Market View: Cost of Missing the Market’s 10 Best Days

The value of long-term investing is an important principle to remember as volatility impacts the market. Although the value of stocks may change suddenly, carefully consider your portfolio and how it relates to your goals before making any changes. Making decisions based on short-term performance, or in an attempt to time the market, could backfire.

If $10,000 had been invested in the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index on January 1, 1980, it would be worth $121,029 on June 30, 2008. If the same investment missed the ten best-performing days (out of 7,192 days), it would be worth $70,745, slashing your return by 42 percent.

Many investors who try to time the market end up selling low and buying high. It’s better to be patient, recognizing that short-term market changes are far more difficult to predict than long-term trends.

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This illustration was compiled using information from outside sources. These companies are not affiliated with ICMA-RC. This information is provided for educational purposes and is not intended to be construed as or relied upon as investment advice. The performance data quoted represents past performance. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.