Global X Education ETF (EDUT)

An Investment in Knowledge pays the best interest. 

Today's ETF is about Education. The ETF debuted on July 1st  2020 on the heals of surge in online Education.  With Schools no where near close to opening full time in near future, this play to bring in good appreciation. 

For those inquisitive about the underlying holdings, the link below has the details. 

Underlying Holdings for EDUT

VictoryShares Protect America ETF (SHLD)

 

Today's Pick VictoryShares Protect America ETF (SHLD)

The index identifies the top 50 eligible companies ranked by total outstanding contracts relating to the protection of U.S. national security interests, and projected revenue amounts.

The Department of Defense Budget for 2020 stands at 721.5 Billion. Defense being a substantial portion of US GDP, it's tough to go wrong with Victory Shares today. 

Add your thoughts and numbers to the discussion and let others chime in. 

Todays Pick : [FXB] - Currency Shares British Pound Sterling ETF

The 'BREXIT Fears' have become true and Prime Minister May is moving ahead. She is expecting to trigger Article 50 in March 2017 which will be the trigger to have Britain roll of the European Union Ship by March 2019. Expect a roller coaster in March of next year, but with the currency at 31 year low today, it is a good buy today in an otherwise un-exciting bull market, of Course, only if you have dough to spare and invest. 

Today's Pick : Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC)

Wells Fargo has been hit pretty hard with the recent scandal related to Opening of New Accounts. Whether they were following a Industry Wide practise or not, time will tell. The stock, though, has certainly been impacted big time and is trading at it's 2 year low, at $45 a share.

Given the history of Wells Fargo and a strong backing from none other than Mr. Warren Buffet which has a huge stake in the bank, this should certainly turn out to be an underdog in years to come. The price targets and market consensus are all pointing higher to about $53+ a share.

This would certainly be a good 'Buy' in a market where there are very little buying opportunities.

Don't hold your breath, Go For It!

Retirement's 4% Conundrum

At some point or the other we have all read about the 4% rule comes to haunt all of us. Often quoted by Financial advisers, this is the percentage that your adviser suggests to begin withdrawing from your nest egg as soon as you enter your golden years and sayonara you 'nine' to 'five' gig. 

Personally, i have never favored a 'One Size Fits All' Strategy and have had second thoughts on the rationalization of this off quoted rule. It seems reasonable, however lets get more granular.

With interest rates as low as they are today, there is a very simple rule that can give you a number on your monthly income from your lifelong earning, which is as follows :

Rule of Thumb for Monthly Retirement Income

Interest Rate	Amount Saved	Monthly Income
1.2%	$100,000	$100
1.2%	$200,000	$200
2.4%	$100,000	$200

Feel free to do the Maths to arrive at the numbers above. Extrapolating the table, with an interest rate of  3.6%, expect to make a monthly income of of '$300' for every '$100,000' saved. With 4%, a little bit more!

The figure now to keep in mind is the 'Interest rate' or the 'Rate of Return'. If you want your Savings to live past your retirement, benefit your kids and grandkids, keep an eye on how hard you can make your money work for you.

If you can only make it work as hard as to return 1.2% (looks like a CD account?) you can withdrawn $100 for every $100,000 saved without shaving off any dough from your nest egg. If   you are a better manager, may be you can make it work to return you 3.6% a year. Well, you can now triple your income without touching your boodle.

Today's Pick : USO, OIL

Oil is on the tear again today and Energy Prices going down. Even with alternative sources of energy being explored actively, the world has enough oil reserves for 53.3 years. USA today reported these numbers back in 2014 (http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/06/28/the-world-was-533-years-of-oil-left/11528999/).

Oil reserves are  ticking time bomb but world's dependency on Oil is expected to continue. Forbes, in an article about a year ago outlined '3 Main' reasons why Oil will continue to be the Market Leader for Energy in years to come (http://www.forbes.com/sites/judeclemente/2015/04/19/three-reasons-oil-will-continue-to-run-the-world/2/#1873b86f71cb).

The alternative sources of energy are in fledgling state. If you are a non-believer in OIL, may be this is not for you, but for someone wanting to ride this low yield market for next 8 years, you probably will not see OIL trade at such a low price.

The picks today are USO and OIL both of which track Prices of Crude Oil. They haven't been trading at such a low price for over a decade and hence it is the pick of the day.

If you have a regular brokerage account, you may run into challenges in trading USO and OIL e.g. Merill Lynch would not allow you to buy USO marking it as a toxic security (Nonertheless, they would not explain what qualifies a security as toxic).

One of the best place to trade USO for free is the Mobile App 'Robinhood'. The app offers free unlimited trades on Apple and Android Mobile devices.

Happy reading and jolly money-making with those who believe in OIL!!

Todays Pick : Tax Exempt Municipal Bond Funds : Nuveen Funds : NKG, NEA, NMZ and more...

I am moving away from Stock Picks today and focus on some reprieve from Uncle Sam with my investment. He already takes a big byte out of my paycheck (which is no where near BIG) - I hate to give him anything more!

Nuveen Funds are amongst the most often invested funds and yield good returns that are either not taxed or taxed partially..

I will tell the readers a little secret about myself today. I live in the state of 'Georgia' and i have been invested a little in Nuveen Georgia Municipal Bond Fund for over 6 years and hence have tasted the secret sauce behind this tax or partially taxed investment. 'NKG' is the ticker that has been returning me nearly 5% tax-free income for all these years - good deal, ain't it?

I felt more comfortable about my 'NKG' investment when i read sometime back that our House Speak Paul Ryan is heavlily invested in 'Nuveen Funds' as well. I did not care which funds he was invested in, the mention of  Name was good enough for me to get into the Game..

A list of tax-exempt funds from Nuveen, sorted by State, is available for reference at http://www.nuveen.com/CEF/DailyPricingTaxExempt.aspx. Feel free to pick and choose the fund for your state and fly by uncle Sam's toll booth with a free ride.

The link again for the list of funds is : http://www.nuveen.com/CEF/DailyPricingTaxExempt.aspx

This is by the the best way that i have come across to generate tax-free pre-retirement income. Please comment if you find any others...

Happy Savings!!!