Rocky’s Weekly Stock Picks

This week we’d recommend just kicking back and averaging down whatever dividend-paying stocks you like best, and writing covered calls where you can.

That said, here’s what we’re looking at this week.

1. TAST - $5.07/share, options trade monthly. We started buying in around $2/share, when this was low low low. Carrol’s Restaurant Group includes Burger King and Popeye’s restaurants. While BK may not be doing so well, Carrol’s has been cutting its losses. The future looks bright, just as we predicted.
   
   Not that we always hit the nail on the head, but we’re looking good here! A possible exit strategy is to sell at $10, but realistically we’ll be trying to just sell calls. It won’t take long to ROI at this point.
   
   If you didn’t get on board with us, now is a good time to buy in with the expectation that the price will sit around $5-6 for the near term.
   
   

2. YCBD.A - $3.00/share, ex-div 5/31. These are preferred shares. TD Ameritrade is calculating over a 20% return at the moment, which is only slightly more than double the realistic expectation. 8-12% is the range we’ve been realizing.
   
   While marijuana and CBD stocks are generally a hard pass for us, this is one of the few companies that is actually pulling it off. Also, the coupon value is $10. We -hope- this gets called in October!
   
   

3. GOGL - $8.26/share, ex-div 5/25, annualizing at 4.84%. This next dividend is only $0.10, down from $0.50 this time last year. We’re alright with this. Reducing dividends is a tough decision to make, but often a responsible one.
   
   We’re not going all-in, however. While we certainly expect their 81 dry-bulk shipping vessels to continue operating, the shipping industry is no stranger to drastic swings in price and profitability.
   
   

4. NOK - $4.05/share, ex-div was last month, options trade weekly. ADR fees are negligible since the introduction of the dividend a few quarters back.
   
   Weekly calls aren’t going to make you wealthy, but they will provide a steady income stream. As with most European stocks, the price tends to be pretty stable. Occasionally the price will go up, then slowly trickle downward over a longer duration.
   
   We particularly like the share price. As far as we’re concerned, under $4.50 is a discount.
   
   

5. NS.B - $22.74/share, ex-div 5/31. Preferred shares for an energy LP. This is a no-brainer.
   
   Cumulative and perpetual, obviously. Coupon value is $25, so it wouldn’t matter if a call was issued.