Market-related predictions have become a quadrennial tradition, but that doesn't mean that they're worth the ink that's spilled on them. In terms of broader trends, politics in general - and elections in particular - have minimal predictive value with respect to subsequent market (and economic) activity. Nonetheless, we'll take some time to consider what both the historical - and the more recent data might be telling us about this year's election. Word count: 787

Value investing sounds easy enough until you try it in practice and realize that cheap securities can always get cheaper and the market is not always accommodating in how and when it recognizes value over time. It’s the old line that value investing is simple, but never easy.

While it is unclear what impact the next few interest rate hikes will have on the real economy the long term impact is a different story. A more active Fed may have an enormous impact on how investors build portfolios, a development we contemplate in this article.

I’m actually short gold as a short-term tactical trade given that the Federal Reserve itching to raise rates and inflation is still very muted but, if you insist on owning gold, here's a look at 5 ways to own gold and why you might choose one way over another.

What you are about to read could give you serious heartburn, especially if you are an economist or a central banker or a retiree or just someone who has lived life playing by the rules, and now you find yourself getting no return on your savings, forcing you to save even more and work even longer.

Growth, as calculated here by taking a 2-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR), has been tremendous for the stocks on our list today, hitting 40% and above. In addition, an appetizing dividend payout is a bonus.

A popular valuation multiple within the resource industry is to take a company’s market cap and divide it by its gold equivalent ounces in the ground. This ratio gives an indication as to how pricey one company’s gold is in comparison to another's. As a reference, Barrick Gold (TSE:ABX) trades a 145 times its gold equivalent ounces in the ground, while Goldcorp (TSE:G) trades at 181x. That being said, the 5 low indebted gold stocks on our list today are trading below 55x.

It could be a whole new world for gold from today onwards when the traders and fund managers are fully back on track.

Today's article identifies 5 junior gold stocks that are currently trading at a large discount to their peer group in terms of Price/Book Value and, based on that metric, could well represent good value.

From a trading perspective, gold appears to be a buy but, unfortunately…the price of the metal moves up or down suddenly, seemingly for no reason other than a reaction to breaking news…To minimize the risk of a downside surprise in gold…[we have identified]  four gold stocks that offer long-term investors a degree of safety, and the chance to participate in …