first of all, i would say to anyone who doesn't keep detailed trading records, you're probably not serious about trading! i used to not keep records, but now i do. it will also help when tax time comes around. anyway, here's some of mine: average win: 6.27% average loss: 2.85% win rate: 57.14% expectancy: 2.36% average holding period: 4.86 days i've only been keeping records this detailed for about a month, but you can still see i'm doing decent.
My guess is the average holding period for most of us here is closer to 4.86 minutes than 4.86 days. Isn't the best reason to log trades is so that you can go back and figure out if your losing trades all have things in common and your winners too. Those stats you posted, I assume you also keep track of other things like which sectors you trade better than others, what time of day it was, why you bought or shorted it, were the futures ripping, was their news that affected it, was the cash index trading at a premium or discount to fair value at the time, etc, etc. Or I guess since most of your trades are overnights you are looking at other daily type setups. Prehaps you could share some setups that have been working well along that time frame since you've been keeping records for the last month. Mostly shorts I guess. Cheers.
if those numbers are after commission and you can do that every month of the year then you will beat all the indexes for sure. Pretty good I'd say.
Gekko, What product(s) are you trading? And what size? Am I correct in assuming these are real and not paper trading?
yes, i do keep track of more information than what i posted, but i didn't feel like copying everything. you're right, stats are also good so that you can look back and analyze your winning trades, as well as your losing trades. as for keeping track of where the futures were, etc. i actually don't pay any attention to that. since my time frame is generally multiple days, the futures will be moving all around anyway. i just focus on my trades and the general indexes. also, i try to have both longs and shorts. for example, today was a nice reversal day, but the shorts i carried over from last week still didn't get exited..even though i felt like doing it myself. they may get exited tomorrow, but at least i will be sticking to my system...and they'll still be profitable trades anyways. i'd also like to say that i think my numbers will be better in the future. i say this because my system does not cap winners. although huge winners won't happen every day, i know they will every now and then..and the stats i posted were only like a month's worth.
i only trade stocks right now. i don't know too much about options or futures, etc. i'm 24, so i have time to learn that stuff eventually. as for size, my account is under $25k..FOR NOW. the stats are not paper trades or some backtested hypothetical system done on tradestation or anything..they are current real positions.
Very nice results. It seems like we have similar trading styles. My numbers, while not quite as impressive, pretty much mirror your numbers. This has prompted a few questions. 1. How long of a period have you traded with these results (more importantly how many trades)? 2. Do you trade ETF's or just stocks? 3. What kind of timing indicators are you using to go long, or go short? I ask this because I think I need to improve my timing for entering positions. As it is now, I generally do most of my trading at the end of the day (which I missed today because of Datek). Keep up the good work, Matt
i have to leave in a few min. but i'll answer your questions briefly.. the stats i previously posted were only based on about a month's worth of trades. i have traded this way for longer than a month, but only recently have i started to keep track of everything in this manner. in a few more months i will have more results..and i believe they'll be better too. i almost always trade stocks only...for now anyway. as for going long or going short, i usually try to be about 50/50 long and short..but sometimes i will be heavier on one side based upon my experience of watching the indexes, etc. as for the timing of the individual trades, here's a big clue.....i use no popular indicators.