Some Sweet Holiday Treats From Your Friends At Money Moves

Twas the morning of Christmas when in your inbox... You got a newsletter that totally rocks! [Turn on your images.]( Some Sweet Holiday Treats From Your Friends At Money Moves ‘Twas the morning of Christmas when in your inbox You got a newsletter that totally rocks! The money never stops moving, no matter the reason. It doesn’t even slow down for the holiday season. The world’s out of butter, which totally sucks, But investing in THIS candy could make you some big bucks. So here’s some insights in the hopes your Christmas improves, Courtesy of your friends at good ol’ Money Moves! --------------------------------------------------------------- [Turn Your Images On] ["I Can't Believe There's No Butter!" Holiday Cooking Traditions Fall Prey To Inflation]( Shawn Ambrosino Crap… How did I become the “doom and gloom” guy for Money Moves? I swear, I’m not a pessimist by nature. In fact, anybody that knows me personally would most likely categorize me as an “optimistic realist,” so I really don’t understand why so many of our conversations have turned dark these days. Yet…here we are. I can’t tell if I’m feeling the general malaise that many Americans are feeling when it comes to the economy, or if I’m just ahead of the curve. Either way, I apologize for the negative nature of our little talks here. The silver lining is that you can’t say I didn’t tell you something bad was coming. I see my job, first and foremost as a way to keep you guys abreast of EVERYTHING that is going on in the markets, good, bad, or neutral. My other job here is to give you solutions to the bad things on the horizon. As I said, I want you to be informed, and forewarned is forearmed, after all. Even when news is bleak, I want to make sure you can prepare yourselves for the coming storm and at least feel like your money is safe. So, since I’ve somehow become “that guy” for the moment…let’s just roll with it. The End Of Cookie Season As We Know It? So…Inflation. As a military buddy of mine once said, “we’re in the s**t now.” There’s not one aspect of our financial world that this ugly aspect of a flagging economy hasn’t touched. We’re paying more today for things than we did even in October 2021, much less December of 2020. It’s the nature of the beast. In fact, the average Christmas dinner will be costing even MORE than Thanksgiving dinners did just a month ago – but there’s another casualty of the ongoing inflation, and it’s downright criminal. For many US families, the holiday season also means “Cookie Season,” as festive cookies are one of those sweet traditions that Americans have come to know and love. [Turn Your Images On] My family used to make 3 traditional cookies EVERY Christmas: glazed anise knots, pizzelles, and traditional sugar cookies. However, many families won’t be having as many cookies—or any cookies at all—this holiday season because the cost of one of the main ingredients for these yummy treats is going through the roof. Americans are eating more butter than ever before. Per capita, US citizens consumed 6.3 pounds of this savory condiment in 2020. That’s the highest number since the Ford presidency! But butter consumption definitely peaks in the fourth quarter of every year, and we can thank all of those holiday dishes for that. Mashed potatoes, corn casseroles, and, of course, holiday cookies all call for it by the cupful. The High Price Of Buttery Goodness However, the price of butter in 2021 is SOARING. Spot wholesale prices for Grade AA butter are up about 40% from this time last year, reaching more than $2 a pound. Oh, there’s no cow shortage, and there’s plenty of milk to make it, but packing and shipping have been a challenge amid widespread labor and materials shortages. That’s forced some companies to raise their prices in order to make up for their growing costs. That being the case, some households may be forced to make the switch to vegetable-oil spreads like margarine to cut costs, even though the prices on THOSE products are rising too. What’s worse, it’s not just households that are feeling the squeeze. Small businesses are feeling it too. Small business owner Dina Cimarusti, who just opened her Chicago-based Sugar Moon Bakery in September, knows this crunch all too well, as she just paid 40 cents per pound MORE than usual for butter in early December…. But for her, subbing real butter out for margarine just isn’t an option. You can taste the difference. She said, “It’s not just butter… even my produce prices have gone up significantly since I opened. Unless I raise my prices, I’m obviously losing money.” This is what we’re dealing with, folks. And like Cimarusti, our only option is to wait it out. Of course, you can hedge your bets by investing in dairy in the meantime. There are a few publicly traded stocks out there that could offer profit opportunities for those looking to curtail their losses. Nestle (NSRGY) is one of the largest dairy producers on the planet, and you may want to give them a look. They’re Neutral as of right now in the GZF rating system, but that could change, as they’ve got volatility in their favor. [Turn Your Images On] [(Click here to view larger image.)]( ([For Nestle’s full report, click HERE]( Regardless, this holiday season may see some households tightening their purse strings a little as prices continue to soar. But don’t worry…some relief should be coming early next year as the Fed begins to hike interest rates. So, in the meantime, best to look for some safe, dairy-based opportunities like Nestle and others. And maybe leave fewer cookies out for Santa this year… --------------------------------------------------------------- [Turn Your Images On] [Looking For A SWEET Profit Opportunity? We’ve Got One…]( Shawn Ambrosino Do you have a sweet tooth? Me? Not so much. I’m a savory man, myself. Give me a nice fresh loaf of French bread and a tub of real [butter]( (preferably Kerrygold or Amish butter), and I’m in heaven. I think it’s hereditary. My Grandfather, whose name was Robert and went by “Bob,” was nicknamed “Bobby Butter” by my grandmother. As his namesake, my grandmother and mother will both call me “Shawn Bobby Butter,” because they know that I too have a penchant for that creamy goodness. Now, while I love that savory flavor, that doesn’t mean I turn down deserts. It just means that, given a choice, I’ll take savory over sweet 9 times out of 10. I do have a favorite dessert though. It’s a pear and blueberry tart that is sold at Saquella Café, this little Italian restaurant in Boca Raton, FL. When I’m feeling a bit decadent, I’ll get a couple slices for myself. I highly recommend it. However, we’re not here to talk about my eating habits. We’re talking about ways that you and I can make money in the market…but since this is this the holiday season, even a sweet tooth offers the opportunity for profits. In this time of gift-giving, many of the items in stockings or wrapped up under the tree take the form of the sweet confection known as chocolate. I like chocolate as much as the next guy… I have my favorite brands—but again, we’re not here to talk about what I like to eat to make me nice and fat. This discussion is about money-making opportunities, and sadly, my favorite brand doesn’t give us any chance to grab profits. A Sweet Stock Opportunity But do you know what does? Hershey (HSY), the biggest name in chocolatiering outside of Willy Wonka himself. This American candy icon has been in business since 1894, so they must be doing something right. We know all about their chocolate bars, the ever-present Hershey’s Kisses, and of course the classic Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup…but there’s a lot of things you may not know about the company. For example, did you know that Hershey controls 46% of the US chocolate market? That’s almost HALF! Add on top of it revenue from Hershey Park, their theme park located in the city named after the company’s founder, Milton Hershey, and you get a $4 billion-a-year company. Something else you may not know about the classic chocolate company it that COVID was actually beneficial to their bottom line. Since people were stuck at home, packaged goods were a way to send friends and family some love while everybody rode out the lockdowns. In March of 2020, Hershey’s share price was hovering around $132.50; today shares are ticking upward at almost $190 per share. And all this happened during a time when a lot of other companies lost value due to all the complications of the pandemic. That $190 share price is right around its 52-week-high of $192.66, giving the company a valuation of $38 billion, which means that, for the year, the stock is up 25.5%, up 27.7% over the past 12 months, and up 103.7% over the past five years. Now that’s how you do things during a pandemic! How The Experts Feel About Hershey Not only that, but the company also popped up on the Green Zone Fortunes Hotlist! That’s right, the very same list of stocks to watch that Adam O’Dell and Charles Sizemore put out on a weekly basis. Here, take a look at the score the GZF rating system gave them: [Turn Your Images On] [(Click here to view larger image.)]( Not bad, right? If you want to see the whole GZF report on Hershey, [you can read it here](. You may want to load up on this sweet stock yourself this holiday season. But on that note, if you’re not utilizing the GZF rating system for EVERY stock purchase, you’re doing yourself a disservice. It’s an invaluable tool, as it can give you a better look at any stock you’re thinking about buying (or selling). Try it… It’s a totally free service on moneyandmarkets.com (at least for now), and I’m betting you’ll love what you find. Until next time… Have a merry Christmas! --------------------------------------------------------------- [Turn Your Images On] Merry Christmas, Money Movers!by Ryan James We have only just begun getting acquainted over these past few weeks, but it has been a pleasure so far. The Money Moves team is super-stoked for what the future holds for us all! So, as you sit by the fire roasting chestnuts, drinking eggnog, and watching Christmas Story for the third time today, I thought it would be altogether fitting and proper to tell you a little bit more about what we do here at Money Moves. Christmas is about family, and if you’re subscribed to this email…well, that makes you family in our book! [Turn Your Images On] See, we joined forces with our friends at Money and Markets to do something a little different. We wanted to shake up the normal financial newsletter format and have some fun. With all due respect to all the other financial newsletters out there, most of them take themselves too damn seriously! As you can see, that’s not really a problem for us. We love what we do and are blessed to be able to provide you with content meant to inform and entertain you, our intelligent and loyal readers. In the economy of the 21st Century, money is always moving…and our goal is to help you make sure money—lots of money—moves its way into your bank accounts! And with the help of our brilliant financial gurus Adam O’Dell and Charles Sizemore, we will do just that! My colleague Shawn and I rely heavily on their Green Zone Fortunes stock recommendations when writing our material. They are the brains behind the operation; we’re just the guys fortunate enough to present the material to you in our own unique zany, quirky, and (occasionally) witty way. With the help of Connor, our editor, we work tirelessly to present Adam and Charles’ ideas to you in an engaging, insightful, and helpful way…hopefully without watering down their genius in the process. [To learn more about Green Zone Fortunes and how you too can take advantage of this revolutionary system, click here!]( We are the guys with a rebellious streak that don’t play by the conventional rules, and we’re just fine with that. We believe that Wall Street can be like the “popular kids” clique at school…and those of us who didn’t get invited to sit at their table have had enough. That’s why we went and made our own table…so pull up a seat, friend! Anyone and everyone who wants to join our ragtag team is welcome as we pursue higher investing earnings. It’s us vs. “the Man,” if you will. We provide you the information to help you take control of your own financial destiny. The days of forking over thousands of dollars to stockbrokers who provide you with measly returns are over. For the cost of a Starbucks latte, you can use the advice of Adam O’Dell, Charles Sizemore, and the rest of the Money Moves/ Money & Markets team to grow your own portfolio—and maybe have some fun along the way. Carpe Diem! Seize the day, fellow Money Movers! [Turn Your Images On] Ok, enough of the introduction. I know you have to get going back to that Christmas dinner with your in-laws and screaming kids. So, go ahead, raise a glass of that eggnog to the year ahead. May it be filled with kicking a** and making the Money Move! [Turn Your Images On] Merry Christmas! —Your Friends At Money Moves --------------------------------------------------------------- For more quality content like this, and to learn more about the Money Moves team, visit us at [( Privacy Policy The Money & Markets, P.O. 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