology — specifically, a crucial piece of tech developed by one tiny, pioneering American company. And it’s set to tear through the electric market in the most lucrative story of 2020.
We’re jumping right into the thick of Reader Feedback today — with your questions on cash reserves, resource investing and e-commerce throwbacks.
Yes, sometimes we like to put down the memes and oddball emails to get back to the financial realm.
Oh, who am I kidding — we love everything you all hit us with! Thank you for the, err, runway modeling offers, Olena. You’re too kind … seriously. And thank you for the music rec, Arthur! I ain’t been nowhere either, man.
Now, if you were wondering where to go with your money management questions, look no further…
Mind on My Money
Just want to say that I love this newsletter — I look forward to it at the end of every soul crushing COVID-19 day.
I am stockpiling cash because I just don’t know what to do with it. I also invest in my Meryl Lynch account every time I hit $30K in savings just to keep my cash reserve low. But once COVID-19 hit, I stopped and now I am at $50K in my savings and thoroughly scared about what to do it with.
Do I put it into Meryl Lynch’s hands who pat themselves on the back for riding the general market trends and watch it disappear because I am “young enough to weather these storms” as I am with the rest of my portfolio … or do I keep it in savings until the playing field levels out again?
Thanks,
— Vinny
Thanks for writing in! You won’t believe your luck: We also have a world-renowned expert in all things money management, tax tips, wealth protection and stock investing right at our emailing fingertips here at Banyan Hill.
His name is Ted Bauman, editor of The Bauman Letter. (Didn’t see that coming, did ya?)
I reached out to Ted for a thorough take. From someone who answers these questions day in and day out, here’s Ted:
I fully understand why you would want to keep yourself in cash under these conditions. That’s what I tell my Bauman Letter readers all the time. It’s not just about avoiding downside either. You want to have dry powder to be able to take advantage of value opportunities when the time comes.
For me, the ideal approach is to park your cash in stable, highly liquid short term securities like short-term Treasury ETFs, municipal bond ETFs and currency ETFs that track highly stable and countercyclical currencies like the yen and the Swiss franc. All three of those asset categories are backed by something that isn’t going to turn down on you.
Of course, you can’t expect any upside in a bull market scenario, especially when Treasurys are also in high demand, but you won’t lose any value to inflation (such as it is). And if the market turns bear, they’ll retain their value.
We have exactly such a portfolio in The Bauman Letter, called the Bear Market Survival portfolio.
— Ted Bauman
Click here to learn more about Ted’s insights in The Bauman Letter!
Consultio / Consultius
I owned and operated a successful management consulting firm in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, employing over 20 people with several earning over 100K. Both my staff and I enjoyed the right to work wherever we pleased — so long as we could be reached by each other and our clients when needed. Our clients had offices all over the US and Central America.
Needless to say physical presence proved to be more common the farther south the client was based. No client ever complained about our (for the time) unorthodox management style. I enjoyed the lower overhead costs.
Why it has taken the mainstream so long to catch on is still a mystery to me.
— Bruce H.
Bruce, thanks for writing in!
You may not have guessed it, but every single issue you’ve ever read of Great Stuff has been an intracontinental effort, from both ends of this great nation. By George, you’d almost think we’d have spent most of our Earthly years comfortably communicating online…
From the bedroom-office veterans to the merely work-from-home curious — let’s make this happen! Pssh, throw the office real estate market through a loop. Go mobile. Burn your fax machine. Long live remote work anarchy!
Adagio in G Miner
Could you recommend two or three silver mining stocks?
— Tom B.
Thanks for your memo, Tom!
Mining stocks are making a comeback as safe-haven investments — especially silver because of its industrial uses, like in alloy and solder. However, I expect the industrial-use driver to die off as the economic recovery slows.
Still, silver is a safe-haven metal, and its valuation relative to gold has some room to grow. That said if you want a true safe-haven bet, gold is the way to go. Silver if you want to bet on recovery, gold for safe-haven. That’s just my two silver cents. (Also, as a newsletter publisher, I’m not supposed to give individual stock recommendations here. Sorry that the man is keeping us down, Tom!)
But, if you’re looking for a way in on gold’s roaring bull market, we have just the ticket. Instead of buying gold bullion or coins, one set of stocks can offer much more profit potential — up to nine times over! Click here to learn more.
No Falling Leaves
From the Southern Skies
K
Pacific Edge. and 5G
IKE.
and finally
Banking and digital Heartland Bank,
Smartpay..
So far I’ve bet the market..humbly. Yours
— Nan :)-
This is my favorite E.E. Cummings tribute by far, Nan. Though if you smell burnt toast, please reach out. I mean, not to us — phone a medic. Thanks for writing! (I hope you’re doing OK!)
Overstocked, Overshot and Overextended
Greetings,
What is the story on Overstock.com? The stock spiked and is it a sell or a buy?
Music: Bardcore, for a medieval take on heavy metal.
Thanks for the Great Stuff.
— Anita
Thanks for the great email, Anita!
Because of you, I’ve been listening to Bardcore all week. My family is annoyed. My pets are annoyed. My neighbors are annoyed. It’s wonderful! Thank you! (Seriously, I have a new addiction now, and it’s your fault.)
Moving on … Overstock.com Inc. (Nasdaq: OSTK)? Now there’s a name I’ve not heard in a long time. Other than a Davidson analyst doubling his price target to $66, there’s not much going on from the e-commerce has-been — even with its teetering glances at blockchain and cryptocurrency platforms.
For anyone else out of the loop on Overstock.com … there’s not much of a loop to be in on other than an enormous rally from $2.65 on March 16 to now trade over $45. A 1,700%-plus surge from this janky Amazon-Target-Wayfair chimera?!
If you’re in already and somehow predicted (or jumped on) this rally, my gut tells you to take the illustrious gain with pride, pull a Keyser Söze and scram. If not, you might find better bargains, well, literally anywhere but Overstock.com.
A Little Game Called Go Insane
We have went collectively insane.
— Lee S.
^ What he said.
Great Stuff: A Healthy Dose of Insanity
We hope you’re staying well out there, Great Ones!
It may be difficult to keep your chin up with all the negative Nancies and crazy Karens out there, but never let that sour your mouth on what we’re about here at Great Stuff: bringing you the must-know info and ways to invest more smarter-er.
We have all the opportunities you need right here!
To the Bear Market Survival portfolio to keep you (and your portfolio) strong…
To the hottest energy play surging through the tech market…
We’ll keep bringing you the latest and greatest.
And you can always check us out on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Until next time, be Great!
Joseph Hargett
Editor, Great Stuff