Archive Category: Max Profit Alert Archive

My thinking and view of the market hasn’t changed much since the detailed review of our portfolio I shared last week. That means all we need to do this week is remain patient and see how the market moves our open positions. Of course, I’m always on the hunt for our next new position. The stock market has moved higher over the past week. This uptick came after a sharp move lower the week before. This “seesaw” (aka “mean reversion”) action is quite typical in a bear market. As we say, nothing moves in a straight line. The recent strength in stock prices means our bearish trades aren’t going our way for now.

I don’t recommend we make any new trades today. It’s been a month since I shared a detailed review of our portfolio with you. It’s time for another look at our open positions. First, let’s rip off the (psychological) Band-Aid and discuss our five “write-off” positions… As I explained in last month’s portfolio review, a handful of our positions are in deep drawdowns.

The cause of the 2008 financial crisis bear market was excess speculation in the U.S. property market — namely, house “flipping” and super sketchy mortgage lending, which then got packaged into even sketchier mortgage-backed securities. An informed person (not an expert) on the street would likely blame this bear market on excess speculation in “technology growth” stocks. Tech stocks beat most other sectors from 2009 to 2020. And then in the wake of the 2020 “coronacrash” and COVID lockdowns, technology stocks crushed the competition.

Last week, I shared why we aren’t exiting any of our open positions despite the S&P 500’s official cross into bear market territory. That still holds this week. I’ve been scanning the market for any new buying or shorting opportunities … but there are no compelling trades to make at this point in the market cycle. As such, we’ll spend this week waxing philosophical about the “typical” bear market. Spoiler alert: There is no “typical” bear market…

In a lot of ways, I’m no different than each of you. I put my pants on one leg at a time. I check on our open positions multiple times a day. And I feel annoyed when a majority are in the red. That said, as someone who “eats, sleeps and breathes” the markets, day in and day out, for over 20 years now … I’ve learned a few things that, perhaps, set me apart.