Invest With Sarge: How to Decide When to Sell a Stock
Invest With Sarge: How to Decide When to Sell a Stock
Sep 18 08:00
Follow Stephen “Sarge” Guilfoyle on moomoo
Dear Mooers,
We have a sensitive but crucial topic up for discussion this week "How to Decide When to Sell a Stock". A question all investors must face at one point or another. But in this show our hosts will share some perspectives, scenarios, and terminology to an often intimidating aspect to one's investing journey.
Join the live on Wednesday, September 18 @ 9:00 AM ET
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You are welcome to ask any questions related to this topic. Stephen will address your inquiries during the live broadcast. Submit a complete question under this post, and you'll receive 100 Moo points, plus another 1,000 if we use your question on air.
[Stephen's Full Bio] Stephen "Sarge" Guilfoyle is the founder and President of Sarge986 LLC, a family-run trading operation. An NYSE floor trader for over 30 years, Guilfoyle has served as the Chief Market Economist for Stuart Frankel & Co., the U.S. Economist for Meridian Equity Partners, and as a Vice President in Block Trading and Investment Banking with Credit Suisse over the years. Guilfoyle earned his nickname "Sarge" while serving as an actual sergeant in reserve components of the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Army while simultaneously working on Wall Street. He self-identifies as a day trader, long-term investor, and anything. He believes in removing emotion from the decision-making process and trusting the data. Follow Stephen “Sarge” Guilfoyle on the moomoo community for a mix of fundamentals, technical analysis, economic commentary, and trading ideas.![]()
Dear Mooers,
We have a sensitive but crucial topic up for discussion this week "How to Decide When to Sell a Stock". A question all investors must face at one point or another. But in this show our hosts will share some perspectives, scenarios, and terminology to an often intimidating aspect to one's investing journey.
Join the live on Wednesday, September 18 @ 9:00 AM ET
[Stephen's Full Bio] Stephen "Sarge" Guilfoyle is the founder and President of Sarge986 LLC, a family-run trading operation. An NYSE floor trader for over 30 years, Guilfoyle has served as the Chief Market Economist for Stuart Frankel & Co., the U.S. Economist for Meridian Equity Partners, and as a Vice President in Block Trading and Investment Banking with Credit Suisse over the years. Guilfoyle earned his nickname "Sarge" while serving as an actual sergeant in reserve components of the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Army while simultaneously working on Wall Street. He self-identifies as a day trader, long-term investor, and anything. He believes in removing emotion from the decision-making process and trusting the data. Follow Stephen “Sarge” Guilfoyle on the moomoo community for a mix of fundamentals, technical analysis, economic commentary, and trading ideas.
Disclaimer: Moomoo Technologies Inc. is providing this content for information and educational use only.
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102362254 : Question 1 - When is it best to sell a well-performing stock due to sector rotation?
Question 2 - Is crowd sentiment, such as sudden surges in retail investor activity, ever factored in as a signal to sell a potentially overhyped stock?
Question 3 - How do economic changes like interest rates or geopolitical risks impact the decision to sell a strong stock?
mr_cashcow : Hello again! Ah yes the dreaded question of when to take profit or take a loss![[undefined]](https://static.moomoo.com/nnq/emoji/static/image/default/default-black.png?imageMogr2/thumbnail/36x36 "undefined")
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My question is what are some key considerations that we should look out for to help us better decide when to do so?
Lazy Cat Invests : 1. How do we decide when to divest from a stock of a company that is being acquired?
2. What are the signals for exit when a company has a change in leadership?
CNNT : I started investing 3 months ago. Initially, my strategy was to have a reliable passive income, so I acquired reliable dividend stock to fill up my portfolio (mostly consumer products, long established companies). But along the way, I have since realised that I'm actually more risk-taking than I thought. Now, after 3 months of poking and probing, my wish list of stocks is almost completely different from what I have stocked up (such as under-valued tech stocks, REITs, leveraged options ETFs, which can help me earn faster but not long term positions).
Should I switch out, aka selling off my old positions, to enter these new ones? I have made any money yet on my original positions because (1) slow earning (2) USD big devaluation against the currency I hold in the past 3 months
ilovesoya : When to sell a stock- based on technical or fundamental analysis?
Wonder : How to assess whether a company's failing performance is interim or a fundamental change or headwinds disrupting its business? For eg Intel has now procured design chip business with Amazon and is getting federal funding..what will you be looking at to determine the company's ability to turnaround and whether to sell?
Lucas Cheah : What key financial metrics or signals should long-term investors prioritize when deciding whether to sell a stock, especially if the stock has been performing well but market conditions or company fundamentals begin to shift?
104323807 : "How to decide when to sell a stock" can mean 3 different things;
-When to take profits?
-When to short sell a stock?
-When to cut losses?
(I will answer the last one, "when to cut losses?" because learning how not to lose money is equally as important as how to earn money)
One hard rule that I like is cutting losses at/around 7%. It easy to implement and takes emotion out of the question.
The rationale is that once a loss exceeds this 7% threshold, it becomes significantly harder to recover the lost capital. For example, if an investment declines by 7%, it only needs to increase by about 7.5% to return to its original value. However, a 20% loss requires a 25% gain to recover. This approach helps to preserve capital by preventing deeper losses, as larger declines become increasingly difficult to recover from.
104323807 : Do you guys keep a trading journal? If so, please share any good tips on how you format your trading journal.
I think its a good habit to keep a trading journal. A journal allows you to record the rationale behind each trade, and also weigh the bull and bear thesis. If the original thesis behind your investment proves to be flawed, it’s probably time to sell. By reflecting on your reasons for buying and evaluating whether those conditions still hold, you can make more informed decisions about when to exit a position.
Jerry Kronenberg : We'll be starting momentarily. Submit your questions for Sarge now!
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