Why You Should Never Hold on to Your Positions Beyond a CertainGood day, traders.
I would like to take this opportunity to advise both new and experienced traders that holding onto your position indefinitely is not recommended. Based on percentage calculations, the return required to recover to break even increases at a considerably faster pace as losses grow in size due to compound interest. After a loss of 10%, a gain of 11% is needed to make up for it. When the loss is 20%, it takes a 25% gain to return to break even. To recover from a 50% loss, a 100% gain is required, and to reach the initial investment value after an 80% loss, a 400% gain is necessary.
Investors who experience a bear market must understand that it will take some time to recover, but compounding returns will aid in the process. Consider a bear market where the value drops by 30% and the stock portfolio is only worth 70% of what it was. Suppose the portfolio increases by 10% to reach 77%. The subsequent 10% gains bring it to 84.7%. After two further years of 10% gains, the portfolio reaches its pre-drop value of 102.5%. Consequently, a 30% decline requires a 42% recovery, but a four-year compounding rate of 10% returns the account to profitability.
I will be doing a second part of this post on the idea of "DOLLAR COST AVERAGING" (DCA).
The math behind stock market losses clearly demonstrates the need for investors to take precautions against significant losses, as depicted in the graphic above. Stop-loss orders to sell stocks or cryptocurrencies that are mental or limit-based exist for a reason. If the market is headed towards a bear market, it will start to pay off once a particular loss threshold is reached. Investors occasionally struggle to sell stocks they enjoy at a loss, but if they can repurchase the stock or cryptocurrency at a lesser cost, they will like it.
Never stop learning! I would also appreciate hearing your thoughts and opinions on the topic in the comment section.
Thank you.
