investments

Annuities have a mixed reputation, but one variety --
immediate annuities -- have been steadily growing. Does their
increasingly popularity make them right for you, or are there
better ways to build a secure income stream?

Most people look for one of two things from their
investments. They either want something that will provide
them with a

stable stream of income, or they want an investment that
will

grow in value over time. If you can discover a single
investment that gives you both income
andgrowth potential, you've pretty much found the
Holy Grail of investing.

Keep good records in case you get sued or audited -- or if
you just hope to learn from past experiences. It's for that
last reason (and, frankly, the second ... curse you, IRS!)
that I keep meticulous records of my investments.

As fundamentals-focused long-term investors, Fools never
base an investment decision on the daily gyrations of the
market. But the market's daily price movements can be useful
when looking for new stock ideas for further research, or to
keep tabs on watch-list stocks.

Hey there, Fools. I've summoned our Motley Fool CAPS community once again to highlight a few of Monday's biggest winners among the stocks with top ratings of four or five stars:

The FDIC is broke -- running out of cash even as the number of failing
banks it insures is rising. With $10.4 billion backing $4.8 trillion in
assets at the end of June, the agency is, as a doctor might put it, not
compatible with life.

What is an option to buy half of Elan (NYSE: ELN) and Biogen Idec's (Nasdaq: BIIB) multiple sclerosis drug, Tysabri, for an undetermined amount of money worth?

What's really left to say about Bank of America (NYSE: BAC)? Alex Dumortier called it the worst stock for 2009 earlier this year and more recently looked at the bank's interest in paying back the government. Morgan Housel scratched his head over whether the stock is a buy, while I spewed vitriol in Ken Lewis' direction and wondered why hedge fund manager John Paulson made a massive bet on the stock.

There will be no SamDisk or Sansung. Korean technology giant Samsung has officially dropped its plans to acquire American gadget maker SanDisk (Nasdaq: SNDK).

There will be no SamDisk or Sansung. Korean technology giant Samsung has officially dropped its plans to acquire American gadget maker SanDisk (Nasdaq: SNDK).