Features

Chart of the week: so much for “stocks for the long term”

The average holding period for US stocks plunged from 30 years just before the Second World War to less than two by 2012.

Chart of the average holding period for US stocks

Whatever happened to the notion of "stocks for the long term"?

Far too many investors make the mistake of trying to time the market, says Mark Atherton in The Times, which means they jump in and out so frequently that dealing costs (and the missed opportunities they forfeit by being impatient) erode their returns. Professional investors do this too.

The upshot is that the average holding period for US stocks plunged from 30 years just before the Second World War to less than two by 2012, according to America's Ned Davis Research.

It's high time we all adhered to Warren Buffett's maxim that you shouldn't buy a stock unless you wouldn't mind if the market closed for a decade and you couldn't sell it.

Viewpoint

Philip Aldrick, The Times

Most Popular

Government plans could see NS&I boost interest rates
Savings

Government plans could see NS&I boost interest rates

The government-backed bank has a new funding target, which could prompt it to boost the rates on its Premium Bonds, ISAs and bonds.
16 Mar 2023
Share tips of the week – 17 March
Investments

Share tips of the week – 17 March

MoneyWeek’s comprehensive guide to the best of this week’s share tips from the rest of the UK's financial pages
10 Mar 2023
How to make your child a tax-free millionaire by age 37
Investments

How to make your child a tax-free millionaire by age 37

Exclusive research for MoneyWeek reveals how funding an ISA and a pension for your child until age 18 could build up a seven-figure sum by the time th…
14 Mar 2023