Market Overview Looking at this picture makes me sick. There are very few days when you can see almost every sector in the red. If that’s not a sign of a bear market I don’t know what else is. I do have to say that I was not expecting that kind of sell off today. In fact, if you listened … Read More
Are You Making Money?
We teach our day trading desk, SMB Capital, in New York City to check to see which stocks they are making money in. I supposed a new prop trader reading this might say, “How could I not know that? Or that seems like a complete waste of time.” You would be surprised. The human mind is a funny thing. It does not … Read More
Missed Opportunity
One of the things I take great pride in is understanding the potential moves that may occur on any given day. This applies equally to stocks that I may be trading as well as the market in general. Today, I was unprepared for the large bounce that occurred in the market during the final 90 minutes of trading. Currently, US … Read More
Go Home Flat
We teach our day traders at SMB Capital to flatten out before the Close. We do so because they are learning how to trade and are not ready to take positions for extended periods of time. At the start of your career you should learn how to trade. Not load up on a position and hope for the best. Well … Read More
That’s a Good One Mr. PhD
It must be good to be a PhD quant for a hedge fund with plenty of money to spare. It is no secret that PhD quants get paid very well for the value they add to a fund. The funny thing is that a vast majority of these geniuses will hardly ever be good active equity traders. Yes thats right, … Read More
Talking Yourself Out of the Market
So everyday when the trading session begins in New York I pride myself in being able to gauge what kind of day it might be and base my aggression and ultimate moneymaking potential on that judgement. Some of the factors that I use to base my judgement on are the volume and potential moves of stocks that are in play. … Read More
Film Time
One great tool that is used on our desk is a screen recorder that allows us to record our trading in real time for later review and critique. This is a lot like game-time (or practice) films that any athlete is familiar with. The quote was always “the films don’t lie” as your were captured in slow motion missing that … Read More
wicked oil
I am spending my fourth of july weekend in Boston visiting my college roommate. While at a BBQ last night I got a chance to speak with a few wicked smart MIT kids. Not surprinsingly these kids have an IQ comparable to the price of oil but when it comes to the stock market most make the same mistakes as … Read More