Where to find yield today...

Stansberry & Associates Hall of Fame
(Top 10 all-time, highest-returning closed positions across all S&A portfolios)

Why I'm not selling any stocks short right now…

The market is at all-time highs... And many equities sport outrageous valuations...

Despite this, S&A Editor in Chief Brian Hunt isn't selling anything short today. He explains why in today's Digest Premium.

To subscribe to Digest Premium and receive a free hardback copy of Jim Rogers' latest book, click here.

Where to find yield today... This bond sector may be the most attractive... Doc's latest thoughts on municipal bonds... Intel's big jump... How a WDDG will make you rich... Spain's GDP grows at its fastest pace in nearly six years... Stocks up or dollars down?...

 The most recent cover of the well-regarded financial magazine Barron's is all about income...

After all, in a world of soaring asset prices and negative real interest rates (when the pace of inflation is greater than the risk-free yield), people are concerned about income.

They're making nothing in their bank accounts... Most bond yields are unattractive (and people are scared of rising interest rates)... And while some stocks still offer solid yields, the markets are trading at record highs.

 Barron's said one particular sector of the bond market, one we've covered many times in these pages, "may be the most attractive" – municipal bonds...
 

 Regular readers know that our Dr. David "Doc" Eifrig has long been bullish on municipal bonds. These bonds, issued by state and local governments to raise funds for anything from roads to government buildings, pay a tax-exempt yield. But they were whacked last year from the panic surrounding Detroit's bankruptcy... and Puerto Rico's likely default on its $70 billion of debt.

Muni bonds also sold off with general bond-market fears about the Federal Reserve "tapering" its bond buying and rising interest rates.

 Throughout the entire selloff, Doc told his readers those fears were overblown. Consider this... Over the past 40 years, investment-grade muni bonds have defaulted just 0.017% of the time, according to Forbes. That's less than two times out of every 10,000.

As you can see in the chart of Nuveen Municipal Opportunity Fund (NIO) – an exchange-traded fund that specializes in muni bonds – the general market didn't share his outlook...

 In addition to our readers and Barron's, some big institutional money is noticing muni bonds. More and more hedge funds are entering the muni-bond sector (which has traditionally been dominated by individual investors). And Jeffrey Gundlach, founder of bond giant Doubleline Capital, recently told Barron's he likes muni bonds because some funds are trading for less than the value of their holdings and offering solid yields.

 Doc updated readers on his views of the muni-bond market in the December 2013 issue of his newest advisory, Income Intelligence:

 The fears that drove the selloff were overblown, Doc advised. Two factors made munis a great opportunity, he said...

 Doc told subscribers that he doesn't see interest rates headed much higher in the near future. A big jump in interest rates would coincide with big economic growth and significant inflation. He said…

Doc's top municipal-bond recommendation is trading at a discount of more than 8.5% to the value of its holdings. And it's yielding a taxable-equivalent 10%.

 If you're curious where you can collect the highest income – across all asset classes – in the market today, you must read Doc's Income Intelligence.

In Income Intelligence, Doc analyzes and recommends securities from six different income-producing asset classes. It's important to collect income from multiple sources because each of these asset classes reacts differently to various market factors.

For example, inflation pushes bond prices down (bond payments are fixed, so higher market rates mean lower prices for existing bonds). But dividend-paying blue chips are one of the best ways to fight inflation... A company like Coke can raise its prices faster than inflation. And in many cases, these companies also increase their dividend payments at a faster rate than inflation.

 And in Income Intelligence, Doc has developed a simple set of strategies he calls "trading for income," which precisely time when you should be in the various income-producing assets. His timing strategies can mean tens of thousands of dollars of extra profit in your portfolio each year.

If you're ready to build a more robust income-producing portfolio, click here to learn more about Income Intelligence...

 World Dominating Dividend Grower Intel (INTC) is one of our favorite dividend-paying blue chips. And shares of the global chipmaker are up nearly 3.5% today after analysts from investment banks Jefferies and JPMorgan upgraded the stock.

Jeffries analyst Mark Lipacis said he believes Intel's processors could be 50% cheaper than its competitors' in a year, allowing the company to gain market share... And he says the company's gross margins are bottoming. Intel is his top large-cap stock pick today.

Christopher Danely from JPMorgan upgraded the stock because he believes the PC market – which has declined as smartphones and tablets gain popularity – will "remain relatively stable" this year.

 In the September issue of The 12% Letter, editor Dan Ferris told readers why he wasn't worried about the decline of PCs:

 He also explained how you can compound your returns by buying and holding shares of Intel... The company has raised its quarterly dividend from $0.05 per share in 1993 to $0.225 today. When you adjust for stock splits... that's a compound annual growth rate of 22.6% over 21 years...

 In yesterday's Digest, we discussed what's happening in the Spanish economy. We asked Stansberry International co-editor Brett Aitken, who lives in Barcelona, for his opinions on the market.

In short, Brett said things are improving... Sentiment is up and borrowing costs are down. Spanish stocks, as measured by the iShares Spain Fund, hit a two-year high this week.

 And today, Spain announced its gross domestic product (GDP) grew in the fourth quarter at its fastest pace in almost six years. Spanish GDP rose 0.03% in the three months ended December, up from 0.01% in the previous quarter.

"For the first time since the start of the crisis, we are in a different scenario," said Luis de Guindos, Spain's economy minister.

 For more on Spain's improving economy (and a bit about a stock Brett believes will benefit), read yesterday's Digest.

 New 52-week highs (as of 1/13/14): Altius Minerals (ALS.TO), PowerShares Chinese Yuan Dim Sum Bond Fund (DSUM), Energy Transfer Equity (ETE), Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND), Marvell Technology (MRVL), Sturm, Ruger (RGR), Constellation Brands (STZ), and Virginia Mines (VGQ.TO).

 In today's mailbag, comments about New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's "bridgegate" and a question on what's driving stock prices higher. Send your questions and comments to feedback@stansberryresearch.com.

 "I have been at odds with the [Governor Christie] at times, but I listened to his conference with the media on Jan. 10. I totally believe him and will give him every chance he needs to continue to work for the good of America. Besides that, my opinion about the media to be total liberal idiots, have been confirmed once again. Does God hear our cries for America or what???

"If I did not believe all the advice I received from Stansberry since I joined in 2006 or earlier (I could not believe the predictions at first), about the road America was embarking on, I would not own today: a foreign bank account, a home paid off in a foreign country, where I now live, since two years ago, when we retired, own silver and gold, received the best cancer treatment at the age of 76 for my husband (the time to die, according to the new health law). My husband is well, they caught everything in perfect timing, which would not be the case under the new law.

"I do not trade anymore, do not need it anymore, we are financially very comfortable, which was not always the case. But I keep my Alliance subscription, for sentimental reasons; and of course checking on the guys that they continue to treat people the way they have done for me so successfully.

"Thank you all for the excellence and integrity in what you do. PS. this might sound very strange, but Christie often reminds me of Porter, controversial/contrarian, brazenly honest, cocky, hard-working and doing whatever it takes to get there. Even Porter apologized when he screwed up, and that my friends, is amazing." – Paid-up subscriber Paula Zina

 "Your 1/10/14 Digest: The other side of your argument, not that I do not disagree with your analysis. Might it be the dollar's value is falling, not that stock prices are rising. For example, I have visited countries where as soon as a citizen of the country that is printing fiat money get their paycheck they go buy a tangible asset; bricks, sand, cement, rebar, a window, food, etc. They do not save cash or bank deposits because they will not buy as much tomorrow.

"I travelled in Turkey in the 1990s, one day I traded U.S. currency for Turkish Lira at a travel agency, $800 U.S dollars got me 100,000 lira, one week later, another $800 U.S dollars got me $160,000 lira. Hyperinflation for printing so much money. They explained that did not save the Lira, they spent it immediately to get hard goods.

I think that is a possible explanation why people are buying a piece of company (stocks), the company represents hard assets (real estate, equipment, etc.) and earnings, holding cash (other than real silver and gold coins) will buy less tomorrow." – Paid-up subscriber Lee Hawthorne

Goldsmith comment: Yes, exactly... The Fed's policies, which debase our currency, are meant to drive people from dollars into riskier assets.

Regards,

Why I'm not selling any stocks short right now…

 Some traders are selling companies short to hedge their portfolios right now (in particular, stocks with absurd valuations). Short-selling, as we've described before, is essentially a trade that profits when a security falls in price. The idea of using short-selling as a hedge is that in a broad market decline, the gains from your short positions would offset the losses you take on the stocks you own (your so-called "long" positions).

 But because the stock market's primary trend is so clearly up, I (Brian Hunt) personally would not sell short right now. Expensive stocks can always get more expensive.

 But for those who are interested in making bearish bets or shorting… you can find some absolutely stupid valuations out there – like 3D Systems (DDD), the 3D-printing company we discussed in yesterday's Digest.

 Also, Internet retailer Amazon (AMZN) is trading at a high multiple to its cash flow. Amazon is a fantastic company. It's the most dominant retailer on the Internet. But it's vulnerable to a correction. It has more than doubled over the past few years.

Porter shared his thoughts on Amazon in the January 10 Digest.

 Social networking company Twitter (TWTR) is another stock with an absurd valuation.

 If you have the time and expertise, short-selling some of these names could work out. But I think for most folks, simply avoiding these high-priced, risky names is the best idea.

It's hard to make money shorting when the Federal Reserve has the money pumps on at full blast... and when the primary trend is up. It's not impossible. But it is out of the area of expertise of most people.

– Brian Hunt

Why I'm not selling any stocks short right now…

The market is at all-time highs... And many equities sport outrageous valuations...

Despite this, S&A Editor in Chief Brian Hunt isn't selling anything short today. He explains why in today's Digest Premium.

To continue reading, scroll down or click here.

Stansberry & Associates Top 10 Open Recommendations
(Top 10 highest-returning open positions across all S&A portfolios)

As of 01/13/2014

Please note: Securities appearing in the Top 10 are not necessarily recommended buys at current prices. The list reflects the best-performing positions currently in the model portfolio of any S&A publication. The buy date reflects when the editor recommended the investment in the listed publication, and the return shows its performance since that date. To learn if a security is still a recommended buy today, you must be a subscriber to that publication and refer to the most recent portfolio.