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The market is pretty much a popularity contest, it takes turns hating and loving different stocks on any given day, for many reasons. You shouldn’t try to find the logic behind this just focus on picking the unpopular stocks that might one day be the “popular” stocks that everyone buys.

By looking at the fundamentals you can find stocks that could be booming tomorrow. Here are three of them.

1. Marqeta

The world financial services industry is worth trillions. Until the past decade, the way people spend money has stayed relatively the same.

Marqeta serves a particular purpose in how fintech companies are rapidly blossoming. Marqeta is a platform that lets its customers connect to payment networks that already exist like Mastercard and Visa through its application programming interface. Its technology supports the payments for many applications like Affirm’s debit card, Square’s Cash App, DoorDash transactions, and much more.

The company is getting bigger, it has reported a 56% increase year-over-year in revenue for its third-quarter earnings in 2021. Marqeta’s biggest customer is Square. About 68% of its total revenue comes from Square. This number is coming down slowly due to the fast growth of other customers. Especially those customers in the Buy Now, Pay Later area that Marqeta serves like Sezzle, Affirm, Zip, Klarna, and Afterpay.

The stock went public in June and currently trades far below the $30 share price it started at. Investors may be afraid of Marqeta’s interest in Square, however at a price-to-sales ratio of around 21, a strong customer base, and the stock’s growth it may be worth considering shares.

2. MercadoLibre

Since Amazon’s rise more than 10 years ago E-commerce has been popular with growth investors. However, there’s a long way to go for growth in upcoming markets. MercadoLibre has been growing its company in Latin America for almost 2 decades.

The company has many layers to it, including payment/credit services, e-commerce, and shipping and logistics. Each part complements the other, this gives customers a better experience in a place where the people are underfunded or live in areas where stores and amenities are more difficult to find.

MercadoLibre’s growth went up during COVID. Revenues rose 73% year over year during 2020 to just below $4 billion. The company’s revenue grew 66% in Q3 which shows they are having another strong year in 2021. The company is also showing positive earnings-per-share as reinvestment in the business grows.

Other than its growth, over the past year the stock has been down 28%. The growth shows that the company is doing just fine.

3. Zoom

Zoom Video Communications could be the ultimate showpiece of the COVID pandemic. This is because the lockdowns made everyone stay inside their homes, so people used Zoom in order to have meetings.

Zoom is known for its technology for video meetings, but it does have other functions like Zoom phone and chat.

The company hit a share price of $559 in late 2020, the stock has now went down to under $200 this is because of the 2020 growth numbers that are almost impossible to top. Zoom products got adopted faster than they would have because of the pandemic. The stock is being punished because investors believe it will grow at a slower pace.

The stock has a P/S ratio of 15 now, which is a sensible valuation. Growth in the mid-teens for 2023 is seen by analysts and EPS growth close to 20% every year for the upcoming three to five years. Zoom is unlikely to deliver life-changing returns to investors, however it can still be a profitable.

Author: Steven Sinclaire

One of the positive by-products of today’s rising inflation is that the Social Security Administration has noticed and made adjustments to counter it. And as a result, some important changes are on their way to a Social Security statement near you next year.

Here, we will look at five big changes to Social Security that you need to have on your radar.

1. A living adjustment cost of 5.9% 

As the headliner of big changes happening next year, the SSA has announced that beneficiaries will get a 5.9% raise in their monthly benefit checks beginning in 2022. This increase was designed to help retirees manage their buying power amid increasing prices in today’s economy. Even though you will receive more, your ability to buy services and goods really has not changed much from last year — but it is still something to appreciate.

2. The increase of the Social Security wage base

The SSA collects the premiums for its Survivor, Old Age, and Disability Insurance programs by taxing 6.2% of the wage base, up to a certain amount. This year, the number was $142,800, and next year, it will increase to $147,000. In effect, all incomes up to $147,000 will have a taxation rate of 6.2%, while income earned above that threshold will not be subject to a Social Security tax. However, more of your salary will be taxed, and it’s important that you know why.

3. Full retirement age (FRA) is going up to 67 for people turning 62 in 2022

The age at which you will be able to claim full retirement benefits is going up to 67 next year; this applies to anyone that was born in 1960 or after. This means if you were to turn 62 next year, you will be facing a full retirement at the age of 67, which is just months more than individuals born between the age of 1955 and 1959. While it is not a big difference to the retiree if we are only talking about several months of time, but it does have a financial impact when it’s applied throughout the retiree population.

4. You can earn more during retirement without losing your early benefits

If you have not reached full retirement age by next year, you’ll be able to collect up to $19,560 per year without having any reduction in SS benefits.

If you are going to reach full retirement age sometime next year, your salary can go up to $51,960 during the period in 2022 prior to reaching full retirement age without seeing a reduction in your Social Security checks.

If you wait until you reach full retirement age to collect benefits, the SSA won’t ever take benefits away based on work.

5. Monthly premiums of Medicare Part B will rise 14.5%

While it is a different program completely, the SSA’s Medicare program will also have cost increases of its own in 2022. Monthly premiums of Medicare’s Part B plan, stand to rise 14.5% next year, going from $148.50 to $170.10.

This is mostly because of higher utilization across the healthcare spectrum, coupled with cost increases. Critically, this is Medicare’s largest increase in its history and is most certainly a reflection of the world we live in.

Author: Steven Sinclaire

Bitcoin is so volatile that if you wanted to “buy the dip,” it would likely be there.

Trading at $51,444 as of this writing, Bitcoin (BTC) has fallen 18.7% in the last month. Can this be an opportunity for traders who were previously standing by on the sidelines?

It all depends on how high you think Bitcoin can go. Cathie Wood, for instance, told Barron’s this past month that if “institutional investors were to move into BTC and allocate 5% of their portfolios,” the value of the cryptocurrency would skyrocket to $560,000 by 2026.

Based on where Bitcoin is at today, her most recent projection implies an upside of 988%. That may seem far-fetched but remember Cathie Wood was right on the money when she last predicted a 1,200% upside in Tesla.

So here is a couple of ways to play the cryptocurrency boom.

Bitcoin ETFs

Wood herself is offering a new method to invest in cryptocurrency. In Sept., Ark Next Generation Internet ETF changed its prospectus to include exposure to BTC via Canadian ETFs.

The first BTC ETF on the NY Stock Exchange began trading in Oct., but Canada has been ahead of the United States for a while. Several Bitcoin ETFs were launched in Canada in 2021, including Purpose Bitcoin ETF, CI Galaxy Bitcoin ETF, Evolve Bitcoin ETF and 3iQ CoinShares Bitcoin ETF.

In the U.S., the launch of the ProShare BTC Strategy ETF was arguably a big catalyst behind BTC’s rally in Oct. The fund holds BTC futures contracts that are trading on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

Investors who want exposure to the cryptocurrency market can invest in these ETFs, but you could also buy BTC directly. Some trading apps let you buy both crypto and ETFs commission-free.

Cryptocurrency stocks

Companies that have tied themselves to the cryptocurrency market provide another method for traders to benefit from a cryptocurrency rally.

For instance, enterprise software firm MicroStrategy bought 7,002 bitcoins between October 1 and November 29. That brings its total owned bitcoin count to 121,044, a stockpile valued at nearly $6.2 billion.

Because of MicroStrategy’s giant Bitcoin stake, some traders have used it as a proxy for investing in the crypto. In the past, rallies in BTC usually led to similar moves in MicroStrategy’s stock price.

Then there is Riot Blockchain, which mines BTC and hosts BTC mining equipment for institutional clients. Thanks to the growth of the cryptocurrency, Riot stocks have returned a stunning 182% over the past year.

Author: Blake Ambrose

There are ways to handle your debt better so you can pay it back faster. Here are a few strategies that will help get you out of credit card debt.

1. Make a payoff plan

It is easier to be in control of your debt if you make a plan to pay it off. To make a plan do the following:

  • Write down all your card balances, including the interest rate and the total owed.
  • Figure out the smallest monthly payment and the total due.
  • Calculate the amount that you can pay extra.
  • Decide which card to pay off first. People usually pick the card that has the greatest interest rate and after that card is paid you should move on to the card with the next highest rate and so on.

You are more likely to repay your debt faster if you have a plan.

2. Rework your budget

If you pay more money on your debt repayment it will help you climb out of the hole more quickly. You should consider paying for only the things you need and your fixed costs such as your car, groceries, and mortgage. Other than that, pay as much on your debt as you can.

By doing this you will be able to pay off your balances more quickly than if you were just sending in smaller payments each month.

3. Talk with your creditors

Lastly, you should speak to your creditors about what options you have.

They may allow you to work out a plan to repay or settle your debt for a one-time payment that is smaller than what you actually owe. This step may be hard because it often damages your credit. However, if you are having financially hardship because of the amount of card debt you owe, this may be a good option for you.

You should consider each of these three steps carefully and decide which of them are right for you. It will depend on the amount of debt you have and how realistic it is to pay it back within a certain timeframe without damaging your other important goals.

Author: Blake Ambrose

Shiba Inu (SHIB), which is a meme token that was inspired by a dog has surged 9.3% over the past 24 hours. This surge was in line with a wider bounce back in the cryptocurrency market, which rebounded 6.7% and is now at $2.4 trillion.

SHIB appears to have regained momentum as traders say that Robinhood could add it to their platform. Social Media talk is increasing as more than half a million people have signed a petition to see this token put on the Robinhood platform.

So what

Kraken added Shiba Inu to its popular U.S. crypto exchange. Key listings can raise the value of certain tokens in the short term, as most investors know.

For those people speculating on how Shiba Inu will continue to build momentum, such listings are important catalysts to keep an eye on. This popular petition is gaining the attention of investors.

Robinhood has not provided an answer to when or if it will add Shiba Inu to its trading platform. Meanwhile, the token Dogecoin can be purchased on this platform. Robinhood seems to have a somewhat different view of meme tokens than other platforms. The Crypto Chief Officer with Robinhood has dismissed the idea of adding Shiba Inu to the platform in the past.

Now what

There is a reason Robinhood has stayed non-committal. Shiba Inu is one of the riskiest cryptocurrencies to buy at the moment. Investors are on edge after a broad crypto market sell-off over the weekend and a hack of the BitMart exchange, during which SHIB tokens were stolen.

Even so, the interest and trading volume with this token might simply be too much to ignore. The petition has over 500,000 signatures which signifies real interest. Also, there is competition rising between various crypto-centric exchanges and platforms. For Robinhood, the positive outcome from listing Shiba Inu might outweigh any reputational risks.

Speculating on a near-term catalysts isn’t something most long-term investors would waste their time with. That being said, volatility is important to a trader. The volatility with Shiba Inu seems to be on the upside today. Because of this catalyst traders are taking notice.

Author: Scott Dowdy

Tesla shares are set to break a losing streak after Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Congress shouldn’t approve the Biden Administration’s infrastructure bill that will include electric vehicle subsidies.

Tesla (TSLA) – stock seemed ready to snap a four-day losing streak during the Tuesday session after the outspoken CEO Elon Musk stated that Congress shouldn’t approve Pres. Joe Biden’s $1 trillion Build Back Better legislation that includes subsidies for EVs.

Musk stated that the Congress should not approve Pres. Biden’s bill to increase subsidies for electric vehicles, saying the Dem-led proposal that provides union-made, U.S.-built EVs an additional $4,500 tax incentive would make the nation’s budget deficit worse.

“Honestly, it may be better if the bill does not pass,” Musk stated during a Wall Street Journal Council Summit.

“I’m literally saying throw out all of the subsidies,” Musk said, while adding that the federal government “…should I believe just try to get out of the way and not slow the progress.”

Tesla received $400 million from bailout support and federal loans back in 2010. However, that loan was repaid in full with interest in May of 2013, almost a 10 years early.

More recently, the electric vehicle company has withdrawn its request for 1.14 billion euros from the German government that was going to be used as aid to construct an almost-completed battery factory close to Berlin.

On Monday, Musk reiterated his opposition to a proposal by Dems to tax billionaires.

“It doesn’t make any sense to have the job of capital allocation taken away from individuals who have demonstrated great skill and then turn around and give it to those who have demonstrated very poor skills in capital allocation, which happens to be the government,” Musk stated.

Tesla and SpaceX boss Elon Musk has been critical of Pres. Biden, dubbing the Administration as “not the friendliest” after his company wasn’t invited to participate in a car-makers’ summit in late summer.

Tesla shares were up 3.63% at $1,045.66 at last check. Over the last four trading days, the shares were down 11.88%, though the stock is still up more than 38% since Jan.

Author: Steven Sinclaire

There over 7,900 cryptocurrencies in existence today, and these digital assets are nowvalued at $2.7 trillion, increasing over 1,200% since Dec. 2019. To put that growth in context, the S&P 500 has produced a total return of 495% over the last twenty years.

Based on this information, it makes sense to invest a small percentage of your portfolio into this emerging asset class, assuming that you have emergency funds and will not need to spend the money for at least three years. Here are two cryptos that seem like smart long-term investments.

Bitcoin: Digital gold

In 2009, Satoshi Nakamoto created the crypto Bitcoin (BTC), a digital currency that is powered by a blockchain. You have probably heard of that term before, but it is important to know what exactly it means. Blockchain is a decentralized system of record that can secure transaction data through cryptography, which makes it possible to transfer money electronically without a bank or other intermediary.

Specifically, miners work to validate transactions by a consensus mechanism that is known as proof of work (POW), which means their computing power solves complex puzzles. Once solved, a block of transactions is added onto the blockchain, and the miner is then rewarded with BTC, effectively creating new currency. However, BTC’s source code requires that the reward be cut in half every 210,000 blocks.

Ultimately, that means BTC is a finite asset. Only 21 million crypto coins will ever exist, and the last coin will be mined more than a century from now in the year 2140. More importantly, as with other scarce assets (e.g. gold), BTC’s limited supply makes it a valuable asset. And as long as demand continues to increase, the value of Bitcoin should keep climbing. That is the investment thesis, or at least part of it. The other part deals with BTC’s popularity.

Since the debut of Bitcoin, thousands of other cryptos have been created, but none of them have achieved what BTC has. Bitcoin is basically synonymous with crypto, and it is still more valuable than any altcoin on the market. In fact, its market value is currently sitting at $1.0 trillion, meaning BTC accounts for 42% of the total value of all crypto.

In the future, the popularity of Bitcoin should drive adoption by institutional and individual investors alike, and that demand should keep its value on an upward trajectory. Cathie Wood thinks Bitcoin can reach $500,000 by year 2026, implying 790% upside from where its price currently stands. That is why this crypto looks like a great investment.

Litecoin: Digital silver

In 2011, Charlie Lee, who was a former engineer at Google, developed Litecoin (CRYPTO:LTC) as a fork of the BTC blockchain. To further clarify that term, a fork happens when a change is made to a blockchain’s protocol. In this case, Lee created Litecoin to be quicker and more abundant than BTC.

Specifically, miners still depend on a POW consensus mechanism to validate its transactions, but LTC blocks are created every 2.5 minutes, which is four times faster than BTC blocks, which are made every 10 minutes. This means Litecoin transactions are now done much faster.

Similarly, there are four times as many Litecoins than Bitcoins, with Litecoin having a limit of 84 million coins. And for that reason, this crypto is often styled as the silver to BTC’s gold, and once again, that is the crux of the investment thesis. LTC’s finite supply means its value should continue rising alongside demand.

Author: Blake Ambrose

President Biden’s administration is wanting to expand the current reporting requirements on any real estate deals that are paid for with all-cash to help crack down on any illegal use of the United States market to launder cash made through illegal activity.

The Treasury Department was releasing a notice Monday seeking comment from the public for a possible regulation that would fix what it claims is a vulnerability within the real estate market.

Currently, title insurance businesses in just 12 metropolitan locations are required to file a report identifying individuals who purchase residential real estate with all-cash purchases through shell companies if the price exceeds $300,000.

“More transparency within the real estate market will curb the ability of criminals and corrupt officials to launder money through the United States’ real estate market,” stated Himamauli Das.

Das stated the move might “strengthen U.S. national security and help defend the integrity of the U.S. financial system.”

The metropolitan areas that are currently facing these reporting requirements are Boston, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Honolulu, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, and Seattle.

The real estate market in the United States has long been seen as a stable way for corrupt government officials around the world and other illicit actors wanting to launder the proceeds from criminal activities.

The use of shell businesses by former and current world leaders, and those that are close to them, to buy real estate and other assets in the United States and abroad was recently brought to the public’s attention by the release of the “Pandora Papers.”

The documents that were acquired and leaked by the consortium revealed that King Abdullah II of Jordan, former U.K. prime minister Tony Blair and other top figures had all used shell businesses to buy mansions, yachts, exclusive beachfront property and other assets for the past twenty-five years.

It’s possible for tax dodges to be legal but have given rise to different proposals to raise tax transparency and reinforce efforts in the fight against tax evasion.

The effort to push for new regulations within the real estate market comes as Pres. Biden’s administration on Monday released its “U.S. Strategy on Countering Corruption.”

The strategy was released as Pres. Joe Biden prepares to host the first WH Democracy Summit, a virtual meeting of civil society experts and leaders from more than 100 nations that is set to take place at the end of the week.

The strategy offers ways for confronting corruption in the U.S. and abroad. It includes calls for the United States government to shore up regulatory gaps, increasing anti-corruption efforts in the U.S. and reinforcing the protection of civil society and members of the news, including investigative journalists, who work to expose corruption.

Author: Scott Dowdy

The Rivian ratings spate has started. Investors should be happy.

Rivian Automotive received its first price rating. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives thinks it is a buy. He set his price target at $130, almost 25% above where the company had closed for trading during Friday.

Ives has called Rivian an “electric vehicle stalwart in the making,” while adding that the company “looking to strategically launch itself into a market that is untapped as Pickup/SUV Truck EVs are just about nonexistent in the electric vehicle market of today.” SUVs and trucks are very popular in the United States, usually accounting for over 60% of all passenger vehicle sales.

Given it is the first rating it has received, it is the first chance for traders to look at estimates. Ives predicts $3.6 billion in sales from around 45,000 vehicle deliveries next year and $8.4 billion in vehicle sales from about 105,000 deliveries in 2023. The business is not expected to produce a profit in either year.

Ives target price implies the Rivian stock should trade for around 15 times estimated 2023 sales. Shares of Tesla, the electric vehicle leader, trade for around 11 times estimated 2023 sales.

It is a big, growth stock valuation, but Ives does know his way around growth stocks. He covers electric vehicles and tech stocks such as Salesforce.com. On the vehicle side of his coverage list, Ives rates Tesla shares and General Motors shares both Buy. His Tesla price target is $1,400 per share. His GM price target is $85 per share.

GM’s Buy ratings, Rivian and Tesla are based on Ives’ expectation that electric vehicles will become the most dominant form of personal travel in coming years.

Rivian investors will be happy welcome some Buy ratings. The share price is down from a Nov. 16 high of almost $180 per share. Rivian stock dropped 6.7% last week in what was a hard week for growth stocks. The Russell 1000 Growth Index fell 2.2%. The S&P 500 decreased 1.2% for the week and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.9%.

Author: Steven Sinclaire

Achieving the goal of millionaire status is not so easy for traders. If you want to be a millionaire, it normally takes a while and a large amount of dollars invested. But that is not always the case. You could have made a million bucks by investing $1,500 or less in each of these two cryptos.

1. The Shiba Inu Cryptocurrency

Shiba Inu (CRYPTO:SHIB) is one that stands out as a more impressive creator of a of rags-to-riches story. If you had of invested only $1.56 in the crypto when it launched in Aug. 2020, you would now have $1 million.

How did Shib skyrocket as much as it did? For one thing, it began trading at a tiny amount. More significantly, though, Shib piggybacked on Dogecoin’s success.

The Shiba Inu dog is used as a mascot by both Dogecoin and Shiba Inu. But unlike Dogecoin, though, Shib is compatible with the crypto Ethereum (CRYPTO:ETH) platform. Which means that it could be used with ETH wallets and possibly be integrated with some decentralized finance apps created on the ETH blockchain.

Do not expect investing a small amount in Shiba Inu will make you a millionaire in the near future, though. Some investors view it as one of the most dangerous cryptos to own. Whether or not that is right or not, it is virtually not possible for Shiba Inu to reach anywhere close its gains it has racked up so far going forward.

2. Ethereum

Ethereum ranks as the second-largest crypto in the world today with a market capitalization of about $537 billion. And while the blockchain was not officially released until July of 2015, ETH’s initial coin offering (ICO) happened in the previous year. If you had of bought about $69.50 of ETH tokens in that ICO and not sold them, you would now have $1 million.

The one overriding thing behind ETH’s meteoric increase is its real-world utility. ETH’s blockchain supports the smart contracts that help enable the execution of its agreements on the internet without any intermediaries.

Another important example relating to this is the real-world utility that the ETH blockchain can host other cryptos. Indeed, almost half of the top 100 cryptos based on market capitalization are compliant with ETH’s ERC-20 standard.

Other blockchains are hoping to dethrone ETH by offering quicker transaction speeds and reduced costs. However, a big upgrade is on its way next year that should make ETH more competitive. It is not likely to have a repeat of the impressive performance it had the past seven years; however, the cryptocurrency might still be a winner in the future.

Author: Steven Sinclaire

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