Post #49: My trading system flowchart

Lately, I am making an effort to make my trading as systematic as possible.  My goal is to set definite trading rules that will eliminate any second-guessing and emotions in my executions. Below is an overview of what I am currently doing.  I decided to show it in a flowchart form.

The very first step is to asses the general market's trend. This is where I will decide whether the market situation is favorable or not. It is also where I decide if how much of my capital will be put into position and how much will stay liquid. For example, in a down-trending market I might want to be only 25% in position and stay 75% in liquid cash.

Stock selection is where I decide what criteria will be factored in before a stock enter my watch-list. I am using both technical and fundamental factors. For example, I like stocks that are showing tight volatility ranges with increasing volumes. Fundamental factors includes P/E ratios, float % and many others.

Specific entry criteria is where I intend to enter a position. One example is a good upside breakout of a tight ranging stock with above average volume. I am looking for various set ups and I'm using a specific entry point strategy to avoid confusion in my execution.

Risk management is where I set up entry stops, position sizing, trailing stops and my risk tolerance. This is where I also scale my position up to avoid getting hurt in whipsaws. I believe this is one of the most important process that traders should focus.

Selling is where I set specific rules on when to sell my positions. Example of this is when the price hit my trailing stop or when the price is showing some topping signs.

Last, but also the most important part of my system, is the feedback and trading review part.This is where I review my trades to see if there's any part of the system that needs to be revised for improvement. No system is perfect, that's why constant feedback is important.

That's how simple my system will be. Although revision is expected, I will try to always keep it as simple as i intended it to be. There is no need for an over-complicated system, but at the same time you also need specific rules and system if you want to be successful in this endeavor. Otherwise, your trading will be driven by your emotions and it will become just some random buy and sell transactions without any clear justification.

Post #47: End of May 2018 numbers

This is a bitter pill to swallow, but I have to accept that this kind of market is not really my forte. I'm down -10% YTD and in my opinion is experiencing a really bad drawdown. I'm focusing all my efforts now on risk management and keeping may capital safe.

With PSEi ranging between 7600 - 7800, I'm still very wary of putting a big chunk of my portfolio in positions. My risk management involves smaller sizing, smaller risk tolerance and tighter stops. I am hoping to see a clearer market trend when the index gets out of this 7600-7800 range, hopefully with an upward bias. Otherwise, for me it is either play tight defense or get out of the marekt entirely.

Post 46: Sample trading plan $TUGS (last update Feb. 23,2018)

Today, I am posting one of my trading plan. I was so focused on my trading and other stuff that I wasn't able to post something new here. So here it is, at least just to keep the blog updated.

This sample trade will also show how simple I do my trading.

I made a simple sketch below on how I'm gonna trade $TUGS.

This plan only includes my entry and cut loss price. For more details on how I sized my position and manage my risk, please read here. 

Please take note that I put a 20% TP only for reference (not actual), as I usually like to trail my stop so my selling price is not fixed. Read here why I don't like using TP (Target prices).

Want to know how I did last year? Read it here. 

I will try to keep this post updated as often as I can.

Notes: IMO, Immediate index support is at PSEi 8800, and anything below PSEi 8500 will cause me to lighten up my positions significantly.


Cheers.

Update: February 2, 2018

After seeing some strenght with the stock yesterday, I added $TUGS to my portfolio with an average price of P5.02/share. The breakout from an ascending triangle set up coupled with some significant increase in volume triggered my BUY signal. The stock reached it's 52-week high of P5.70 today but closed at P5.37 (+2.48%) mainly due to profit taking. I am currently putting my stop at P5.00. Next week, we'll see if the breakout is confirmed and the stock will start a new trend or if it is just one of those false breakout case.

Re: Index (PSEi). I'm glad the index went back above 8800 again. My stop will still be at PSEi 8500.

Update: February 13, 2018

So $TUGS broke its P5.30 resistance and is now at around P5.80. I moved my stop at P5.30 breakout point. I'm a a little uneasy that $TUGS volume is not increasing at this breakout, so I'll be watching this stock in the next few days to see if it will show life. I'm currently at approx +15% gain but I am willing to let the stock do its thing for now. Let's see..

Update: February 19, 2018 

chart by www.bigcharts.marketwatch.com

$TUGS showed some good price action today, reaching its 52-week high of P6.09. The lack of bigger volume is concerning though as it looks like it has no interest from fresh buyer to push the price higher. A breakout of P6.00, with volume spike, is an oppurtunity to add more position or even as an entry point for new buyers. I'll put my stop just below P5.50 as it will mean that the stock broke down of its trading range and might not be ready for a breakout yet. Profit at approx 16%.

Update: February 23, 2018

After almost 3 weeks of holding $TUGS I sold it with a meager profit of approx 8% when it hit my stop at below P5.50. The index is not really doing well below 8500, so I am expecting most of the stocks to correct as well. I believe trades should end either with a big profit, a small profit or a small loss; that's why I am putting a lot of emphasis on my trailing stops. Avoiding big losses is the key to longevity in the market.

$TUGS will remain on my watch list for now.

Cheers.

Post 45: Lessons from my top 5 trades last year (2017)

They say that we can learn a lot of lessons reviewing our loses and mistakes, while it is accurate, I also believe that we can learn a lot from reviewing our winning trades.

Below are my top 5 winning trades last year. While I am happy with my profits, my numbers showed I only have approx 21% average profit last year. (See previous post) Quite low if you ask me.

Reviewing my trades helped me identify problems in my process. Because of it I can implement some improvements that will hopefully improve my results this year.

1. $ROCK

chart by www.bigcharts.marketwatch.com

I noticed an increased in volume and a slight uptrend mid-November that triggered my buy signal. Sold it when it broke the trendline Dec. 15, 2017. I timely avoided a turn of trend in this trade.


2. $MAC

chart by www.bigcharts.marketwatch.com

Bought it September when I saw a tightening price volatility with an increase in volume. Sold it Around November 22 with a 41% profit when it broke my trailing stop.

This stock perfectly stayed above 50 SMA, which is usually my last line of support in a trade. I could've hold it and be alright by now. It looks ready to take another breakout this year, I'll be closely watching.

Also, I could've seen this stock earlier if I am diligently doing my research. I could've bought it around June or July of 2017. This reminds me to do my research and screening diligently so that I wont miss many buying opportunities in the future.

3. $WLCON

chart by www.bigcharts.marketwatch.com

Bought this twice in May with an average of P5.42/share. Held on to it until I am convinced that it broke the 50sma on October 11, 2017.

Starting now, I will respect the 50sma as my last line of support. I guess I was hoping for the price to go up once more and give me the opportunity to sell at a higher price. Hope is not a strategy. Follow the plan.

4. MRP

chart by www.bigcharts.marketwatch.com

Here is another one that I bought a little late. January 2017 is where the ideal entry should be. I guess I'm not religiously doing my screening by that time again. (reoccurring mistake).

Another mistake I made is when I sold this at P8.68, a safe distance from any of my trail stops. I could not explain this one, I don't know why I sold this at this price. I could've squeezed a little bit more from this trade if only I have just defined my selling strategy.

It is very evident by now that I need to work on my selling strategy. Something I am planning to improve this year.

5. $IMI

By now I have to admit that I have a very faulty selling strategy. This one is a good run from my entry price of P6.91 to my selling price of P13.30 in August.

Why do I feel like I sold too late this time? I know I did.

The stock broke 50SMA and I sold it. I followed my plan but I still lost a big chunk of the profit and I felt bad about it.

Conclusion

It is very clear by now that I should be working on my selling strategy. I don't have the perfect system yet and this trades proved it. I am currently working on a selling strategy to at least improve my profit's average percentage.

I will also be allocating more time in screening potential winners for me to catch them in their earlier stages. Nothing beats a lower average price.

My batting average of 52% (13 out of 25 trades) is good enough, but I need to catch these winner earlier and learn how to sell them. A concrete plan with a win-win result is on the drawing board.

By reviewing my trades,  I know where my mistakes are. Knowing my mistakes will help me create a specific plan to address each of them.

My next post will be about my top 5 losers.

Post 44: Summary of my 2017 Performance

Post #41: $PRMX out, bought $EW

Quick updates:

Hit my trailing stop in $PRMX when it went below P7.00 today. I took out a small profit. This will stay in my watchlist for now.

chart by www.bigcharts.marketwatch.com

Moved my funds to $EW as it broke P34 resistance. Expecting it to fill the gap just below P34 but not lower than it, or stop loss will be initiated.

chart by www.bigcharts.marketwatch.com

Current stocks in Portfilio: $EW,$STI,$MAC,$MEG

$STI stop @ P1.60 breakdown
$MAC @ +58%, stop at P22 breakdown
$MEG  @ +15% , stop at around P5.30 breakdown

Good luck to us all!

Alex

Post #40: Sold $PGOLD, bought $TUGS

Update: November 10, 2017 - Sold $TUGS, its volatility doesn't fit my trading style. 

After two months of holding $PGOLD, I decided it is too slow of a stock and sold it for only around 5% gain. I just realized that maybe I waited too long for it to do something. That's my problem, I'm too patient in trading.

After that, half of the funds from the  $PGOLD sale, I decided to move into $TUGS. It seem to be starting a good trend. As always, this being a speculative play, I'll make sure to watch my stop loss level closely.

chart from www.bigcharts.marketwatch.com

I'm also watching $CPM especially if it breaks above P1.70 convincingly.

chart from www.bigcharts.marketwatch.com

I realized that if I want to make it past 100% YTD returns before the year ends, I need to let go of the slow stocks in my portfolio and find a high flyer. Let's keep this simple, cut the losers and the laggers short and let the winners run until they ran out of steam.

Cheers.

Alex

Post #39: Risk tolerance and position sizing

A lot of people have been asking me about position sizing and how do I manage my risk, so I think it is about time for me to explain it here.

To put it simply, it all starts with my risk tolerance. 

What is risk tolerance? For me, it is the percentage of my capital that I am willing to risk in every trade. 

I'm gonna give you an example to make it clear.

Let's say for example that  you have P100,000 starting capital. How much of it are you willing to lose in every trade you make? Is it P2000, P5000, or more? The amount is entirely up to you.

Let's say you are willing to lose only P2000 per trade. So your risk tolerance is 2% of your trading capital.

Capital = P100,000
Risk tolerance = 2%
Risk/trade = P2000

Let's do a trade example to make it more clear:

Supposed that you want to buy $STI at P1.80.
You also want to put your stop at P1.60.

chart from www.bigcharts.marketwatch.com

All you have to do is calculate how many shares you have to buy for you to be stopped at your 2% risk tolerance in case your trade goes wrong.

Let's do the math.

Total capital x Risk tolerance % =  Risk per trade
(P100,000 x 2%)  = P2000

Buy price - Stop loss price = Risk per share
(1.80 - 1.60 = .20 cents)

Risk per trade divide by(/) Risk per share = Position size
(P2000/.20 cents = 10,000)

It means you can buy 10,000 shares of $STI at P1.80 price with a stop loss at P1.60.

10,000 shares of $STI at P1.80 will be worth P18,000.

If it breaks its support at P1.60 and you sell it, it will total in cost at approximately P16,000.

(P18,000-P16,000 = P2,000)

You lost P2000, which is still within your 2% risk tolerance.

It is that simple.

Notes:

This is just an example, you can choose your own % in risk tolerance. You can even include broker commission charges if you want to be precise in your calculation.

It is advisable not to go beyond 2% risk tolerance to preserve your capital. This way, you can minimize losses even if you are always stopped out in your trades. As long as you keep winners run and stick to your cut loss discipline, you will end up on the profit side most of the time.  Besides, if you're always stopped out it means you need to work on your entry strategy.

You can add more position if the price of the stock goes up.

Always trail your stop. How to determine it is entirely up to you. You can use support and resistance, moving averages, Fibo retracement or whatever it is that works for you.

Hit me up for question.


Alex

Post #38: Portfolio's YTD update

As of October 30, 2017, my Portfolio's YTD return is at 81.60%. The few months of drawdown slowed down my progress, but I'm still confident I can make it past 100% by year-end.

I'll just continue to watch my stops and look for other opportunities. As long as I keep my losses small and ride my winners, my portfolio will be alright. I'm also looking for ways I can further improve my system.

Portfolio update:

screengrab from Philstocks App

Hope everyone enjoys their All Soul's day holiday. This is a good reason to take your mind away from the market and spend quality time with your family. Always remember, time is the most precious and priceless investment one can have; spend it wisely.

The last two months of the year should be good for stocks. Bring it on!

Cheers

Alex

Post #37: Watching $STI

Since I have some extra funds from the profits I took from $WLCON, I am currently looking for a new stock to buy.

There are really some interesting stocks like $IMI and $SMPH for example that are very tempting at their current set ups. 

Another stock that I find interesting is $STI. It looks like it is posing for a breakout. And I like the fact that it doesn't get a lot of attention yet. 

I'm thinking of buying it at it's current price of P1.60 and put my stop at below P1.50. We'll see what happens.

Current portfolio stocks:

$PRMX +19%
$MAC +11%
$MEG +13%
$PGOLD +8%

Post #35: My YTD portfolio update

September 30, 2017 marked the end of the 3rd quarter and it's the start of the most exciting months of the year.

I'm glad to be slightly making progress after that small draw-down that started since July. I'm currently back at 70.46%.

By playing defense I was able to minimize the effect of those few bad months on my portfolio. 

My goal is to reach more than 100% return before the year ends. With the right mindset and focus, I am certain this is possible. With the index currently breaking new highs, all we need to do is find the right stocks to ride. Cut those loser stocks short and ride those winners up until they ran out of steam. Rinse and repeat. 

Good luck to us all.

Alex

Post #34: SL (Stop Loss) instead of TP (Target Price)

I really don't believe in including a target price on my trading plans. For me it is a very limiting belief. It is like putting a limit on what you can achieve when you can do so much more. As a trader who mostly rely on price action to trade, Iv'e got a few reasons why I don't use a TP (target price), but instead I am more strict on putting a SL(stop loss) in all of my trading plans.

First of all, I believe that no one can predict with certainty where the price of a stock is going. We can only speculate. Therefore, to put a TP on a stock is like predicting that the stock cannot go up much further. In fact, even fundamental analysis can only assign a valuation to a stock but can't predict it with certainty. It is the crowd sentiment that is moving the stock prices, which is highly driven by emotion, which we all know are intangible and can't be measured.

Let your winners run. I like to keep trending stocks running until they ran out of steam. As a position trader, I'm not really looking for quick gains but I'm looking for stock that I can milk. I won't easily sell a 50% gain if I know the possibility of it reaching 100% is probable. I trade not for quick and small gains, I'm after for bigger moves that will significantly affect my portfolio's percentage gain.

To minimize risk using this no TP method, I always put a stop loss (SL) on all my trades. Before I buy a stock, I already have a stop loss. This is even more important to me because my stop loss will determine my position size. (More on this on my later posts). As the price goes up, I move my stop to what I think is the next best support. I trail my stops. I only sell when my stop is hit.

Having no TP but using a SL strictly might not help you sell at the top, but it will always keep you from selling too soon. The trailing stop will help you keep your profits safe. My main goal is to let my winners run, trail my stop as they run up to secure some profits, and sell before the trend reverses. It is simple for me, No TP only SL.

Portfolio update:

Sold my $WPI at P1.22 as I think it is quite lagging and moved my funds to $MAC.

Bought P15.30
Stop: P14

chart by www.bigcharts.marketwatch.com

Current portfolio:

$PGOLD (+8%)
$WLCON (+64%)
$PRMX (+12%)
$MAC (new)
$MEG (+11%)

PS: Let's connect at Twitter.

Post #33: Be obsessed or be Average

Me and my copy of The Trading code by Jason Cam (2015)

Took the title from a book by Grant Cardone. This book suggests that if you want to be successful in anything, be so obsessed about it, or end up being just an average Joe. You just have to work 10 times more and be 10 times more hungrier than the average guy. I am writing this post as a reminder to myself to restore my focus and determination in getting those winning trades. These past few weeks I got sidetracked and distracted by something else not stock trading related. And guess what happened to my results? Even my virtual portfolio in Investacup suffered a big draw-down. This post is a reminder for myself and hopefully for many others too, that we should focus more on what we love the most, or pay the price for being an average. I'm gonna share here why I think being obsessed is good for us and why we should strive to reach our goals in trading no matter what.

Being obsessed will give us a laser-like focus on our goals. We will be so determined to focus only on what is important to us; our goals and dreams. Any other activities not related to the goal will only distract us, therefore it is wise to either minimize our time spent on them or eliminate them from our life entirely. We all should be focusing our time and energy trying to reach our goals, instead of wasting it on things that really doesn't help us get nearer to that dream.

Loving what we do will make as passionate. And to live passionately is a great way to live. If you already found what you love to do, do it passionately and great things will happen. Being passionate will fuel us with energy of enthusiasm, and people will notice that energy. In result, people with the same goals as us will be drawn to us and other people will be curious too.

Being obsessed will give us a more positive mindset. We won't be giving up on our dreams and goal that fast. We will be so determined that it is almost impossible to discourage us. We will consider failures as temporary, and we know we can get back on our feet ASAP. Being obsessed with a goal gives us no other options but to work on our dreams until we achieved it.

The word obsessed really gets a bad rap from most people, for them it means closer to being crazy. But we can look at it with a more positive light. Being obsessed means you are focused on you goal. Being obsessed means you know your priorities. Being obsessed means you should spend more time working for your goals. Being obsessed means you will not stop until you reach your goals. For traders being obsessed means getting rid of all the distractions, freeing up your time, and work on improving your trading system. It could also means getting our lazy ass up and do that research work, no excuses. So put in the work guys, don't be just like the other average traders out there. I invite you to be obsessed like me.

P.S: I just created a twitter account, let's connect there. Thanks

Post #23: The need for heroes

I like to call people that I look up to as heroes. Some will prefer to call them mentors or teachers. When it comes to trading, I call people I want to emulate as my heroes because they don't just teach me how to trade, they also inspires me to dream. There are many reasons why we really need mentors or heroes in our lives. This is true for any endeavor we want to pursue, whether it's trading or financial and career success.

Meeting Mr. Tony Herbosa of Trader's Apprentice Pilipinas. I consider him as one of the people I look up to when I was just starting 5 years ago. 

Heroes inspires us. We always look up to them, like they're some kind of a super human with super powers. We want to be like them. Being inspired, we are charged with an awesome energy of enthusiasm that will help us complete the tasks we should do to  attain success. Mentors will make us realize that our dream is within our reach, because if they can do it themselves, it is also possible for us to achieve.

Mentors will help hasten our success by showing us what kind of mistakes we should avoid. We will learn from their mistakes. They will show us patterns that we cannot possibly perceive by doing things on our own. They will leave guideposts for us to follow, blueprints that will help us get started. No matter how smart we are, we will make mistakes that will slow down our progress. Recognizing those mistakes earlier will help us progress faster.

Great teacher will not just teach us what to do, they will also show us how to think. Correct mindset is crucial to our success. Our mentors, those who've already done it, thinks differently from the rest of us. They perceive things differently, and have a different mindset that will help them operate differently from the rest of the masses.If there is one main reason why they are more successful than most of us, I will attribute it to their different way of thinking and doing things. By looking into the minds of our heroes, we will have a glimpse of how different they think and we will learn what kind of winning mindset that works we should possess as well.

Some of my heroes I never met personally. Books will help us look into our mentors and heroes  minds.

I believe that getting mentors is vital to our success. They will guide us, put us in the proper mindset and inspire us to dream bigger and take action. It doesn't matter what kind of endeavor you want to succeed on, getting a mentor will be beneficial to you. We all need heroes to look up to.

My stock portfolio update:

$BEL P4.05 (-4.94%)
$IMI  P10.52 (+50.59%)
$MEG P4.54 (+6.92%)
$WLCON P6.07 (+10.98%)

Post #22: Portfolio update

Quick updates:

Sold my $MCP for a 54% profit. It showed sign of slowing down, I could be wrong though.

Bought some $WLCON at P 5.36/share. Stop at P5.30 below.

Sold $MCP at 54% profit. Photo screenshot from my Philstocks android app.

I currently have $IMI,$WLCON,$MEG and $BEL in my portfolio.

Remarks: Index resistance is at 8000.

PSE Index is seeing resistance at approx 8000. Photo by www.bigcharts.com

Post #17: Portfolio update

I am still holding the same stocks with my stops adjusted.

$BEL stop at 3.75 still.

$IMI initial stop is at 7.50

$MCP initial stop at 6.50

Screen capture from Philstocks Xavi Android App

The Philippine Index closed at 7446.49 today, a little above its previous trading range of approximately 7200-7400.

I am staying long on my positions as long as my stops are not hit.

As Iv'e said before, my trading style is boring.  Once the time-consuming research is done, I will initiate an entry, and then will do nothing but just watch my stops and adjust them accordingly.

Post#13: Trailing stops hit and some $BEL

Last March 1, 2017, my trailing stop on my position in $STI was hit and I sold my holdings for an average of P1.09/share and a gain of 21% since last November.  I was hoping to let my $STI run but a ranging PSEi made me tighten my stops s little. As always, I promised to follow my plan and I did it without hesitation.

I also sold my $DNL since it failed to maintain it's price above P13/share with a small percentage gain not even worth mentioning.

$DNL and $STI will remain in my watchlist for now again.

Although I felt bad losing my positions, I immediately looked for other stocks that show some strength. I am currently trading with only 50% of my port in positions as I dont like the general market condition.

March 3, 2017 - Bought some $BEL at P3.63/share.

March 6, 2017 - Added some more $BEL as I feel it going stronger at P3.72/share.

Average $BEL price is at P3.67/share.

Update: March 7, 2017 current position up 4.64% with $BEL at P3.88/share.

Initial stop at P3.65.


BELLE CORPORATION ($BEL)

stock chart provided by www.bigcharts.com

Post #12: Thoughts on mining stocks

Earlier this month, Philippine environment secretary Gina Lopez ordered the closure of 21 miners for violating mining and environmental laws.

Some of them are publicly listed in PSE and the news automatically made the price of the companies tumbling down.

I remember some of them being on my watch-list somewhere around November last year. See Fickle nickle: $FNI and $NIKL blog post.

I even mentioned $MARC in my January 13 post.

The main reason I included these stocks in my watch-list is that they are showing good price action set ups during that time. All three are actually on the brink of breaking out that time.

Later though, I removed them from my watch-list after they all showed signs of a failed breakout. A failed breakout is always a red flag for me, it will either go back to a range below the breakout point or it will start to show a lower low trend. Based on my experience, rarely does it go back to test the resistance again. 

All these charts are not shouting BUY to me.  

The mining sector was badly beaten, but there are still good stocks in that sector. I particularly like $PX's price action. 

I haven't posted here that much since I've done literally nothing, they are right when they said that stock investing is boring. I still have $STI and some $DNL in my portfolio. 

I also started trading the Stock Exchange of Thailand. It's a whole new and different market, in a way that it's more liquid and volatile. 

This blog will focus on my PSE trading though, so I wont be posting my Thailand stock market trades here. 

Cheers

Alex

Post #2: Technical bounce

PSEi showing some bounce on a Friday but lacks convincing volume.

Overall market remains nervous about uncertainty in U.S election next week. (Nov. 8, 2016)

FED decided not to add to uncertainty by keeping interest rates unchanged. A possibility of a December hike is expected though.

Notes: Not risking more than 30% of capital unless market showed strength again. I'm always ready to liquidate all positions in case PSEi goes below 7000.