Buy Hold Sell, by Livewire Markets

3 dividend darlings (and 2 with adviser approval)

The recent Income Series survey, in which more than 1000 Livewire readers participated, showed that investor hunger for income-generating equities remains remarkably high.

Domestic equities are by far and away the most popular asset class for income investing, with 93% of respondents choosing this option.

This is despite bonds having bounced back from a tough 18 months and term deposits fetching investors north of 5% on a good day.

It seems investors are looking for higher returns, particularly given inflation is running hot and real yields (what you actually get after inflation) are what ultimately matter.

The survey also highlighted that 50% of respondents are looking to increase their exposure to domestic equities in the next 12 months in order to generate income.

So, what better time to focus on income-generating equities in an episode of Buy Hold Sell than right now? 

In this episode, Ord Minnett’s David Lane and Centaur Financial Services’ Hugh Robertson run the ruler over three classic income stocks, and each highlights their pick for the next 12 months. 

Note: This episode was filmed on Wednesday 14 June 2023. 

6 adviser-approved funds for income (and 2 to rid from your portfolio)

Access to income-generating investment opportunities has grown exponentially in the past two decades. Long gone are the days when investors could only invest in high-yield dividend stocks to generate suitable returns. That was a bit like buying a chicken for its eggs – and hoping that the chicken didn’t cark it in the meantime. Today there are myriad products to complement stocks, including LICs and LITs, ETFs, hybrids, and managed funds – the latter of which span the global investment universe. But with so much choice, how are investors to decide which opportunities might be useful for them? Fortunately, we’ve engaged two financial advisers – David Lane from Ord Minnett and Hugh Robertson from Centaur Financial Services – to share which products they like and why, as part of Livewire’s 2023 Income Series. For a bit of extra spice, they also share a product that they no longer believe has a place in income investors' portfolios. Note: This episode was filmed on Wednesday 14 June 2023.

The 2023 guide to income for investors of all ages

Income investing has undergone a renaissance in recent years. 

A poor cousin to growth investing for the best part of a decade, rising interest rates and higher yields, coupled with a desire to protect capital amid heightened inflation and uncertainty, has seen investors come flocking back to the investment style. 

While most of the conversation has been centred around the returns investors can get - 5% in term deposits, for example - not a lot of attention has been paid to the different cohorts of investors and their specific income wants and needs. 

After all, the needs of an investor in the early stages of their journey will be different from the needs of an investor nearing retirement, as will the products that they use. 

So, in this special episode of Buy Hold Sell, we reached out to two financial advisors - David Lane from Ord Minnett and Hugh Robertson from Centaur Financial Services - for their tips (and top products) for generating attractive passive income for all ages as part of Livewire's 2023 Income Series. 

Note: This episode was filmed on Wednesday 14 June 2023. You can read an edited transcript below: 

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/the-2023-guide-to-income-for-investors-of-all-ages/ 

Buy Hold Sell: 5 stocks for your radar right now

With AI-related stocks soaring and central bank hikes continuing to take their toll on anything else in sight, it's easy to forget there are other companies making waves on the global stage. 

Take Teck Resources (NYSE: TECK), for instance, a coal, copper and zinc miner out of Canada which recently received a takeover offer from Swiss multinational giant Glencore (LON: GLEN). Or Sands China (HKG: 1928), a casino operator expected to experience a major upswing as card players return to the table. Even Heineken (AMS: HEIO), which now counts Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) co-founder Bill Gates as a shareholder after pouring $1.32 billion into the company, boasts a return on equity of 14%. 

So in this episode, Livewire's Ally Selby was joined by Antipodes' Jacob Mitchell and PM Capital's Paul Moore for their analysis of these three stocks. 

Plus, our guests also name a top holding they believe investors should have on their radars over the year ahead. 

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 31 May 2023. You can read an edited transcript below: 

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/buy-hold-sell-5-stocks-for-your-radar-right-now 

2 stocks fundies would bet the house on

After a decade of Growth taking the market by storm, Value came back in a real way in 2022. 

Both locally and abroad, cyclical and economically sensitive stocks such as financials, materials, infrastructure and energy companies all saw their share prices soar. It was all thanks to rising interest rates, skyrocketing inflation, Russia's war in Ukraine, and a supposed "return to fundamentals". 

But since the beginning of 2023, things have changed once again. Growth darlings like Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) are up 177% since the beginning of the year. 

So is this a sign that it's Growth's time to shine once again in 2023? And what is the biggest risk investors should have on their radars over the year ahead? 

To find out, Livewire's Ally Selby was joined by Antipodes' Jacob Mitchell and PM Capital's Paul Moore for their secret to finding Value in today's volatile market and the headwinds facing earnings over the next 12 months. 

Plus, for a bit of fun, we asked them to select one stock they would bet their own house on right now. And their answers are sure to surprise you.  

Note: This episode was filmed on Wednesday, May 31 2023. You can read an edited transcript below:

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/2-stocks-fundies-would-bet-the-house-on-and-the-biggest-risks-to-value-investing-over-the-next-12-months/ 

Buy Hold Sell: 5 boring stocks trading at beautiful prices

There's this idea in dating that you shouldn't pursue beautiful people. Why? Well, thanks to their good looks, they haven't had to struggle their entire lives to be as outgoing, funny, and desirable as us mere mortals. And so, they will likely lack a certain je ne sais quoi...

While I am not sure the proposition is entirely true, there is something about being both boring and beautiful - particularly when it comes to investing. 

Oftentimes, we are distracted by the next sparkly new trend, losing the patience and discipline needed to stick to our strategies and generate long-term returns. 

 

When it comes down to it, investing isn't meant to be thrilling. It's not meant to get your heart racing. The likelihood of getting rich quick is zero to none. In fact, investing in "boring" stocks over the long term is how Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway became the US$702.6 billion giant it is today. 

So in this episode, Livewire's Ally Selby was joined by PM Capital's Paul Moore and Antipodes' Jacob Mitchell for their analysis of three "boring but beautifully priced stocks." 

And just because I know you love a stock pick, they also name a boring stock they believe can withstand the cycle and come out stronger on the other side too. 

Note: This episode was filmed on Wednesday, May 31 2023. You can read an edited transcript below: 

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/buy-hold-sell-5-boring-stocks-trading-at-beautiful-prices 

Buy Hold Sell: 5 long-term compounders for the bottom drawer

There's something to be said of reliable compounders. While they may not double overnight as a growth darling can, these stocks definitely make it easier to sleep at night. 

Why? Well, reliable long-term compounders can continue to provide solid returns over the years to come without the volatility or downside risk that comes with more speculative stocks. 

And while the secret to long-term success may be hitching our bandwagon to said compounding stocks, the price you pay for their shares is equally, if not more important. 

So in this episode, Livewire's Ally Selby was joined by Perpetual Asset Management's Sean Roger and Sage Capital's Sean Fenton for their analysis of three steadily growing stocks. 

And they also name their own bottom drawer stock that they will be backing for the foreseeable future too. 

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 17 May 2023. You can read an edited transcript below: 

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/buy-hold-sell-5-long-term-compounders-for-the-bottom-drawer 

2 stocks facing headwinds (and the themes fundies are shorting in 2023)

Following the GFC, the world embarked upon a monetary policy experiment the likes of which had never been seen before.

Having read the history books and being aware of the economic and financial malaise that lingered for decades post the Great Depression, and like a bout of long-COVID, central bankers were desperate to ensure it didn’t happen again.

So they pumped the system full of liquidity. Quantitative easing, loose balance sheets, low interest rates, you name it, the list went on. Then, when the pandemic hit, they pumped more liquidity again, and this time, governments got involved as well.

Well, the experiment is now well and truly over. Inflation has soared, recessions are imminent, and some of the distortions of all that liquidity are being reflected in the stock market. The tide is going out, and we’re going to find out just who has been swimming naked.

In that vein, Livewire’s Ally Selby sat down with the two Seans – Sean Fenton and Sean Roger – to discuss the long and short of it all, literally.

Fenton and Roger talk about hunting for shorts in the current environment, whether rate hikes are behind us and some stocks they like, both longs and shorts. 

Note: This episode was filmed on Wednesday 17 May 2023. You can read an edited transcript below: 

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/2-stocks-facing-headwinds-and-the-themes-fundies-are-shorting-in-2023/ 

Buy Hold Sell: 3 of the ASX’s most shorted stocks (and 2 long-term buys)

Since the beginning of the year, the total level of shorting on the ASX has risen 16.2%. According to Shortman.com, there is now $25.5 billion being borrowed today to bet against the country's 100 biggest shorts. 

Short sellers borrow shares in a company at the current market price in the hope they can buy back those shares (close a position) once the company's share price has fallen. Many do this in times when sentiment is falling or a business faces short-term headwinds, rather than long-term structural changes - as short-term fluctuations in share price can be incredibly painful - think GameStop. 

So are there any long-term opportunities the short sellers are missing? 

To find out, Livewire's Ally Selby was joined by Sage Capital's Sean Fenton and Perpetual Asset Management's Sean Roger for their analysis of three stocks with high levels of short interest. 

And just because I know you all love a stock pick, our guests also name a high-conviction position they are backing for the year ahead.

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 17 May 2023. You can read an edited transcript below: 

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/buy-hold-sell-3-of-the-asx-s-most-shorted-stocks-and-2-long-term-buys/ 

Buy Hold Sell: 3 ASX stocks dropping their dividends (and 2 on the way up)

If there is one thing Livewire readers love just as much as lithium stocks, long-term compounders, and lithium stocks that are long-term compounders, it's dividend darlings. 

After all, Plato Investment Management has found that if investors had put $100,000 in the ASX in 1980, they would now be earning around $85,000 a year in income. In comparison, if you had left that money in the bank, they would now be earning next to nothing (as we all know too well). 

But what if some of the ASX's highest yielders are dropping their dividends? Particularly, those that had a stellar year in 2022?  

In this episode, Livewire's James Marlay was joined by Plato's Peter Gardner and Antares Equities' Andrew Hamilton for their analysis of three dividend darlings that could be heading lower from here. 

Plus, we also asked them to each name a stock with sustainable, growing dividends in the years ahead. 

Note: This episode was filmed on Wednesday 3 May 2023. You can read an edited transcript below:

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/buy-hold-sell-3-asx-stocks-dropping-their-dividends-and-2-on-the-way-up