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No one thought Muhammad Ali could come out of retirement to
beat George Foreman. After all, Big George had positively
murdered Joe Frazier and Ken Norton, the only two men ever
to beat Ali. When Ali and Foreman stepped into the ring in
Zaire in 1974, the ferocious-hitting Foreman got Ali on the
ropes and just started pounding him. Most people though Ali
was done for.
They were wrong. By the eighth round, Foreman was
exhausted. But Ali, despite being pummeled so hard for so
long, still had a vast reserve of energy, and he turned on
the speed, accuracy and raw power that the world had
momentarily forgotten. Foreman went down for the count, and
the referee raised Ali's glove into the air, declaring him
-- again -- the heavyweight champion of the world.
Ali had to change his approach. He knew Foreman could
hit, but he knew that he had stamina. He saw through
everything else, focused on those two critical traits and
devised a simple strategy accordingly.
I bet a lot of investors feel like Ali did on the ropes
while Foreman devastated him with punch after punch after
punch. They feel bloodied by the subprime meltdown and
bruised by energy and commodity prices. A few have quit the
game. Others just want it to be over.
Well, that's understandable. Simply
profiting from rising prices can work nicely in bull
markets, but it's a tough strategy to pull off when the
bears are prowling Wall Street. Trying to do so is a
classic example of making things harder than they need to
be. There's no point in fighting a market downtrend.
That doesn't mean you need to end the round, it just means
you need to change your strategy. If market conditions mean
you can't juice your portfolio with capital gains, then it's
time to change your focus to generating income from your
investments.
The Benefits of Focusing on Income
Why shift over to income now? Companies that pay
dividends tend to be very stable and represent mature
industries, and many of them do business in non-cyclical
sectors like utilities. These "defensive" companies pull in
steady sales even when times are tough.
History also shows that dividend-paying investments fare
much better during bear markets. In the vicious three years
of 2000, 2001 and 2002, the dividend-paying stocks in the
S&P 500 actually rose +10.4%, while the non-payers sank
-33.19%. And there have been plenty of 10-year periods where
dividends provided the only return for the S&P 500.
The choice is clear, right? You can take a chance and
continue to bet against the market, or you can collect
double-digit yields on investments with a history of
weathering the storm.
In fact, ETFs offer dozens outstanding choices for income
investors. That's because high yields are the norm with ETFs, not the
exception: As of mid-June, 148 ETFs sported 10%-plus yields.
Only 122 common stocks can make that claim.
And ETFs are especially convenient for retirees or
others who depend on their investments for their
income, as more than 500 ETFs pay
distributions monthly rather than quarterly or yearly.
Take a look at these three high-yielding ETFs, all of
which are generating a double-digit income stream: |
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 We found a "flexible" ETF yielding 12.0%.
This ETF
has an impressive track record of
adjusting its strategy to capture the best gains the market
has to offer, whether that's in high-yield bonds, royalty
trusts or other equities. Its strategy -- which includes buying stocks
with low P/E ratios while shorting stocks with high P/E ratios
-- has really paid off over the last year.
Another appealing ETF invests only in real-estate
investment trusts (REITs), entities that are required by law to pass
along 90% of their earnings to shareholders. Our favorite in this space owns a
portfolio that's double-diversified by both property type
and geography. It's an approach that is paying off: It's yielding 14.8%.
This ETF focused on Asian stocks, which owns mature,
dividend-paying companies like telecoms, financials and
utilities, among others, is paying a 21.5% yield. That's
not a typo: 21.5% is correct. The fund has increased its
dividend payout +200%
in the past three years.
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When the opening bell rings on Wall Street tomorrow, promise
yourself you'll take the opportunity to think differently.
Remember Ali and Foreman's "Rumble in the Jungle" and focus
your efforts on your eighth-round comeback, the chance to
deploy your knockout income ETF strategy.
And
The ETF Authority can be next to you in the
ring, providing the coaching you need as you seek the best
places to put your money to work. My research staff and I
are working on an in-depth report that will show you the
three best ways to profit from ETFs right now.
This special report will reveal more on how to use ETFs to
capture double-digit dividend yields -- including more
information about some of my favorite picks -- and how to
profit from today's most promising sectors and foreign
markets. (Our favorite
foreign chart-leader is an ETF focused on Brazil that has
returned +838% over the past five years!)
You can sign up to join my exclusive "V.I.P. list" at
no charge and receive this ETF report the instant it's
completed --
just visit this link.
Thanks for joining me on my search for today's
highest-yielding securities!
Nathan Slaughter
Special Guest Contributor,
Global Dividend Opportunities
Chief Investment Strategist,
The ETF Authority
GlobalDividends.com
839-K Quince Orchard Blvd.
Gaithersburg, MD 20878-1614
P.S.
-- Don't miss a single issue! Add our address, Editors@GlobalDividends.com,
to your Address Book or Safe List. For instructions, go
here.
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