| |
| |
|
Stocks & Mutual Funds Information |
|
|
|
Selling Strategies - Setting a Stop Loss
Sometimes the best way of lowering exposure to risk is not to invest at all! However, when we make the decision to jump into the muddy waters of the stock market, its always a good idea to have a life jacket ready, just in case. We all have stories of that "must have" "can't lose" stock that looking back, we didn't really need to buy, and it definitely lost. So, how to best protect yourself when the markets disagree with your due diligence? Trailing stop loss. Its important to understand the psychology of investing. When we make money, there is instant euphoria. When we start to lose money, there is a sudden "deer caught in the headlights" type of emotion, which makes us unable to do the right thing. We fear that the moment we sell, will be the moment that it starts to rebound. Not only do we fear that we will be that guy who sold at the low of the day, but that we will miss out on untold fortunes because we got out too early. While this happens, more often than not, a small loss turns into a much bigger loss. Remember, a 40% loss started off as a 5% loss. So what is the best stop loss strategy? Well, we happen to have 2. One simple, one a little more complicated, but possibly more effective and capital saving. The first strategy is called a "trailing stop loss". Its simple and effective. We're going to add a small twist to it. A traditional trailing stop loss simply means that you set a percentage that you are willing to lose. For example, if you purchase 1000 shares of ABC at $5/share, you could set a stop loss at 10%. This means that if the stock dips below 10% of your purchase price ($5 - 10% = $4.50), you're out of the market and no longer risking capital. If the share price moves higher, you would set your stop loss at 10% below the closing price. If ABC moves to $5.50, you would set your stop loss at $4.95. If the stock drops below that price, you're out. By setting your stop loss at the time of your purchase, you are taking the emotion out of investing. Specifically, you are taking out the "deer caught in the headlights" emotion. This will save you grief and will save you money. If your stock moves like you think it will, you can lock in your gains automatically. Our twist to this strategy though, is to first establish the dollar amount that initial stop loss is worth, and let that dictate what your stop loss will be. Given the same example as above, your initial stop loss would be $4.50. You would only be risking $0.50 per share or $500. This represents the most you are willing to lose, regardless of which way the investment goes. If the share price moves to $7.00, instead of setting your stop loss at $6.30, (thus risking $0.70 or $700 of your money), you would set your stop loss at $6.50, which risks the same $500 you were initially willing to lose when you first started. This little twist helps you keep more of your profitable investments. Why put more profits at risk? The second stop loss strategy is, although a little more complicated, will protect more of your money. While we would love to take credit for this strategy, we found it when reading Chart Trading by Darryl Guppy. This strategy starts by looking at your overall capital, not the amount of the specific investment. For example, if you had $20 000 in your investment account, you could trade 51 times if each time you invested you put 2% of your total capital at risk. While 2% doesn't sound like a lot, lets have a look at an example. Given your investment account has $20 000 in it and you only want to put 2% of it at risk, you would be willing to risk $400 per trade. This ensures that you will have 51 chances to get it right before you run out of money. Where you set your stop loss is basically the point where you are risking $400. Given our initial example, your stop loss would be at $4.60. If the price moves from $5 to below $4.60, you have lost $400. What if you purchased 2000 shares at the same $5? Your stop loss would be then set to $4.80. Anything below that, and you have risked more than $400. If you think that you want a deeper stop loss, then you would purchase fewer shares. The idea is simple: you never risk more than the same amount per trade. As the price increases, you then change the amount of your stop loss accordingly. If the stock hits $7, you would set your stop loss at $6.60. Given our initial stop loss strategy, assuming you lost $500 each trade, you could lose approximately 40 times before you ran out of money. However, what if you purchased 2000 shares at $5 each? Your 10% stop loss would put $1000 at risk. This will lower the number of chances you have at getting it right. Its up to you how much money you are preparing to risk. Many investors think of the ways they are going to spend their profits before they are made. Its much better to think about the amount you are prepared to lose. This way, when your hard work pays off, you'll appreciate it more. On the other hand, if the market disagrees with you, you can still keep the majority of your money! Trading Penny Stocks | investment strategies for penny stocks
MORE RESOURCES:
Stocks-Mutual-Funds - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Ignore Stock Market Talking Heads You should ignore analysts on TV, the radio, the newspaper and all other TALKING HEADS when it comes to investing! What stocks do they talk about? - The same old group, every day of every year - Why? Because they don't know any better, they are sheep like the general public, repeating what every economic textbook says and every other economist tells them to say. Everyday, the same companies are highlighted on the evening news -WHY?They aren't going anywhere. Eternal Sunshine There is a current movie entitled "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind". It is about a man who has had a painful love affair and will do anything to rid his mind of those pain thoughts of a former love. Small-Cap Stocks: The Beginning of the Journey When an individual investor wants to roll up his sleeves and do some research in the pursuit of the next big winner in the stock market, the place many start is in the small cap sector.As with the other capitulation sizes (capitalization is a stock's market value), no one can completely agree on a precise definition, but corporations under $2 billion are often considered small caps. More Window Dressing Two weeks ago I wrote about what the Securities and Exchange Commission was doing to regulate the mutual fund industry to help the small investor, the "poor folks". It really added up to zero. Trading Tips No 2: The Big Lie in the Stock Market It is commonly reported that the stock market averages about 10% per year return over the long term (decades). So the investor that buys and holds a diversified portfolio of stocks or mutual funds is led to believe that their portfolio will grow by 10% per year on average. The Stock Market Investor's Worst Enemy Every stock market investor faces one primal enemy. An enemy so perverse, it will drive thousands of investors from the stock market through its ability to defeat even the most practiced investment strategy. Stock Market Insanity Let's first define insanity. It is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. Forecasting the Stock Market Every day I see in the financialsection of newspapers how to forecast what themarket will do in 6 months, 12 months, severalyears. "Ten stocks that will double in the next 6months. Mid-Cap Stocks: Asset Class with an Identity Crisis Much like the middle child, mid-cap stocks have long struggled to find their identity. Carved out from the upper echelons of the small caps and the lower end of the large caps, the mid-cap sector has a rough definition of stock with a market capitalization of greater than $2 billion, but less than $10 billion. Dividend Paying Stocks I would like to share with the reader an article printed in the financial section of U.S. Advantages and Disadvantages of Mutual Funds Outlined below are some of the advantages and disadvantages of mutual funds. Every investment has advantages and disadvantages. Inertia One of the basic laws of physics is that a body in motion will remain in motion unless disturbed by another force. What has this to do with the stock market?For the last 2 years the long-term trend of the market has been down with a few momentary deviations. Series 7 Exam What is the Series 7 Exam?If you are looking to become a licensed Stockbroker, you need to know about the Series 7.The Series 7 is a 250 question exam that when passed, licenses you to act as a Registered Representative. Is the Stock Market for You? Many people would like to diversify their portfolios to expand their holdings. Making it big in the stock market has been a dream for many people who want to strike it rich. Time Out Are you paying any attention to your retirement savings? Do you have it in cash or an account with a broker? Maybe you have a professional manager who is investing your money as you add to it every month.Is your account increasing in value every year? If it isn't why are you letting anyone else invest for you? There is no point having a loser in charge of your money. Stock Trading - Daddy, Why Arent We Rich? One Saturday morning, while he was sitting at his computer studying the market, David's 7 year old daughter came up, tugged at his shirt sleeve, and said, "Daddy, why aren't we rich?" He looked his child in the eye, and thought to himself, what a great question - Why aren't we rich?As she stood there expectantly waiting for an answer, he struggled to come to terms with the realization that, although he had focused his complete attention on trying to create wealth for more than 10 years, he had never actually made any real headway.He had bought and sold many Stocks and several properties over those years, but had never made any real money. Direction It is difficult to make money in a bull market, but what do you do when you are in a bear market? In what direction should you go not only to make money but to protect what you have from loss?Almost immediately investors think what should I buy that will help me reach my financial goals? This answer may not be the one you will like. It is really not important what you buy as long as you know the rules of the game - the stock market game. Trading Stocks -Never Forget About A Past Trade We all know that emotions control every decision that an investor makes in any type of money related vehicle. Whether is be the stock market, real estate, art work or antiques, emotions ultimately set the final price on both sides of the transaction. Gold Fever Right now there doesn't seem to be any "gold fever". Very few are out looking to strike it rich in this sector. My Neighbor Got A New Car I don't know what kind it is, but I saw iton TV running full speed along the shore (I don'tlive near the shore) throwing up spray or maybeit was that one climbing up the steep mountaintrail thru the mud, rocks and snow. Veryexciting.
|
Sponsors: Chicago Paving Contractor | Remanufactured VTL | Religious Statues | Search Engine Specialist
