Investing News

When it comes to your retirement accounts, comparing how much you have saved with the national average can help you benchmark your savings. For most employees, an employer-sponsored 401(k) account is a significant piece of their retirement planning. Knowing how the balance in your 401(k) stacks up against the averages for your age range may

Cars are indispensable for most of us who don’t live in New York City. While it’s common knowledge that car expenses traditionally rival only dwelling expenses in the standard household budget, is it true that cars have gotten correspondingly more expensive over the years? Henry Ford achieved business immortality by democratizing the car. Of his

Operating margin and EBITDA are two measures of a company’s profitability. They are related but provide investors and analysts with different insights into the financial health of a company.  Operating margin, which is expressed as a percentage, is a measure of the revenue left over after accounting for expenses. It is the amount of profit that a

Inflation can have a negative impact on fixed-income assets when it results in higher interest rates. Central banks, like the U.S. Federal Reserve, typically have inflation targets. When inflation begins to exceed the desired threshold, officials will increase interest rates. Since the interest payments from existing fixed-income assets become less competitive relative to newer higher

An asset-protection trust can help seniors in need of constant nursing care pay the substantial costs of assisted living or skilled nursing facilities and at-home help. Average daily nursing home costs can exceed $297 and can be significantly higher in certain metropolitan areas, according to a 2021 Genworth survey. Medicare, the federal health care program

Bonds and interest rates have an inverse correlation: as interest rates increase, bond prices fall. However, the more the Federal Reserve hikes interest rates, the better news potentially for municipal bond investors. Municipal bonds (or “munis”), long touted as among the safest, most tax-efficient debt investments available, were hit hard in the wake of the

Free on Board Shipping Point vs. Free on Board Destination: An Overview International commercial laws have been in place for decades and were established to standardize the rules and regulations surrounding the shipment and transportation of goods. Having special contracts in place has been important because international trade can be complicated and because trade laws

Life insurance can be a valuable financial tool to provide for your loved ones after your death. Having life insurance can help you plan for the future and bring you peace of mind. While life insurance can offer a number of advantages for many people, but others may have reasons why buying life insurance may

When you change jobs, you generally have four options for your 401(k) plan. One of the best options is doing a 401(k) rollover to an individual retirement account (IRA). The other options include cashing it out—and pay taxes and a withdrawal penalty, leave it where it is—if your ex-employer allows this, or transfer it into

Investors’ demand for exchange-traded funds (ETFs) continues to grow. ETFs are a cost-effective way for novice investors to begin investing in the stock market and they remain a great diversification tool for experienced investors. The attraction of ETFs is owed to their lower fees, as well as the lower risks they provide through broad diversification.

Individual investors have continued to surge into the market in 2021, with the pandemic playing a key role in giving people the time to take control of their portfolios. Comparing costs has become less straightforward, however, as most online brokers have eliminated the trading fees that were the easiest method of direct comparison. To evaluate

If you’re an investor in real estate, especially in a large metropolitan area, you might have considered opening your rentals to Section 8 tenants. This federal program assists those with low incomes to find housing by subsidizing a portion of their monthly rent. As a landlord, there are pros and cons to accepting housing vouchers.

Founded in 2010, Pinterest (PINS) is a San Francisco, CA technology company that is best known for its pinboard-style photo-sharing website. Users leverage the platform to create and manage theme-based photo collections of hobbies, events, or anything else of general interest. Pinterest went public through and initial public offering in April 2019 and the stock

Mortgage rates were generally up in tiny increments Thursday. The 30-year average added just a basis point, though the 15-year average saw a minor dip. Today’s National Mortgage Rate Averages The 30-year average climbed a single basis point Thursday, rising to 6.04% and keeping it above the notable 6% threshold. On June 14, the flagship

If you are taking a protected leave of absence from work under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), you may need to fill out FMLA forms to satisfy your employer’s requirements. The act was signed into law by President Clinton in February 1993. It requires that certain employers allow eligible employees access to unpaid time

As U.S. Fed Chair Jerome Powell prepares to discuss monetary policy to try and tame inflation that could slow the U.S. economy, Chinese officials outlined new stimulus measures to give the world’s second-largest economy a boost. China’s State Council rolled out a trillion yuan package in economic stimulus. The latest $146 billion in assistance will

Engaging in a child custody battle can be time-consuming and expensive for all parties involved. The average child custody lawyer may cost anywhere from $1,200 to $4,500 to hire, though the cost may be higher if the case drags out over an extended period of time. When one parent makes significantly less than the other

Australia might not be on people’s radar as a hotbed of entrepreneurial activity, but several business magnates have made their mark in the Land Down Under. Here we briefly catalog three of Australia’s most noteworthy and successful entrepreneurs including John Ilhan, Rupert Murdoch, and Katie Page. Key Takeaways Australians have made their mark on the

As of June 2020, the trailing twelve months’ net profit margin for retail or commercial banks was approximately 13.9%. This is a sharp decrease from June 2019, when the net profit margin for commercial banks was 27.6%. For comparison, the net profit margin for commercial banks in June 2018 and June 2017 came in at

The average trailing twelve months’ net profit margin for companies in the telecommunications sector, as of Q2 2022, is approximately 12.5%, according to CSIMarket.com figures. Net margins typically average about half of a company’s operating profit margins. Gross profit margins for the sector can run as high as 70% to 80%, but extremely high overhead