When to Take Profits | Stock News & Stock Market Analysis - IBD (2024)
When to TakeProfits
You don't need to hit home runs to win the investing game. Focus on getting base hits. To grow your portfolio substantially, take most gains in the 20%-25% range.
Though contrary to human nature, the best way to sell a stock is while it's on the way up, still advancing and looking strong to everyone.
As IBD founder William J. O'Neil says, "The secret is to hop off the elevator on one of the floors on the way up and not ride it back down again."
So after a significant advance of 20% to 25%, sell into strength. When you sell like this, you won't be caught in heart-rending 20% to 40% corrections that can hit market leaders.
Why 20%-25%?
Typically, growth stocks tend to advance 20% to 25% after breaking out of a proper base, then decline and set up new bases, and in some cases resume their advances.
So in most cases (see the 8-week hold-rule exception), you're better off locking in your gains to avoid watching your profits disappear as the stock corrects. And you can potentially compound those gains by shifting that money into other stocks that are just starting a price run.
By following this disciplined approach, you'll regularly nail down the kind of solid gains that lead to large, overall profits in your portfolio.
This simple calculation shows how effective following the 20%-25% profit-taking rule can be.
Here's how it works: Take the percentage gain you have in a stock. Divide 72 by that number. The answer tells you how many times you have to compound that gain to double your money. If you get three 24% gains — and re-invest your profits each time — you will nearly double your money. It's much easier to get three 20%-25% gains out of different stocks than it is to get a 100% profit out of one stock. Those smaller gains still lead to big overall profits.
The 20%-25% profit-taking zone is based on the stock's ideal buy point. That may differ from your own purchase price.
As we saw in How to Buy Stocks the ideal buying range is from the ideal buy point up to 5% above that price.
So let's say you bought 2% above the ideal buy point. If the stock then goes up 20%-25% from the ideal buy point, your profit would be 18% to 23%. See the chart below for an example of how this works.
The 20%-25% Profit-Taking Rule in Action
View the chart markups below to see how — and why — you want to take most profits once a stock is up 20%-25% from its most recent buy point.
Though contrary to human nature, the best way to sell a stock is while it's on the way up, still advancing and looking strong to everyone. As IBD
IBD
Investor's Business Daily (IBD) is an American newspaper and website covering the stock market, international business, finance and economics. Founded in 1984 by William O'Neil as a print news publication, it is owned by News Corp and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Investor's_Business_Daily
When a stock is going the right direction, your decision making is not as easy. How long should you hold? Here's a specific rule to help boost your prospects for long-term stock investing success: Once your stock has broken out, take most of your profits when they reach 20% to 25%.
The 3–5–7 rule in trading is a risk management principle that suggests allocating a certain percentage of your trading capital to different trades based on their risk levels. Here's how it typically works: 3% Rule: This suggests risking no more than 3% of your trading capital on any single trade.
What is the 3 5 7 rule in trading? A risk management principle known as the “3-5-7” rule in trading advises diversifying one's financial holdings to reduce risk. The 3% rule states that you should never risk more than 3% of your whole trading capital on a single deal.
The 8-week hold rule, developed by Investor's Business Daily (IBD), states that if a stock gains upwards of 20% within 1-3 weeks of a proper breakout, it should be held for eight weeks, as such stocks often become the market's biggest winners.
To make money in stocks, you must protect the money you already have. That brings us to the cardinal rule of selling. Always sell a stock it if falls 7%-8% below what you paid for it.
The 2% rule is a risk management principle that advises investors to limit the amount of capital they risk on any single trade or investment to no more than 2% of their total trading capital. This means that if a trade goes against them, the maximum loss incurred would be 2% of their total trading capital.
It is not a hard and fast rule, but rather a guideline that has been observed by many traders over the years. The logic behind this rule is that if the market has not reversed by 11 am EST, it is less likely to experience a significant trend reversal during the remainder of the trading day.
While it can be a lucrative venture for some, it is also known to be a high-risk activity. This is where the 90 rule in Forex comes into play. The 90 rule in Forex is a commonly cited statistic that states that 90% of Forex traders lose 90% of their money in the first 90 days.
The Rule. If, after trading outside the Value Area, we then trade back into the Value Area (VA) and the market closes inside the VA in one of the 30 minute brackets then there is an 80% chance that the market will trade back to the other side of the VA.
Welcome to the Rule #1 Strategy, where we delve into the essence of successful investing through the principle of Rule #1: Avoid losing money. This foundational concept is akin to the Hippocratic oath in medicine, focusing on the importance of 'first do no harm.
The 15-15-15 rule for mutual fund investing has three parts to it: The Investment: You should invest Rs 15,000 per month. The Tenure: The total of your investment should be 15 years. It means that you will invest Rs 15,000 every month for the next 15 years.
Some traders follow something called the "10 a.m. rule." The stock market opens for trading at 9:30 a.m., and the time between 9:30 a.m. and 10 a.m. often has significant trading volume. Traders that follow the 10 a.m. rule think a stock's price trajectory is relatively set for the day by the end of that half-hour.
When To Sell And Take A Loss. According to IBD founder William O'Neil's rule in "How to Make Money in Stocks," you should sell a stock when you are down 7% or 8% from your purchase price, no exceptions.
Always keep in mind the best time to sell the capital during the day at 10 am. Because of that time market open, and in the morning, many investors buy stock. 10 am is opening bell for the investor in the stock market. The best day for selling your stock is Friday because Saturday and Sunday market is closed.
If you believe a company will post strong earnings and expect the stock to rise after the announcement, you could purchase the stock beforehand. Conversely, if you believe a company will post disappointing earnings and expect the stock to decline after the announcement, you could short the stock.
Investors have the opportunity to ride out some of these highs and lows over a period of many years or even decades to generate a better long-term return. Looking back at stock market returns since the 1920s, individuals have rarely lost money investing in the S&P 500 for a 20-year time period.
Key Takeaways. While holding or moving to cash might feel good mentally and help avoid short-term stock market volatility, it is unlikely to be wise over the long term. Once you cash out a stock that's dropped in price, you move from a paper loss to an actual loss.
An investor may also continue to hold if the stock pays a healthy dividend. Generally, though, if the stock breaks a technical marker or the company is not performing well, it is better to sell at a small loss than to let the position tie up your money and potentially fall even further.
If you hold a stock for one year or longer, your gain will be taxed at the long-term capital gains tax rate. But if you hold a stock for less than one year before selling it, your gain will typically be taxed at your ordinary income tax rate.
Introduction: My name is Merrill Bechtelar CPA, I am a clean, agreeable, glorious, magnificent, witty, enchanting, comfortable person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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