Author: Money Mechanics

Key Takeaways Sandisk today joined the S&P 500, making it the latest company to join the benchmark U.S. index. The company’s shares have been big gainers this year, pulling its market capitalization north of $31 billion. Shares of Sandisk climbed Friday as the data storage company joined the benchmark S&P 500 index. Sandisk’s (SNDK) stock jumped close to 11% Friday morning before paring back much of its early gains. Its shares, which have been lifted by demand driven by the AI boom, are among the hottest around this year; the company was spun off from Western Digital (WDC) in February,…

Key Takeaways Many Asian countries offer beautiful landscapes, delicious food, rich history and culture, and a friendly atmosphere for retirees seeking destinations abroad.Monthly living costs in these countries range from under $300 to $600 (excluding rent)—up to four times cheaper than in the U.S. Your dollar can stretch three to four times farther in Asia than in the U.S. In India, you can live comfortably on about $270 a month, excluding rent. In Thailand, about $600 a month gets you beach access, excellent street food, and world-class health care. And in Vietnam, $350 covers your monthly expenses in a country…

The pace of medical advances for older adults is slowing, according to experts who say research is being throttled by government budget cuts, federal worker layoffs and frozen or canceled grants.“These cuts to research are going to have a significant negative and enduring impact on the health and well-being of all Americans and, perhaps disproportionately, upon older individuals,” says James Appleby, CEO of the Gerontological Society of America. The society surveyed members who are experts in aging research and found 71% saying their work has been harmed.Medical research for a wide variety of maladies plaguing older people — from Alzheimer’s…

Question: I’m retiring with $3.3 million at age 65 and want to avoid tapping my portfolio’s principal. Is this possible?Answer: The average 65-year-old American had about $609,000 in retirement savings in 2022. If you’re retiring with $3.3 million at 65, you’re clearly well ahead of the game.But no matter how much money you manage to bring into retirement, you may have a nagging fear of running out. And you’re not alone. From just $107.88 $24.99 for Kiplinger Personal Finance Be a smarter, better informed investor. CLICK FOR FREE ISSUE Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free Newsletters Profit and prosper with the…

(Image credit: Getty Images)Who would have believed at the turn of the 21st century that there would be such a thing as a trillion-dollar stock? (Or that the Dow would reach 36,000, for that matter?)At the end of 2000, the most valuable company was Exxon Mobil (XOM), with a market capitalization — price times shares outstanding — of roughly $302 billion. That’s one-fifteenth the value of Nvidia (NVDA) today. Just counting to a trillion incredibly fast, with no bathroom breaks, would take 32,000 years, according to the Q&A platform Quora.com.In August 2017, however, I wrote, “It may be a matter…

Each week, in our Ask the Editor series, Joy Taylor, The Kiplinger Tax Letter Editor, answers questions on topics submitted by readers. In the Ask the Editor August 8 column, she answered five questions on Roth IRA conversions. This week, she’s looking at six more questions on the topic. (Get a free issue of The Kiplinger Tax Letter or subscribe.)1. Annual limits on Roth IRA contributionsQuestion: I am thinking of doing a Roth IRA conversion for 2025, but my income is above the limit for making annual Roth IRA contributions. Can I still do a conversion?Joy Taylor: Yes. Although there…

(Image credit: Getty Images)To help you understand the trends surrounding AI and other new technologies and what we expect to happen in the future, our highly experienced Kiplinger Letter team will keep you abreast of the latest developments and forecasts. (Get a free issue of The Kiplinger Letter or subscribe.) You’ll get all the latest news first by subscribing, but we will publish many (but not all) of the forecasts a few days afterward online. Here’s the latest…It’s a repeat of the 1990s heyday for information technology sellers. “AI is driving the strongest IT spending growth since 1996,” according to…

Key Takeaways Wall Street analysts have missed S&P 500 index targets by significant margins almost every year over the past decade. Even the Fed and top economists routinely miss their own forecasts, yet investors often place too much trust in those who sound sure of themselves, a long-known cognitive bias. Overconfidence, confirmation bias, and herd behavior make both analysts and everyday investors believe they can predict what’s fundamentally unpredictable. As we head into the final month of the year, Wall Street’s top strategists are unveiling their 2026 forecasts, complete with confident predictions about where the S&P 500 index, a representative…

Key Takeaways If you’re a retiree with an RV, consider checking out Rapid City, South Dakota. It has a balanced combination of outdoor recreation, arts, restaurants, and medical facilities.Located in southwestern South Dakota, Rapid City is near major destinations like Mount Rushmore and Badlands National Park.With about 80,000 people, Rapid City’s home values are slightly below the national average. Are you considering living the recreational vehicle (RV) life? No wonder—RVs appeal to many retirees seeking a close connection to nature while balancing freedom and flexibility alongside a lower cost of living. If you’re thinking about packing up and living out…

Key Takeaways Major insurers, including Aetna CVS Health, UnitedHealthcare, and Blue Cross Blue Shield, are reducing their 2026 Medicare Advantage (MA) offerings. Counties across Minnesota, Ohio, Illinois, and Georgia will lose the most plans, while those in Alabama, West Virginia, and Kansas will gain plans; but overall, the country will see a net loss. Areas with smaller populations of people over 65 tend to be hit hardest. If your MA plan is canceled, you can switch to a new one or Original Medicare during this open enrollment season, following helpful guidelines outlined below. People on Medicare Advantage (MA) need to…