What To Do About Stock Market
Meltdown? How About Nothing?
Issues & Insights,
by
The Editorial Board
Original Article
Posted By: PageTurner,
3/10/2020 8:09:44 AM
No doubt about it, it’s a bad time to be fully invested in the stock market. Prognosticators abound, yet no one really knows what the stock market will do next. What’s happening, and what should you do?
First, let’s recap Monday’s market mayhem.
Before the market even opened, stock futures for S&P 500 index flashed a huge 7% decline. That triggered so-called “circuit breakers,” rules that require trading to be suspended 15 minutes to prevent a panicked rush for the exits. That’s always a bad sign.
Equally bad, the Dow Jones Industrial Average tanked more than 2,000 points, off 7.8%
Reply 1 - Posted by:
Historybuff 3/10/2020 8:17:21 AM (No. 341799)
Not me - stocks are on sale - I'm putting a buy order in for XOM it paid me an 87 cent dividend this morning at 12:01.
11 people like this.
If you are an investor in a 401k or something along those lines....nothing. Things will bounce back. Let your fund managers do the work and worrying.
If you are a player and were waiting for a good sale to put in more $$, go for it.
10 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
bpl40 3/10/2020 8:55:21 AM (No. 341829)
At 29,000, stocks were way too highly priced compared to short term earning expectation. Corona virus slowdown and low oil prices intensified that fear. Hence the Monday collapse. I have a degree from one of the top B schools but am no market expert .However, some educated guessing indicates the market may go down some more but ease up to a level of a reasonable P/E say 16/17. As the economy is basically sound, after the threat of a socialist takeover recedes, earnings will rise when 29,000 will represent a reasonable P/E ratio. That market level will be more real and sustainable.So, don't panic, ride it out.. Restrict major expenses to essentials like house upgrade or car replacement (think Honda rather than BMW) or kids' education. Avoid expensive vacations, luxuries that can be postponed. .Above all don't forget to vote Republican in November. Otherwise all is lost!
19 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
Chuzzles 3/10/2020 9:27:00 AM (No. 341851)
If this is indeed about the oil, not the Bug, then shame on the media for lying like this. Filthy, corrupted snakes. The Branco cartoon from last week I think it was, summed up the democrats/media perfectly. Donkey in a hazmat suit spraying fear not honesty all over the country.
7 people like this.
Don't you love hysteria...coronavirus...oil...stock market decline...? Americans thrive on hysteria anymore. Used to call them "panics". Call this is "The Great Panic of 2020".
1 person likes this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
jeffkinnh 3/10/2020 10:19:14 AM (No. 341897)
"The stock market’s price system gauges millions of investors’ guesses for what the economy will look like in six to 12 months. Then it adjusts prices accordingly. ... traders moving in and out of positions to capture profits"
Sorry. The market didn't drop 2000 points because "millions of investors" took unified action. It dropped because large fund managers or single holders of huge blocks of stock are playing the market or they have automated sells that were triggered.
Consider this, the fundamentals of most companies are NOT going to change all that much because of the listed causes. Sure the travel & tourism business will take a hit from the Coronavirus but in 4 months than is very likely to be under control. Oil companies may sag as well. Beyond that, the best companies to be invested in are STILL the best companies to be invested in. For example, if you're looking at tech stocks, the best is still the best. The way money is made in a volitile market is to get out at the top and buy back in at the bottom, a dangerous game to play but if you control a big enough investment, you can actually influence the moves and create the situation you want.
The problem today is that it's not a company game, which is what the market used to be, it's a MONEY game. Manipulating money cleverly pays off.
For the average investor, the best bet is to ride the wave, down and then up. It can be pretty scary. That's why so many individuals have their money in CDs that pay almost nothing. They demand safety and cannot handle the uncertainty. In the long run, they lose because inflation nibbles away at their earning next to nothing money. They may sleep better at night because if they were in the market right now they would be panicked.
However, if you want your wealth to really grow, you need the average 6+% earning power of the market. You either have the temperament to deal with the volatility or you take a Valium as needed.
7 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
dman 3/10/2020 10:58:51 AM (No. 341944)
Patience. Grit. Timing ...
.. then BUY !!!
2 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
DVC 3/10/2020 11:15:27 AM (No. 341959)
Having a broad range of stocks in your portfolio, and not reacting to volitility is the way not to get too affected by short term moves.
I purchase a range of mutual funds, each in the top few percentage of performance over the last 5 years in their market sector. During an annual review, any who have fallen out of the top 25% in their sector are replaced by another in that sector which are still in the top few performers in that sector. If one sector has done well, and is now "over represented", some is sold and spread to the other sectors, keeping the chosen sector allotments roughly as intended.
This means that you have dozens of teams of the smartest, most PROVEN successful fund managers working for you. THEY do the work, you just make sure you stick with the winning teams, unless they prove that they are no longer winners by poor performance. And stay broadly invested. In recent years, I have put some substantial fraction into guaranteed instruments, potentially forgoing upside benefits for guarantees against downside risk, something a more mature investor should consider.
But when the times get rough. Ignore the market volatility, just don't pay attention if you have good mutual funds, and a broad number of them. Those folks running the funds will figure out what they need to do, and all you can do meddling and fiddling is almost certainly make it worse.
If you are still actively trading individual stocks, something I quit doing about 15 years ago, time to buy quality that is "on sale".
1 person likes this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
HotRod 3/10/2020 11:17:25 AM (No. 341963)
Oil is the driver of the sell off, but the virus is responsible for the diminished demand for oil. Airlines, cruise ships, cars all are consuming less because of reduced travel.
The old saying: ''Buy low, sell high!'' must not be taught any more. When stocks fall, people panic and sell (low.) Then when it goes back up, they buy (high.) No wonder so many people lose money!
5 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
Strike3 3/10/2020 12:45:09 PM (No. 342060)
Yep, time to buy.
1 person likes this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
oldmagnolia 3/10/2020 1:16:12 PM (No. 342094)
If you are a long term investor, stay put.
0 people like this.
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