It's become a bit of a holiday tradition. Each year in October,
I step back and take a long hard look at where I think the market
will be heading for the next year.
It's easy to get caught up in the trivial aspects of day-to-day
market watching. But when you take a breath and really look at
what's happening, I find that it gets easier to predict what's
coming next... and how to profit from it.
Of course, I don't just do this for myself. With a clear mind
focused on the coming year, I first put my first forecasts into the
November issue of my premium
Market Advisor
newsletter. It's in this issue where I release my "Top 10
Predictions" for the coming year. So far, my calls for 2011 are off
to a promising start; two of my financial predictions have already
come to pass just weeks after I made them.
Then, just as most folks are putting the last touches on their
Thanksgiving
logistics
, I'm finishing off my December issue, which features my "Top 10
Stocks" for the coming year.
These top picks are my best of the best. And as you would guess,
I'm normally tight-lipped about these ideas, unless you are a
Market Advisor
subscriber.
But today I have a special treat. I'm peeling back the curtain and
giving you a sneak-peek at one of my "Top 10 Stocks" for 2011. This
idea is an
exchange-traded fund (
ETF
)
, and I think it's the ideal way to play the trends that will
unfold during the next year...
A great way to play the coming year
The bureaucrats can say all they want about benigninflation .
Apparently, they haven't been to a grocery store lately.
If prices for staple products like milk, butter and cereal seem to
be creeping higher, it's not just your imagination -- supermarket
tabs really are going up. Back in August, egg prices climbed from
$0.98 to $1.35 per dozen within a few weeks. Soon after, bacon
prices hit a record $4.35 per pound, up from $3.59 a year earlier.
And prices are still rising at the wholesale level, which means
more retail markups in the weeks and months ahead. According to the
USDA, producers fetched higher prices for corn, soybeans, eggs,
milk and apples last month.
Corn
futures
have spiked more than +60% since June. Wheat prices have spiked
+80% so far this year. Soybeans and sugar are +25% and +55% higher,
respectively.
And since beef, pork and dairy producers have to buy mountains of
feed for their livestock, rising grain prices will likely spill
over into the meat aisle as well (there's typically a six-month
lag).
This is one industry where demand is unwavering -- people have to
eat. And given the tight state of these markets, any major supply
disruption could spark a food crisis like the one of 2008.
Action to Take -->
That's why I like
PowerShares DB Agriculture (
DBA
)
, which is built around anindex of the mostliquid and widely traded
agricultural commodities (corn, soybeans, wheat, cattle, coffee,
etc.). If food prices continue rising, you better believe this fund
will follow suit.
Build your Portfolio on great investments
But why should you listen to me?
Well, I told you earlier that
Market Advisor's
"Top 10 Stocks" has become somewhat of a tradition. Of course, that
wouldn't be the case if these ideas didn't consistently outperform
the market. As you can see from the table, since it began in 2003,
the annual "Top 10 Stocks" have beaten the S&P 500 seven out of
eight years.
I'm confident DBA will build upon that past success, but to be
honest, it's just the tip of my "Top 10" iceberg. This year I've
found what I think are some of the most exciting -- and potentially
profitable -- stocks on the market. From a Chinese company that
will help feed 1.3 billion Chinese to a tiny company with
first-mover advantage in wireless advertising, I'm forecasting
great things from these picks.
If you're a
Market Advisor
subscriber (and many thousands of you are), then you received your
December issue -- including full write-ups on my top 10 picks --
just a few days ago. If you aren't yet a subscriber, you can
click here
to learn more about
Market Advisor
and how you can access my "Top 10 Stocks" for 2011.
-- Nathan Slaughter
Nathan Slaughter's previous experience includes tenures at
AXA/Equitable Advisors and Morgan Keegan. In addition, he's
earned Series 6, 7, 63, & 65 certifications. Read more...
Disclosure: Neither Nathan Slaughter nor StreetAuthority, LLC
hold positions in any securities mentioned in this article.