Hypothecation: Meaning, Risks, and Examples

Hypothecation is the practice of pledging collateral in order to secure debt. This comes up most often in mortgage lending, but it can apply to any kind of debt. It shows up in investing, but hypothecation and riskier rehypothecation can have consequences for homeowners.

Warren Buffett increases Apple stake despite selling some stock

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s may have sold some Apple Inc. shares during the third quarter, but its ownership stake in the technology giant actually increased, as the value of the investment swelled by more than $6 billion. Apple's stock (AAPL)  climbed 1.2% Friday to close at a record high for the seventh time this month. In a 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission late Thursday, Berkshire (BRK)(BRK) disclosed what amounts to a rebalancing of its Apple investment, as the number of shares it owned declined by 750,650 to 248,838,679 shares as of Sept. 30, from 249,589,329 shares as of June 30.

Visa R&D Arm Develops a Blockchain System That Could Replace Financial Data Aggregators

The Takeaway The research arm of payment card giant Visa has published a paper describing the development of LucidiTEE, a blockchain system for orchestrating sensitive data among multiple parties. For example, the paper outlines a system that would allow banks and fintech applications to share data without relying on intermediary data aggregators. While Europe has relied on legislation like GDPR to set standards for securely sharing customer data, US banks had to develop agreements with data aggregators.

Should Your Required Minimum Distribution Be in Cash?

Should you take your RMD by getting the cash or transferring the stock to another account? According to Michael J. Garry, managing member and chief compliance officer at Yardley Wealth Management, it doesn't matter for tax purposes. "There is usually little, if any, tax efficiency added by taking in-kind distributions instead of cash.

U.S. and China Are Really Testing the Water, Says Port Shelter’s CEO

Richard Harris, chief executive officer at Port Shelter Investment Management, discusses the U.S.-China trade talks and his outlook for the negotiations and the markets. He speaks on “Bloomberg Markets: Asia.

Growing Dayton-based logistics company looks to expand footprint

A growing logistics company headquartered in Dayton is eyeing a new market. Iuvo Logistics, a transportation management solutions provider that in 2019 was named one of the fastest-growing private companies in the nation, plans to invest millions of dollars to expand its presence in the midwest. Company leaders David White and James Dowd told me Iuvo is expanding in several areas — including in Cincinnati, Chicago and Memphis — but its main focus is further south.

US Fed admits Libra has potential to ‘rapidly’ achieve widespread adoption

The U.S. Federal Reserve, the country's central bank, has said that stablecoin projects such as Facebook-led Libra could become a "new medium of exchange" if properly designed and regulated. Libra like global stablecoin initiatives “have the potential to rapidly achieve widespread adoption,” said the central bank in its latest Financial Stability Report published Friday. “In an extreme scenario, holders may be unable to [liquidate], with potentially severe consequences for domestic or international economic activity, asset prices, or financial stability,” according to the central bank.

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  PODCAST: ‘Let’s Talk Bitcoin!’ Hosts Discuss Libra, China and Cargo Cults

  Coindesk
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  This Tiny Crypto Startup Has Lessons for Libra’s ‘Unbanked’ Dreams

  Coindesk

6 Social Security Changes for 2019

Every October the Social Security Administration (SSA) announces its annual changes to the Social Security program for the coming year. Here are the Social Security changes that were announced in October 2018 and took effect on Jan. 1, 2019, according to the SSA's annual fact sheet. Keep them in mind when you update your social security information.

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  Canada Pension Plan (CPP) vs. U.S. Social Security

  Investopedia
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  Social Security Fraud: What Is It Costing Taxpayers?

  Investopedia

Why Dow 28,000 could mark that ‘blowoff top’ bears have been predicting

Smith used this chart to help make his point: “Calling QE not-QE doesn't make it different than QE,” Smith wrote. The Fed's level of panic is noteworthy, as is the absurd transparency of its laughable attempt to conceal its panic. And with that panic, Smith believes that the recent pop to new highs in the stock market could finally mark that elusive blowoff top.

This Is How Retirees Live on $1 Million

Another is to invest the money in a standard portfolio, typically one diversified with mutual fund, stock, and bond investments, then withdraw a fixed percentage of that portfolio each year to pay living expenses. Immediate Annuities The Good For retirees who worry about running out of money at some point, an immediate annuity offers perhaps the single most attractive feature of any retirement product: a fixed-income stream that is guaranteed for life—whether the purchaser dies the day after buying the annuity or lives to be 120. Immediate annuities are sold by life insurance companies.

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  Ways to Get Out of an Annuity

  SmartAsset
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  Passing the Buck: The Hidden Costs of Annuities

  Investopedia

It’s great the stock market is setting records, but it’s not because the economy is great

Stocks on Wall Street have soared to fresh record highs, but it's not because the economy is flashing a big thumbs-up sign. The economy is still expanding, to be sure, and sporadic worries about recession have faded again. More evidence of a slowdown emerged in a pair of recent reports on industrial production and retail sales — windows into how businesses and consumers are faring.

Worried about a recession? Here’s how to prepare your retirement nest egg

While investors want to protect their assets in case of a downturn, it's important to avoid major mistakes, experts say, such as trying to time the market or selling all your investments in fear. The 2008 recession – when $7.4 trillion was lost in stock wealth from July 2008 to March 2009 – still feels fresh for many investors. It colors their anxieties about what might happen in the next rough patch, says Brad McMillan, chief investment officer for Commonwealth Financial Network.

Aurora Cannabis stock suffers worst day in more than five years, analyst says ‘it would be fair for investors not to believe them’

Aurora Cannabis Inc. shares suffered through their worst trading session in more than five years Friday, after an earnings report that included disappointing numbers and plans to cut spending sent analysts racing to cut their forecasts for the Canadian marijuana producer. Aurora's (ACB) revenue declined by 24% sequentially in its fiscal first quarter, and the second largest public weed company by sales cancelled or delayed plans for multiple further facilities expansions and converted C$155 million in debt into shares as it seeks to conserve cash. Investors responded by sending the stock on a 17.2% decline to $2.73, the largest single-day percentage decline for Aurora shares in more than five years and the lowest closing price since October 2017.

FedEx CEO to New York Times after tax-bill exposé: Debate me, bro!

FedEx Corp. Chief Executive Fred Smith had a combative response to a New York Times report that detailed how the delivery giant cut its tax bill to zero: Debate me! The Times on Sunday reported that, between 2017 and 2018, FedEx (FDX)  cut its tax bill from $1.5 billion to zero, as its effective tax rate sank from 34% to less than zero. The Times said the savings came after intense lobbying by the company — and Smith in particular — for the Trump administration's tax cuts.

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  How FedEx Cut Its Tax Bill to $0

  The New York Times
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  Fedex Addresses Worker's Death on the Job After Family Hires Attorney

  WREG - Memphis

Medigap Vs. Medicare Advantage: What's the Difference?

Medigap Medicare Supplement Insurance, also called Medigap coverage, protects people who buy traditional Medicare against many of the additional costs a patient might pay. In return, Medigap charges a premium in addition to what the person already pays for Medicare Parts A (many people get this free), B, and D. Just to make life truly confusing, the various options offered by Medigap are also sorted by letter. The choices are Plans A, B, C, D, F, G, K, L, M, and N. What these plans include is standardized by Medicare.

Marijuana Stocks Are Tumbling — Are Any Good Buys Right Now?

Marijuana stocks received enormous hype after legal recreational sales took hold in Canada and sales became legal in some form or another across more than half of the U.S. Producers in Canada listed on the big U.S. exchanges, while their U.S. counterparts sought listings in Canada. Are any marijuana stocks on major U.S. exchanges a good buy now? Overall, the marijuana industry is showing little profit growth as weed producers burn through money to expand.

Top 5 Companies Owned by Exxon Mobil (XOM)

Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) was America's biggest publicly traded oil and gas company in 2019, and one of the largest companies in any industry. It reported consolidated revenue of more than $290 billion in 2018 across its worldwide upstream and downstream oil and gas operations. Exxon Mobil's core businesses include oil and gas exploration and production, petroleum refining, chemical manufacturing, and the marketing of petroleum and chemical products.

Two of America’s biggest coal plants closed this month

America's coal plants are turning off the boilers, facing brutal economics and customers fleeing for natural gas and renewable energy. This week, Arizona's 2.25-GW Navajo Generating Station burned its last load of coal after no buyers turned up during a two-year search. Trade publication Utility Dive reports that the fate of the financially ailing plant was sealed after a bid to force an Arizona water agency to buy its electricity failed.

Too Rich for a Roth? Do This

For 2020 Roth IRA contributions are not allowed for single filers with a modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) of $139,000 (up from $137k in 2019) or more and married couples filing jointly whose MAGI exceeds $206,000 (up from $203k in 2019). A Roth IRA allows for tax-free qualified distributions in retirement, which may be invaluable if you anticipate landing in a high tax bracket when you retire. Fortunately, there is an available solution to the Roth IRA roadblock for affluent taxpayers: a backdoor Roth IRA.

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  Can I Have Both a 403(b) and a 401(k)?

  Investopedia
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  How to Use Your Roth IRA as an Emergency Fund

  Investopedia

2 Stocks You Really Should Consider Shorting This Week

Using recent actions and grades from TheStreet's Quant Ratings and layering on technical analysis of the charts of those stocks, Trifecta Stocks identifies five names each Friday that look bearish. While we will not be weighing in with fundamental analysis we hope this piece will give investors interested in stocks on the way down a good starting point to do further homework on the names. Fossil Group Inc. recently was downgraded to Sell with a D rating by TheStreet's Quant Ratings.

• [video]S&P 500 Top 5 Stock Winners This Week

  TheStreet.com
• [video]S&P 500 Bottom 3 Stock Losers This Week

  TheStreet.com

Yes, You Can Manage Your Own Retirement!

There are many financial professionals who will, for a fee, help you navigate your way to and through retirement. If you can't afford, don't trust, or otherwise would prefer not to use an advisor, managing your own retirement is always an option. If you are serious about taking retirement into your own hands, start as early as possible by adopting one simple habit: Pay yourself first.