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Income Advisor
Conservative investing. Double-digit income.

December 3, 2024

The market has been just great! The S&P 500 was up 5.7% in November and now has a 26.47% year-to-date return. This adds to the 26% market return last year.

Stocks were riding high, and the election provided a further boost as investors expect a higher level of economic growth going forward. The cyclical stocks have led the recent charge. The best-performing market sectors since the election are finance, consumer discretionary, and energy.

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A High-Priced Call for a Red-Hot Market

The market has been just great! The S&P 500 was up 5.7% in November and now has a 26.47% year-to-date return. This adds to the 26% market return last year.

Stocks were riding high, and the election provided a further boost as investors expect a higher level of economic growth going forward. The cyclical stocks have led the recent charge. The best-performing market sectors since the election are finance, consumer discretionary, and energy.

Good times like this make for great covered call writing. The call premiums are high because investors expect more market upside. The total returns are high if the stock is called. Of course, there can be some opportunity cost when appreciation is sacrificed in a market like this. But these are the times to prime the pump for income.

Sure, things look great now. And they might stay great for a while. But you never know. It’s rarified air when you get high premiums for stocks near the high. There are times when this sort of thing seems like a pipedream. But right now we can guarantee a great income and possibly get a great return by selling calls.

In this update, I highlight a covered call for one of the hot portfolio stocks, recent addition Toll Brothers (TOL). There are other stocks where attractive calls can be sold including Qualcomm (QCOM) and Cheniere Energy Partners (CQP). But the market is still rising, and we will hedge our bets by selling one of the three attractive calls right now. There may be more to follow. Check your email for Trade Alerts in the weeks ahead.

Past Month Activity

November 12th
SOLD EPD Jan 17th $29.00 calls at $1.75 or better

November 19th
Sold Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (ARE) - $104.49

November 26th
Purchased Ally Financial Inc. (ALLY) - $39.42
Enterprise Product Partners L.P. (EPD) – Rating change “BUY” to “HOLD”

December 3rd
Sell TOL Jan 17th $165.00 calls at $9.65 or better

TRADE ALERT

Sell TOL Jan 17th $165.00 calls at $9.65 or better

Expiration date: January 17th
Strike price: $165.00
Call price: $9.65

Toll Brothers, Inc. (TOL)

The homebuilder company stock has been hot on the heels of higher economic growth expectations after the election and a positive October report on new home sales. TOL is currently near the 52-week high, having risen over 50% since early July. The future is bright, but the stock may have gotten ahead of itself in the near term. It doesn’t pay much of a dividend, but the call premiums are fat. Let’s take advantage while the market is riding high.

Here are the three scenarios.

1. The stock closes above the $165.00 strike price at expiration.
Call premium: $9.65
Dividends: $0.23
Appreciation: $16.98 ($165.00 strike price minus $148.02 purchase price)
Total: $26.86 (total return will be 18.1% in 3 months)

2. The stock price closes below but near our $165 strike price.
Call premium: $9.65
Dividends: $0.23
Total: $9.88 (total income of 6.7% in 3 months)

3. The stock price declines.
There will be $9.88 in income to offset the decline. Plus, the original purchase price is about $17 below the strike price.

Portfolio Recap

AGNC Investment Corp. (AGNC)

Yield: 14.9%

This high-yielding mortgage REIT has been slowly coming back after it got whacked with disappointing earnings and a pivot in interest rate expectations. Costs were higher and the net spread shrank from the prior quarter. Although interest rates are likely to trend lower over the next year, rates are still high. The deterioration of the interest rate story is more of a short-term issue. The stock is still on track for improving performance over the next year. AGNC has also come off the recent bottom and moved up 6.4% in November. AGNC also just went ex-dividend last week. BUY

Ally Financial Inc. (ALLY)

Yield: 3.0%

Financial stocks have been the hottest sector since the election. The sector also had a huge move since the summer, but ALLY was held back because of a likely temporary increase in loan defaults. It is the nation’s leading online bank, and it is well positioned in the high-growth area of a hot sector. It may bounce around for a little while, but analysts are expecting earnings growth of 40% in 2025. Other financial stocks have had huge upward moves and ALLY’s may still be ahead. BUY

Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P. (CQP)

Yield: 6.0%

The price of this liquid natural gas exporting partnership doesn’t move much because the security is mostly about the quarterly payout. But it has been on fire since the election, up over 18%. The reason for the price spike is the anticipated improvement in the regulatory environment. The administration is highly encouraging of natural gas exports and Cheniere is the country’s largest exporter. The longer-term situation was always strong as the rest of the world desperately needs U.S. natural gas. Now, the short-term situation is improving. (This security generates a K1 form at tax time). BUY

Constellation Energy Corporation (CEG)

Yield: 0.6%

This nuclear energy provider has returned 124% YTD and 31% in the three months since being added to the portfolio. It’s been a bit of a ride. CEG soared 60% between early September and early October after the company announced a deal with Microsoft (MFST) to provide energy from a reopened Three Mile Island nuclear plant. Then it pulled back over 20% the following month after the Federal Regulatory Commission shot down Amazon’s (AMZN) recently announced nuclear deal with Talen Energy (TLN). But the stock has been trending higher again since the election, which ushers in a far more regulatorily friendly administration and provides renewed hope of more deals. HOLD

Enterprise Product Partners L.P. (EPD)

Yield: 6.1%

Up, up, and away. This notoriously slow-moving stock has been on fire. Midstream energy companies as a group have been hot since the election because of the anticipation of more oil and gas activity and friendlier regulations. But EPD has been blowing away the group. It was up over 22% in November alone. True, Enterprise will benefit from more oil drilling and increasing natural gas exports, but the price spike is still unusual for a stock that was only up 15% YTD prior to November. I think EPD was just waiting for us to write a covered call. We’ll see if it pulls back or continues to break new ground. (This security generates a K1 form at tax time). HOLD

FS KKR Capital Corporation (FSK)

Yield: 12.6%

This Business Development Company (BDC) is a strong beneficiary of the Trump victory. The perception of high economic growth going forward is exactly what FSK needed to make a new high. It has a portfolio of smaller companies that tend to be economically sensitive. The prognosis just got better going forward. FSK is mostly about the huge dividend, but the price has moved up about 10% in November. When a security has a payout and yield of this size it usually pulls back after the quarterly dividend gets priced out of the stock. It held up nicely after the September dividend, but we’ll see about the December one, especially after the recent price increase. It goes ex-dividend on Wednesday. HOLD

NextEra Energy, Inc. (NEE)

Yield: 2.6%

Things were bad for NEE. Then they got very good. Now, things turned rotten again. Of course, the volatility is from the macro environment and not the internal operations of the company. The regulated and clean energy utility is doing great. NextEra expects to deliver 10% average earnings growth over the next several years, and it has a long track record of successfully delivering. The utility also stands to benefit from the increased electricity demand from AI and data centers, which will opt for clean energy whenever possible. The longer-term situation is great, but NEE will get knocked around with the interest rate narrative in the near term. HOLD

Qualcomm Corp. (QCOM)

Yield: 2.1%

This semiconductor giant reported earnings that surpassed expectations with year-over-year revenue growth of 19% and earnings growth of 80%. The strong quarter was fueled by a wave of launches of flagship Chinese smartphones. The new quarter is off to a strong start as well with automotive sales expected to rise 50%. Despite the good news, QCOM has fallen back to near the low point of the recent range. The market wants to see strong U.S. smartphone sales from an AI upgrade cycle. But that doesn’t appear to be happening yet, although analysts think it is a strong possibility next year. BUY

Realty Income Corp. (O)

Yield: 5.5%

The legendary monthly income REIT has a great long-term track record, not only for income but total return as well. But it is a slave to the interest rate narrative in the short term. The stock rises and falls with interest rate expectations. Lately, it’s been falling. But the prognosis is still good. The Fed has begun a rate cutting cycle that will likely last for the next two years. Longer-term rates have likely peaked and there is a good chance they trend lower in the year ahead. HOLD

Toll Brothers, Inc. (TOL)

Yield: 0.6%

The homebuilder company stock has been hot on the heels of higher economic growth expectations after the election and a positive October report on new home sales. TOL is currently near the 52-week high, having risen over 50% since early July. Despite the strong recent performance, the stock should have a good year in 2025. There is still a home shortage and demand will remain strong. Meanwhile, interest rates should trend lower, and the economy is expected to get stronger. BUY

Existing Call Trades

Sell CEG Dec 20th $260.00 calls at $24.00 or better

After pulling back following the FTC decision to block the Amazon (AMZN) deal, CEG got new life after the election. Investors expect a much different regulatory environment from the new administration, which is likely to encourage deals with tech companies and nuclear providers. It’s up about 10% since the election but is still below the strike price.

Sell FSK Dec 20th $20.00 calls at $0.95 or better

We sold the call when this BDC was right near the high. But FSK is getting a further boost from the Trump election. It’s more than a dollar over the strike price now with over a month to go before expiration. We’ll see how things shake out after the dust settles from the election. But FSK could pull back after it goes ex-dividend this Wednesday, and we secured a high income in a short time no matter what.

Sell EPD Jan 17th $29.00 calls at $1.75 or better

We sold the calls near the high, but EPD has taken off to unprecedented levels since. The stock moved above $34 per share. EPD has not been over $30 since 2015. The midstream energy stalwart has been moving ever higher since the election because of anticipated higher growth and a more energy-friendly regulatory regime. The stock will be unlikely to come back to the strike price. But we got a great income.

Current Recommendations

Open RecommendationsTicker SymbolEntry DateEntry PriceRecent PriceBuy at or Under PriceYieldTotal Return
AGNC Investment CorpAGNC9/24/24$10.47$9.66$12.0014.91%-4.30%
Ally Financial Inc.ALLY11/26/24$39.42$39.98$45.003.00%1.42%
Cheniere Energy Prtns.CQP7/23/24$53.04$58.25$60.005.95%12.47%
Constellation Energy Corp.CEG8/27/24$196.14$256.56$270.000.55%31.01%
Enterprise Product Ptnrs.EPD2/27/24$27.61$34.43$30.006.10%31.62%
FS KKR Capital Corp.FSK4/23/24$19.42$22.22$23.0012.60%23.06%
NextEra Energy, Inc.NEE4/25/23$77.50$78.67NA2.62%6.31%
Qualcomm Inc. QCOM5/5/21$134.65$158.53$180.002.14%26.94%
Realty Income Corp.O6/27/23$60.19$57.89NA5.46%4.11%
Toll Brothers, Inc.TOL10/22/24$148.02$165.17$170.000.56%11.59%
Open RecommendationsTicker SymbolInitial ActionEntry DateEntry PriceRecent Price Sell To Price or betterTotal Return
CEG Dec 20 $260 callCEG241220C00260000Sell9/25/24$24.00$9.61$24.0012.24%
FSK Dec 20 $20 callFSK241220C00020000Sell10/25/24$0.95$2.29$0.954.89%
EPD Jan 17 $29 callEPD250117C00029000Sell 11/12/24$1.75$5.70$1.756.34%
TOL Jan 17 $165 callTOL250117C00165000Sell Pending$9.62$9.656.50%
as of close on 12/03/2024
SOLD STOCKS
XTicker Symbol ActionEntry DateEntry PriceSale DateSale PriceTotal Return
Innovative Industrial Props.IIPRCalled6/2/20$87.829/18/20$100.0015.08%
QualcommQCOMCalled6/24/20$89.149/18/20$95.007.30%
U.S. BancorpUSBCalled 7/22/20$36.269/18/20$383.42%
Brookfield Infras. Ptnrs.BIPCalled6/24/20$41.9210/16/20$458.49%
Starbucks Corp.SBUXCalled8/26/20$82.4110/16/20$886.18%
Visa CorporationVCalled 9/22/20$200.5611/20/20$2000.00%
AbbVie Inc.ABBVCalled6/2/20$91.0412/31/20$10012.43%
Enterprise Prod. Prtnrs.EPDCalled6/24/20$18.141/15/21$2015.16%
Altria GroupMOCalled 6/2/20$39.661/15/21$407.31%
U.S. BancorpUSBCalled 11/25/20$44.681/15/21$451.66%
B&G Foods Inc,BGSCalled10/28/20$26.792/19/21$284.42%
Valero Energy Inc.VLOCalled8/26/20$53.703/26/21$6011.73%
Chevron Corp.CVXCalled12/23/20$85.694/1/21$9612.95%
KKR & Co.KKRCalled3/24/21$47.986/18/21$5514.92%
Digital Realty TrustDLRCalled1/27/21$149.177/16/21$1555.50%
NextEra Energy, Inc.NEECalled2/24/21$73.769/17/21$8010.00%
Brookfield Infras. Ptnrs.BIPCalled1/13/21$50.6310/15/21$5511.65%
AGNC Investment CorpAGNCSold1/13/21$15.521/19/22$155.92%
ONEOK, Inc.OKECalled5/26/21$52.512/18/22$6019.62%
KKR & Co.KKRSold8/25/21$64.522/23/22$58-9.73%
Valero Energy Inc.VLOCalled11/17/21$73.452/25/22$8315.53%
U.S BancorpUSBSold3/24/21$53.474/13/22$51-1.59%
Enterprise Product Ptnrs EPDCalled3/17/21$23.214/14/22$2411.25%
FS KKR Capital Corp. FSKCalled10/27/21$22.014/14/22$2313.58%
Xcel Energy Inc. XELCalled10/12/21$63.005/20/22$7012.66%
Innovative Industrial Props.IIPRSold3/23/22$196.317/20/22$93-51.23%
One Liberty PropertiesOLPSold7/28/21$30.378/24/22$25-12.94%
ONEOK, Inc.OKECalled5/25/22$65.141/20/23$652.66%
Xcel Energy, Inc.XELCalled10/26/22$62.571/20/23$654.67%
Realty Income Corp. OCalled9/28/22$60.372/17/23$635.41%
Medical Properties TrustMPWSold1/24/23$13.223/21/23$8-38.00%
Brookfield Infrastructure Cp.BIPCCalled11/9/22$42.437/21/23$458.72%
Star Bulk Carriers Corp.SBLKSold6/1/22$33.308/8/23$18-31.38%
Visa Inc.VCalled12/22/21$217.168/18/23$2359.16%
Global Ship Lease, Inc.GSLSold2/23/22$24.968/29/23$19-13.82%
ONEOK, Inc.OKECalled3/28/23$60.989/15/23$659.72%
Hess CorporationHESCalled6/6/23$132.2510/20/23$15517.87%
Tractor Supply CompanyTSCOSold9/26/23$203.0311/28/23$200-1.02%
Digital Realty TrustDLRCalled7/18/23$117.311/19/24$13517.16%
Intel CorporationINTCCalled7/27/22$40.181/19/24$439.76%
AbbVie Inc.ABBVCalled7/25/23$141.633/15/24$16015.11%
Marathon Petroleum Corp. MPCCalled10/24/23$149.453/28/24$16512.06%
The Williams Companies, Inc.WMBCalled8/24/22$35.585/17/24$357.14%
Main Street Capital Corp.MAINCalled3/26/24$46.409/20/24$4910.91%
Brookfield Infrastructure Cp.BIPCCalled2/27/24$32.649/20/24$3511.00%
American Tower Corp.AMTCalled1/23/24$202.269/20/24$2105.43%
ONEOK, Inc.OKECalled8/27/24$79.5910/18/24$8811.18%
Alexandria Real Estate Eq.ARESold12/19/23$129.5411/19/24$108-12.82%
EXPIRED OPTIONS
SecurityIn/out moneySell DateSell PriceExp. Date$ returnTotal % Return
IIPR Jul 17 $95 callout-of money6/3/20$3.007/17/20$3.003.40%
MO Jul 31 $42 callout-of-money6/17/20$1.607/31/20$1.604.03%
ABBV Sep 18 $100 callout-of-money7/15/20$4.609/18/20$4.605.05%
IIPR Sep 18 $100 callin-the-money7/22/20$5.009/18/20$5.005.69%
QCOM Sep 18 $95 callin-the-money6/24/20$4.309/18/20$4.304.82%
USB Sep 18 $37.50 callin-the-money7/22/20$2.009/18/20$2.005.52%
BIP Oct 16 $45 callin-the-money9/2/20$1.9510/16/20$1.954.65%
SBUX Oct 16 $87.50 callin-the-money10/16/20$3.3010/16/20$3.304.00%
V Nov 20 $200 callin-the-money9/22/20$10.0011/20/20$10.004.99%
ABBV Dec 31 $100 callin-the-money11/18/20$3.3012/31/20$3.303.62%
EPD Jan 15 $20 callin-the-money11/23/20$0.801/15/21$0.804.41%
MO Jan 15 $40 callin-the-money11/25/20$1.901/15/21$1.904.79%
USB Jan 15 $45 callin-the-money11/25/20$2.001/15/21$2.004.48%
BGS Feb 19 $27.50 callin-the-money12/11/20$2.402/19/21$2.408.96%
VLO Mar 26 $60 callin-the-money2/10/21$6.503/26/21$6.5012.10%
CVX Apr 1 $95.50 callin-the-money2/19/21$4.304/1/21$4.305.02%
AGNC Jun 18 $17 callout-of-money4/13/21$0.506/18/21$0.503.21%
KKR Jun 18 $55 callin-the-money4/28/21$3.006/18/21$3.006.25%
USB Jun 16 $57.50 callout-of-money4/28/21$2.806/18/21$2.805.24%
DLR Jul 16 $155 callin-the-money6/16/21$8.007/16/21$8.005.36%
AGNC Aug 20 $17 callout-of-money6/23/21$0.508/20/21$0.503.00%
OKE Aug 20 $57.50 callout-of-money6/23/21$3.508/20/21$3.506.67%
NEE Sep 17 $80 callin-the-money8/11/21$3.509/17/21$3.504.75%
BIP Oct 15 $55 callin-the-money9/1/21$2.0010/15/21$2.003.95%
USB Nov 19 $60 callout-of-money9/24/21$2.3011/19/21$2.304.30%
OKE Nov 26 $65 callout-of-money10/20/21$2.2511/26/21$2.254.28%
KKR Dec 17 $75 callout-of-money10/26/21$3.5012/17/21$3.505.42%
QCOM Jan 21 $185 Callout-of-money11/30/21$9.651/21/22$9.657.17%
OLP Feb 18 $35 Callout-of-money11/19/21$1.502/18/22$1.504.94%
OKE Feb 18 $60 Callin-the-money1/5/22$2.752/18/22$2.755.24%
USB Feb 25 $61 callout-of-money1/13/22$2.502/25/22$2.504.68%
VLO Feb 25 $83 callin-the-money1/18/22$4.202/25/22$4.206.13%
EPD Apr 14th $24 callin-the-money3/2/22$1.254/14/22$1.255.69%
FSK Apr 14th $22.50 callin-the-money3/10/22$0.904/14/22$0.904.09%
XEL May 20th $70 callin-the-money3/30/22$3.005/20/22$3.004.76%
SBLK July 15th $134 callout-of-money6/1/22$1.607/15/22$1.604.80%
OKE Oct 21st $65 callout-of-money8/24/22$3.4010/21/22$3.405.22%
OKE Jan 20th $65 callIn-the-money11/25/22$3.701/20/23$3.705.68%
XEL Jan 20th $65 callin-the-money11/25/22$5.001/20/23$5.007.99%
O Feb 17th $62.50 callin-the-money12/28/22$3.002/17/23$3.004.97%
QCOM Sep 16th $145 callout-of-money7/20/22$11.759/16/22$11.758.73%
V Mar 17th $220 callout-of-money1/24/23$12.003/17/23$12.005.51%
OKE May 19th $65 callout-of-money4/11/23$2.705/19/23$2.704.43%
V Jun 2 $230 callout-of-money4/21/23$10.506/2/23$10.504.82%
BIPC $45 July 21st callin-the-money5/23/23$3.257/21/23$3.257.66%
V $235 Aug 18th callin-the-money7/11/23$9.008/18/23$9.004.13%
GSL $20 Aug 18th callout-of-money7/11/23$1.258/18/23$1.255.00%
OKE $65 Sep 15 callin-the-money9/15/23$3.207/25/23$3.204.92%
INTC $35 Oct 20th callout-of-money9/8/23$3.7810/20/23$3.789.41%
HES $155 Oct 20th callin-the-money9/8/23$9.0010/20/23$9.006.81%
DLR $135 Jan 19th callin-the-money11/22/23$6.001/19/24$6.005.11%
INTC $42.50 Jan 19th callin-the-money11/29/23$3.501/19/24$3.508.71%
ABBV $160 Mar 15th callin-the-money1/10/24$7.003/15/24$7.004.94%
MPC $165 Mar 28th callin-the-money2/14/23$10.003/28/24$10.006.69%
QCOM $200 July 19th callout-of-money6/5/24$12.007/19/24$12.008.91%
MAIN $49.4 Sep 20th Callin-the-money6/27/24$2.009/20/24$2.004.31%
BIPC $35 Sep 20th Callin-the-money7/16/24$3.009/20/24$3.009.19%
AMT Sep 20 $210 callin-the-money7/30/24$15.009/20/24$15.007.42%
OKE Oct 18 $87.50 callin-the-money8/27/24$3.5010/18/24$3.504.40%


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