Run your profits - how ?

[bonsai]

bansir
yes of course.
that makes sense.
I suspect my trading cycle is shorter than some.
but if you get in on, say a 21 day momentum, I suggest it pays to get out on the same indicator. And catch it again on the next turn,
if it turns.
Switching horses midstream can leave you down the river without a paddle ? (to mix my analogies)

lol

 

[Glenn]

I started this thread nearly a year ago.
Would have thought there would be more interest in the matter, but that's just my view.
Clearly I was wrong. It's only money after all

Reason for bringing it up again is that it relates to CJ12's trades.
He has targets. They are Calculated TA Targets, not some arbitrary number, wishful thinking or whatever. Not based on fundamentals. He knows them in advance and posts them.
His trades are a series of steps, with money management at the start and along the way, and stops included/adjusted. i.e. What to do if the target is not hit.

I have traded in a similar way with my own calculations for a long time.
There are plenty of methods around, some already discussed in T2W and elsewhere e.g. Head and shoulders targets, PnF targets, Fibs ( e.g. www.amateur-investors.com/Stock_Target_Price.htm ) , Pivots, Elliot wave (Skimbleshanks) etc.

Worth a look imho, but then I've said that before

Glenn

 

[TheBramble]

It's probably more to do with the immensity of the question than any lack of interest - far from it I would imagine.

As mentioned above, there are as many target mechanisms as there are traders.

Fib levels, Pivot Points, vwap etc. Personally, I let the market tell me when I 've had enough. Tightening my trailing stop when momentum dies and opening up the throttle when it picks up. Eventually, my trailing stop gets hit and I'm out.

That's not to say I don't have an 'idea' or a mental target - I most usually do - and sometimes, I even let that override my trailing stop, but in general, a trailing stop works for me.

 

[Glenn]

A target then , albeit a moving one - x% or points below wherever the last high was.
Not quite what I meant of course, but if it works for you ......

Glenn

 

[DaveJB]

Fun eh?
I don't even remember the posts I see I made - then again, old age does that to you...
I assess the chart, I figure out where I think it is going (target) and this starts at "up or down" and then gets a bit more mathematical using target prediction methods like the P&F Hcount. I compare that to where I figure the price will go when it turns out I was wrong, or the market sentiment changes and drags the majority of shares along with it. That comparison of target with 'I got it wrong, I'm out of here' price is the input to my risk:reward calculation.
I might get 3 weeks into a trade, and it's going swimmingly, and the market as a whole moves due to a sudden terrorist attack, and commonsense dictates you reassess your position - but it might be that the breaking news involved the discovery of genuine fairies and the market soars... I am not going to exit just because I'm at my target, I will exit if I hit my target and see (a) Technical signals of a move against me or news info I consider relevant PLUS at least a few percent move against me. I might liquidate part of a position.
You should consider open positions and decide if they are still justified - the news changes by the second, on TA the 'White Star Line' might normally be good using a 10% stoploss, but if you just heard the Titanic hit an iceberg it is sensible to tighten the stop a little. That doesn't mean you fiddle everything on a daily basis, you're looking to say 'original analysis still holds, continue', but on occasion you'll decide things are changing and you ought to reassess risk:reward.
Basically a good position is a good position, and it should look like that - if you entered a good position and today it looks like a bad position then you should analyse it again... believing yesterday's chart rather than today's is for the religious fraternities of the world.
Dave