By Carla Pasternak
---
Inflation “Is Going to be Serious”
The Perfect Asset Class If Inflation Strikes--Or Not
Protection from One of the Market’s Biggest Worries
---
--- Advertisement ---
Cabot’s Best Stocks Across All Sectors
If you want to diversify your portfolio and profit from using several different investing philosophies to pick winning stocks, Cabot Stock of the Month is right for you. And the price is so low, you’ll recover it from your very first profitable investment. Get started today!
---
Editor’s Note: Today we have a piece by Carla Pasternak, of StreetAuthority’s Dividend Opportunities, detailing how you can invest--and profit--despite growing worries over inflation.
As an income investor, should you be worried about inflation?
You bet.
On an annual basis, prices were up 2.7% in March. That’s the highest mark since December 2009.
Cotton prices are up more than 170% in about a year. Oil had increased by 40% through mid-April. Copper, corn and wheat prices registered double-digit gains in the first three months of 2011 alone.
In the past six months Kraft (KFT), Kellogg’s (K) and McDonald’s (MCD) have all put through price increases to consumers. Nike (NKE) and Whirlpool (WHR) have done the same.
Walmart (WMT) CEO Bill Simon has said he thinks inflation “is going to be serious.” He warned that recent transportation-related cost hikes would be passed through to shoppers.
That means the amount of income you’re earning may not keep pace with how much prices are rising--especially if you are retired and living on a fixed income.
If you own long-term bonds, such as 30-year U.S. Treasuries, you could see their prices fall dramatically as yields rise to keep pace with inflationary expectations.
This is what I’ve been telling my High-Yield Investing subscribers. I’ve also been telling them to look into what I think is the perfect solution if inflation rises ... and a good place to keep your money, even if it doesn’t.
--- StreetAuthority Advertisement ---
Do We Have Another +4,000% Wealth-Builder Here?
Our most popular analyst recommended a “stodgy” income stock that has surged +4,000% just since 2000--adding another +49% last year! If you think that’s impressive, wait till you see this video. We have another stock that paid 19% in dividends last year, and threw off another +34% in capital gains.
Click here to watch this video now.
---
That solution is an asset class known as bank loan funds. These funds buy pieces of loans made by major banks such as JP Morgan (JPM) to large corporate borrowers.
The loans are issued at floating rates, which reset every 60 to 90 days. So if inflation increases and interest rates rise, you’ll benefit from earning higher rates. And even at current low interest rates, I’m finding securities, like the Eaton Vance Floating Rate Fund (EFR), that invest in these floating rate bank loans and offer steady yields of around 6%.
But what if inflation isn’t a problem and interest rates don’t rise dramatically to battle it?
Worst case, you would be paid to wait, reaping high yields of 6% for your patience. At best, you would receive both high yields and capital gains as inflation expectations ramp up.
Are there risks to this strategy? Yes. A double-dip recession triggered, say, by oil prices rising to $150 per barrel, could lead to higher default rates and a decline in the price of bank loan funds. Still, this may be a risk worth taking while you can still find funds trading at a discount to their historical valuations.
Those valuations are creeping up as investors catch on to this sector. In just the first two months of this year, bank loan funds attracted $10 billion, according to Morningstar. That puts them on track to far surpass the record $16 billion of inflows for all of 2010. If inflation does accelerate, and rates increase, senior loan funds should only see more popularity.
If you invest now, you might be able to earn a nice capital gain in addition to a high yield and added safety from inflation.
Good Investing!
Carla Pasternak
Dividend Opportunities
P.S. My colleague Daniel Moser recently put together a presentation that details more about using income securities to beat the market ... and inflation. You can click here to watch.
And remember that for just a little longer investors watching the entire presentation will have an opportunity to subscribe to High-Yield Investing at a discounted rate.