Tommy Lasorda once said, “The best possible thing in baseball is winning the World Series. The second-best thing is losing in the World Series.” He added, “When we win, I’m so happy I eat a lot. When we lose, I’m so depressed, I eat a lot. When we’re rained out, I’m so disappointed I eat a lot.” Mr. Lasorda didn’t let his circumstance alter his mood. He recognized the beauty of playing baseball regardless if his teams won, lost or were rained out. His two favorite days were managing when the team won and managing when they lost.
When I’m asked about how the market is performing, I’m not sure how to respond because up days and down days both provide excellent opportunities to investors. Of course, everybody likes to make money from a rising market. When stocks are rising consumer confidence is high and people feel good about their wealth and they spend money.
When the market is falling, people feel depressed and frightened because they see their assets dropping in value. When stocks fall, investors lose confidence and spend less money.
Should it matter if stocks are rising or falling? Over time, the answer is no. Stocks have risen about 73% of the time since 1926 and 54% of the time they’ve been the best performing asset class.[1] Since 2009 the S&P 500 Index has risen 267%, averaging 14.15% per year. It has not had a losing year since 2008, including this year.
A winning percentage of 73% is pretty good, but what about the remaining 27%? The market has finished in negative territory 27% of the time since 1926 and we have experienced some doozies. The market fell 43% in 1931, 35% in 1937, 26% in 1974, 22% in 2002, and 37% in 2008. Despite these disruptions, the market has averaged 10% per year for almost 100 years.
When markets drop, fear rises. However, when stocks fall you have an opportunity to buy great companies at better prices. Investors loved Amazon at $2,050.50 but hated it after falling 26% to $1,520. Why? Amazon was the same company on October 17 at its high as it was on October 30 near the low. If the market rises most of the time, why not use down days to add stocks to your portfolio? Instead of fearing a drop, get excited that you can now add great companies to your account.
As I mentioned, the S&P 500 has been the top performing asset class 54% of the time, meaning 46% of the time another investment is doing better. In 2008, long-term bonds soared 26%. Last year emerging markets climbed 35%. No trend lasts forever, so a diversified portfolio is recommended so you can take advantage of all global markets.
A globally diversified portfolio of mutual funds with a mix of 60% stocks, 40% bonds has generated an average annual return of 7.5% for the past 20 years despite the lost decade from 2000 to 2010.[2] A $100,000 investment in 1998 is now worth more than $424,000.
To stay invested for the long haul and to benefit from the rise in global markets, you need a plan. Your plan will align your goals, risk tolerance, asset allocation and investment selection. With this alignment you can enjoy the up days and tolerate the down ones. Your plan will keep you focused on those things that matter to you and your family most.
I like up days and down days, so, to me, the market is always doing well regardless of the daily moves. Markets have been rising and falling for centuries, so take advantage of up and down days to generate wealth for you and your family.
Man, I did love this game. I’d have played for food money. It was the game… The sounds, the smells. Did you ever hold a ball or a glove to your face? ~ Shoeless Joe Jackson (Ray Liotta – Field of Dreams)
11/12/2018
Bill Parrott is the President and CEO of Parrott Wealth Management located in Austin, Texas. Parrott Wealth Management is a fee-only, fiduciary, registered investment advisor firm. Our goal is to remove complexity, confusion, and worry from the investment and financial planning process.
Note: Investments are not guaranteed and do involve risk. Your returns may differ than those posted in this blog.
[1] Ibbotson® SBBI® 2015 Classic Year Book
[2] Dimensional Fund Advisors 2018 Matrix Book