What’s the most important investment metric an investor can focus on in the midst of a downturn? My vote is cash flow. It’s actually a great thing to track during any economic cycle – it just becomes especially important when a firm’s sales and profits head south when the business climate turns turbulent.Don’t just take my word for it. A quote attributed to market guru Michael Mauboussin is that “great fundamental investors focus on understanding the magnitude and sustainability of free cash flow.”Income-minded investors, such as retirees looking to supplement their social security checks with, could have some real opportunities to pick up bargains during the current market dip. It’s obviously difficult to determine if we already have or will soon hit bottom in the current downturn, but it’s fair to say that many companies will survive with their dividend payments intact.Using TipRanks database, we've narrowed down three stocks that have...
(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump said he’s planning to call Vladimir Putin on Monday to discuss Russia’s oil price war with Saudi Arabia and the global response to the coronavirus pandemic.“Russia’s got a big problem with that too, with the virus, so we’ll be talking about that, but literally that’s my next call,” Trump said during an interview on “Fox & Friends.”The U.S. president said he does not want to see the energy sector “wiped out” over low oil prices brought on by the conflict between Russia and Saudi Arabia.Oil recovered some losses after tumbling to a 17-year low. West Texas Intermediate crude traded $1.12 lower at $20.39 a barrel at 9:04 a.m. in New York, after sinking as low as $19.92 earlier.Trump’s view on the the dispute marks a shift from earlier this month, when he likened the plunge in oil prices to a “tax cut” for Americans.(Updates with markets...
