At a casino, the odds are always with the house. When it comes to extended warranties, the same rule applies, but the sellers win with different bets -- that you'll never use them, overpay for them, or fail to understand what's covered.

They say everyone has a book inside them, maybe even the great American novel. The biggest hurdle besides talent, of course, has always been getting it published. But no more. Anyone can self-publish now on places like Amazon (AMZN) or Smashwords.

Shark Tank panelist Daymond John and Jim Cramer have compiled their second annual list of hot stocks for their Lifestyle Brand Index. Over the last year, the index has outperformed the Standard & Poor's 500 index (^GPSC), 34 percent to 18 percent.

Most mall anchor stores are struggling. Sears Holdings' sales in particular have declined for years. It has consistently lost customers to Kohl's and J.C. Penney and its younger customers have begun to prefer Macy's.

Bridezillas stampeding for wedding dresses is nothing compared to the shopping frenzy going on in Silicon Valley. Shopaholics Google (GOOG) and Facebook (FB) have been loading up on start-ups.

The "Dogs of the Dow" theory involves buying equal amounts of the 10 Dow stocks that had the highest dividend-to-price ratio during the previous full year. It has become a popular investing strategy thanks to its simplicity.

News of note on today's market action and earnings reports.

What happened today in the markets

The worldwide market for natural and organic food is growing by double digits annually. Eating healthy can also be healthy for your portfolio but should you choose Annie's, Hain Celestial, or Whole Foods Market?

American Eagle's Aerie intimates division is brutally honest with its new image. Is a new emphasis on real women enough to overcome a warts and all lackluster 2013?

Amazon plans to push the delivery envelope by sending packages before you order them through its use of Big Data. Just how will this work if it does work?

Three companies were singled out by analysts in January before the ICR Exchange as their top restaurant picks for this year.

Several analysts named Bloomin' Brands, the owner-operator of of Outback Steakhouse, Bonefish Grill, and Carrabba's Italian Grill, a top restaurant pick for 2014. But is Bloomin' all that and a bag of chips?