When we go to the circus we see a trapeze artist working on a high wire or swing either alone or with other athletes. They know what they are doing because of constant practice, but every once in a while there can be a mistake, even a small one that can cause one of them to fall. The result is death or serious injury when they hit the ground.
When you look below them you will see a net. Thank goodness. No one wants to see them get hurt. As expert as they are they take precautions. In almost every profession or athletic event there is some kind of safety net available and this is true in the stock market for all investors. There is never any reason for investments to fall to the point the investor is hurt. Is there a net that breaks that fall and keeps the investor from losing all or part of his money? Yes there is.
It is called a Stop Loss Order. Brokers don't like them and never recommend them because it means he must watch your account and the average broker has too many customers to do that. However, you can instruct him to place an Open Stop Loss Order that means it is automatically in every day protecting your shares from loss. If you are not allowed to place this kind of order you should move your account to another brokerage house. They obviously don't care about protecting your money.
Let me give you an example. Suppose that last year you bought Cisco Systems (CSCO) at $50 per share. The first question to ask yourself is how much am I going to risk in case this stock goes down instead of up? You put up $5,000 and bought 100 shares. How much are you willing to risk? $500. $1,000. More? Well, today it is about $15 so if you did not have a loss protection you would be out $3,500 and that is too much. The Stop Loss Order is your Safety Net! If you don't have one you can be seriously hurt. One of the basic rules is never to lose more than 10%. Look at what you own to see if you would have more money today if you had placed a Stop Loss Order just below the highest closing price for your stocks. I know you would be money ahead.
There are literally thousands of stocks that have lost 80% and 90% of their value. For those poor people (pun intended) who did not have a safety net they are badly hurt and some are just about dead. Sorry, folks, it did not have to happen.
I don't care what you own. Now you should immediately look at everything in your portfolio and decide where you need to place those stops. If you don't put a net in place you could be hurt.
Al Thomas' book, "If It Doesn't Go Up, Don't Buy It!" has helped thousands of people make money and keep their profits with his simple 2-step method. Read the first chapter at http://www.mutualfundmagic.com and discover why he's the man that Wall Street does not want you to know.
Copyright 2005
shuttle to Midway Beardstown .. Lockport Chicago limo O’HareSuccess in small cap & micro cap stock trading like... Read More
Every day I see in the financial section of newspapers... Read More
Financial markets provide their participants with the most favorable conditions... Read More
Has your broker been calling you recently with the "great... Read More
Last time we looked at the real performance of the... Read More
The bear market that showed up at the end of... Read More
A few years back ? it seems like an eternity... Read More
I feel that an investment strategy in the stock market... Read More
This is a rather simple strategy with which I am... Read More
Inverted interest rates? What's that? Who cares? Even if you... Read More
The trading method you employ to approach the stock market... Read More
One of the great "secrets" of successful people is discipline... Read More
Wall Street has been preaching the doctrine of Buy and... Read More
Money management starts with protecting your capital, realizing profits and... Read More
You've decided to try your luck at trading stocks or... Read More
You should ignore analysts on TV, the radio, the newspaper... Read More
After the publication of the first part of this two... Read More
Day trading is all about making buy and sell decisions.... Read More
For weeks, no, months we have been bombarded with nothing... Read More
I use the P/E ratio as a secondary indicator for... Read More
Refuse is a serious issue in any society, about as... Read More
Index Fund Trading can be one of the most profitable...or... Read More
Where is the beef? Or maybe it should be where... Read More
I have a 2-car garage. There are nice shelves on... Read More
Quick, look out the window. It's raining. No, the sun's... Read More
Green Bay Hummer H2 SUV rentals ..Everything you invest in has risk so you want to... Read More
In 1960 an engineer working for a watch company in... Read More
Today we are inundated with tons of information about the... Read More
Mutual funds and brokers are always preaching not to buy... Read More
Question: How does it get better when it gets worse?Last... Read More
Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a... Read More
Wall Street has been preaching for years and years to... Read More
Several times each month I am solicited by various market... Read More
Every year I go to the Money Show in Orlando,... Read More
For some "long term" would mean holding a stock position... Read More
Profitable day traders recognize that momentum trading is among the... Read More
Three little pigs went to the market to stock up... Read More
If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck... Read More
No, this is not a symbol for some Latin number.... Read More
When most analysts, financial planners, fund specialists and investors try... Read More
It takes a total mental commitment to the task. It... Read More
What a great statement!I just heard someone use it in... Read More
If you are fed up with early redemption charges and... Read More
Spread trading is a technique that can be used to... Read More
Let's first define insanity. It is doing the same thing... Read More
I don't know what kind it is, but I saw... Read More
Every day on CNBC-TV they show a 200-day moving average... Read More
How is it possible that trash Companies are posting less... Read More
From the book 'The Stockopoly Plan' by the author Charles... Read More
Wouldn't it be nice if you were only in the... Read More
Stocks & Mutual Fund |