Same Companies....New Tricks (McDonald's, Best Buy, Groupon)

McDonald's Late Night Breakfast Cravings

Sometimes I feel like I could be a Fortune 500 CEO, especially when they take an idea right outta my head. Let's take the Golden Arches.  I've had this idea buzzing around in my head for years and they finally took the plunge.  McDonald's is bringing breakfast to a late night menu near you.  Sorry Denny's I think a few people make be making a quick stop at the drive thru.

Read All About It Link

Store-In-A-Store Continues With Best Buy

Best Buy continues the JC Penney concept of stores within a store.  I wonder if this is the concept for companies that have been left for dead.  Ouch...Microsoft has teamed up with Best Buy and there with be a Microsoft store within your local store.  This is such a fabulous concept Samsung has decided it will also place stores within Best Buy.  I guess they will likely win over me...because I love 1 STOP SHOPPING...but does that make this a department store??

Linky

I know I'm not here to make fun of them but rather tell you how stopping in at the drive thru can make you money.  If you think either of these will be a big hit check the stocks out.  Best Buy is finding more reasons for you to stay in the store and McDonald's want your after the bar pit stop to include something you would normally eat in the morning, anyways!

Groupon

Predictions of their demise were off. This company has stabilized since the departure of Andrew Mason, the former CEO. The stock price has rebounded and Groupon "might" be maturing. They are leaving deals open longer which was my biggest complaint (sort of) and a reason why I never signed up for Groupon. This means I can get the deal when I actually need the item and not just serving as impulse purchases.  And you just may start buying things like you do on Amazon at Groupon.  Some of you already know that Groupon sells actual goods and they have been competitive on a number of items and want to be your top destination for shopping. Stay tuned on how this plays out but its has certainly rebounded , albeit there wasn't much lower it could go.

Is Your Portfolio Up...

Dow Above 13,000 / NASDAQ 3,000
The Dow Jones Industrial Average is an index that is made of 30 stocks which are a general representation of US economy.  The index consists of companies like McDonalds, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Bank of America, and Procter & Gamble.  The Dow being above 13K is significant because some consumers like you and me are feeling a little bit better as we watch our collective investment wallets head in the right direction.  If you are invested in the markets through a personal account, 401K, IRA or some other investment vehicle chances are they are all doing better.  To put this in perspective the last time the Dow was at this level was in May 2008.  Or this may help, when things were really bad a few years ago the Dow was at 6,547 on March 9, 2009.  That was four years ago the stock market was where it is today, so we've come along way.  I almost forgot the NASDAQ, which is an index tracking primarily technology stocks.  The NASDAQ briefly hit 3,000 a level it hadn't seen in about 12 years!!

URB Investment Tips: My take away is that this is proof as why you usually want to stay invested in the markets and to not be scared away by the big swings.  I also want to mention that this is a good time to cash in a few of your BIG winners.  In short, I've been impressed by the momentum of jobs and have enjoyed this ride up in the stock market. I will be watching closely because I think we've come along way and worked hard to get here and I think the market may take a deep breathe and pull back (i.e., decline in price) a few months from now.

Here are a few themes from my latest quarterly stock picks:

~ Beaten down stocks
~ Pharmaceutical stocks
~ Gold Miners stocks

Stay tuned, they'll be released shortly.