market crash

Every Share Sold is Bought

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We talk a lot about cycles, but there’s one truth to them that we could come right out and say more often: there are no ups without downs, no downs without ups. Night and day. Yin and yang. Buy and sell.

People sometimes lose sight of this reality, especially when talking about the waves of selling that engulf the markets from time to time, cratering prices. They might say, “Long term investing is all well and good, until the financial crisis comes and wipes out half your account—that happened to me.”

In the last crisis (2007–2009), the markets recovered and went on to post gains for many years. When I inquire whether their accounts have bounced back since then, some reply, “Of course not! Everybody had to sell out to save what was left!”

Life is too short for most arguments, isn’t it? We move on to other topics. But the fact remains: even on the worst days in the depths of the crisis, when the market was suffering large percentage losses, we believe every share sold was also bought. There are two sides to every transaction, a buyer and a seller. Not everybody “had” to sell out.

In the fall before the market bottom in March 2009, noted investor Warren Buffett wrote in The New York Times that the economy was likely to be larger—and company profits higher—ten and twenty years in the future.1 Therefore, he was buying.

We felt the same way.

But it may feel as if everybody is selling. In the crisis, one of you told us it was no longer possible to talk about the economy or markets at coffee in the mornings, because every single person there called you a fool for staying in or told you all your money would be lost. Another said the same thing about the Friday night dinner crowd—you felt lonely. But you persisted.

It is popular lore among financial advisors to presume that people are really not capable of investing effectively, pointing to behavioral economic studies. You know we have worked hard to find you, the exceptions: people who either have the native good sense to invest effectively or who can learn how to do it.

We believe that every share sold is also bought. We have a choice, which side of those transactions to be on. Clients, if you would like to talk about this or anything else, please email us or call.

Notes and References

1. Warren Buffett “Buy American,” The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/17/opinion/17buffett.html. Accessed: September 24, 2018.

The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.

All investing, including stocks, involves risk including loss of principal. No strategy assures success or protects against loss.

 

The “Crash” of 1987: A Contrarian View

© Can Stock Photo / konradbak

The 30th anniversary of The Crash of 1987, the biggest one day drop in the stock market ever, recently passed. Mainstream commentary made much of the 20+% loss on the day, the panic, the shock, and whether such a drop could happen again.

People sometimes learn the wrong lesson from experience. (In our opinion, many investors learn the wrong lesson.) The so-called crash is another case in point.

First let’s put the event in context. The S&P 500 stock index went from 242 at the beginning of the year to 247 by the end of the year, with some commotion in between1. There was no apparent damage to long term investors when the dust had settled—provided one adopted sensible time horizons by which to judge it.

In fact, the next year saw a gain of 12% in the S&P 500, plus dividends1. The five years following 1987 notched a cumulative gain of 76%, plus dividends. This is why it might make more sense, in our opinion, to refer to The Great Buying Opportunity of 1987.

Those with unproductive perspectives measure the loss in the crash from the high peak the market reached earlier in the year. The S&P had jumped 39% in just a few months, even though interest rates were rising sharply and corporate earnings had stalled. From that frothy peak to the lowest closing price after the ‘crash’ was a drop of 36%1.

Clients, many of you were evidently born with the common sense to know that your perspective on events is a matter of choice. You choose productive, effective ways to consider things. Some of you weren’t born that way, but were able to learn how. Our work is intended for you who may benefit from it, not those who insist on counterproductive investing attitudes and behavior.

We believe the productive way to think about 1987 is as a year where the market saw a modest gain, before rising more significantly in subsequent years. The wealth-corroding way to think of 1987 is as a terrifying rollercoaster with damage so great no one could stay invested. You choose your perspective.

The true lesson of 1987 for effective investors: avoid stampedes in the market. Go placidly amid the noise and haste. That you are able to do this is why we believe you are the best clients in the whole world. Email us or call if you would like to discuss your situation in more detail.

1S&P Dow Jones Indices, http://us.spindices.com/indices/equity/sp-500

The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. All performance referenced is historical and is no guarantee of future results. All indices are unmanaged and may not be invested into directly.

Stock investing involves risk including loss of principal. The payment of dividends is not guaranteed. Companies may reduce or eliminate the payment of dividends at any given time.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index is a capitalization weighted index of 500 stocks designed to measure performance of the broad domestic economy through changes in the aggregate market value of 500 stocks representing all major industries.

All investing involves risk including loss of principal. No strategy assures success or protects against loss.