Coronavirus Operations Memo: Click Here | Magnus documents: Form ADV | Form CRS | Privacy Policy

Why a stock market crash is actually a good time to invest, according to 3 financial planners

- February 19, 2021

View on BusinessInsider.com

A stock market crash is an opportunity to increase your gains, say three financial planners.

You can get quality stocks for a lower price or get more for your monthly investment contribution.

Some investors sell percentages of their shares when the market is high to re-invest when it’s low.

There’s been a lot of buzz on the internet about a potential stock market crash, with many new investors nervous about if and when it will happen. But, depending on your investment strategy, a market downturn may not be an entirely bad thing.

We asked three financial planners to explain why you shouldn’t panic if the market goes down. They also shared their tips for mitigating your risk, and even increasing your gains, regardless of what the market is doing.

1. A market downturn is an opportunity to get the same stocks at a cheaper price

The goal of investing is to buy low and sell high. First-time investors typically do the opposite, says Jovan Johnson, financial planner with Piece of Wealth Planning. When the stock market crashes, there’s a tendency to get nervous, and new investors may either sell their shares or stay away from the stock market entirely.

But long-term investors, who’ve had a good amount of experience riding out the highs and lows of the market, often see a downturn as an opportunity to buy more because they can get the same stock at a cheaper price.

This approach can be deployed by a new investor if they are focused on quality stocks and a diversified portfolio. Investing in exchange-traded funds, which pool a variety of securities, is a good place to start, Johnson says.

“I typically recommend investing in ETF funds so you’re automatically diversified, and if one company or two companies fail, it would not have a drastic effect on your investment,” Johnson says.

2. Contributing the same amount monthly can help you pick up more shares ‘on sale’

Historically, people make most of their money during bear markets, or when the market sells off more than 20%, says Michael Schwartz, financial planner with Magnus Financial Group. They buy when others are selling. This might sound like a maneuver only an advanced investor can pull off, but actually it’s quite simple.

If you’ve automated your investments by contributing a certain amount every month, you continue that strategy even during a downturn. If stock prices drop, you get more shares for your money; if they go up, your shares make money.

Automating your investment contributions takes the guess work out of trying to time the market. The approach, known as the dollar-cost averaging, mitigates the risk that could result from putting a lump sum of money into the market at the wrong time, like while the market is high.

“There’s always going to be a reason not to invest. There’s always going to be a problem that is surfacing in the markets. Removing the emotion from your investment decision, and focusing on a thoughtful, disciplined approach, is how you create a wealth strategy,” Schwartz says.

Using a robo-advisor like Betterment or Wealthfront can go one step further in removing the emotions from your investing decisions by building and maintaining your portfolio for you.

3. You can accelerate the growth of your 401(k)

If you don’t have cash on hand to invest, it may be a good time to increase your 401(k) contribution during a market decline, even if it’s for a short period, says Derek Lunka, a financial planner with Lunka Investment Group at Benjamin F. Edwards & Co. It’s another way to take advantage of lower share prices following a crash.

“It’s an easy way. It just comes right out of their paycheck. It usually takes a week or two for it to go into effect, just because of payroll semantics, but they should be able to at least participate while the market is down, and do it for as long as they can stomach the lower cash flow from their paycheck getting thinned out,” Lunka says.

4. You can re-invest some of your previous gains

Take a cue from more experienced investors and sell off a small portion of your well-performing assets during a market high, like 10% to 15%, Lunka says.

Hold onto that cash and then, when the market goes through a downturn, you can re-invest those gains to take advantage of cheaper shares.

For early investors, Lunka recommends sticking to mutual funds or index funds rather than deploying this strategy with individual stocks. Seek out quality investments that have seen their prices decline due to broad market sell-offs.

DISCLAIMER

Magnus Financial Group LLC (“Magnus”) did not produce and bears no responsibility for any part of this report whatsoever, including but not limited to any microeconomic views, inaccuracies or any errors or omissions. Research and data used in the presentation have come from third-party sources that Magnus has not independently verified presentation and the opinions expressed are not by Magnus or its employees and are current only as of the time made and are subject to change without notice.

This report may include estimates, projections or other forward-looking statements, however, due to numerous factors, actual events may differ substantially from those presented. The graphs and tables making up this report have been based on unaudited, third-party data and performance information provided to us by one or more commercial databases. Except for the historical information contained in this report, certain matters are forward looking statements or projections that are dependent upon risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to factors and considerations such as general market volatility, global economic risk, geopolitical risk, currency risk and other country-specific factors, fiscal and monetary policy, the level of interest rates, security-specific risks, and historical market segment or sector performance relationships as they relate to the business and economic cycle.

Additionally, please be aware that past performance is not a guide to the future performance of any manager or strategy, and that the performance results and historical information provided displayed herein may have been adversely or favorably impacted by events and economic conditions that will not prevail in the future. Therefore, it should not be inferred that these results are indicative of the future performance of any strategy, index, fund, manager or group of managers. Index benchmarks contained in this report are provided so that performance can be compared with the performance of well-known and widely recognized indices. Index results assume the re-investment of all dividends and interest and do not reflect any management fees, transaction costs or expenses.

The information provided is not intended to be, and should not be construed as, investment, legal or tax advice nor should such information contained herein be construed as a recommendation or advice to purchase or sell any security, investment, or portfolio allocation. An investor should consult with their financial advisor to determine the appropriate investment strategies and investment vehicles. Investment decisions should be made based on the investor’s specific financial needs and objectives, goals, time horizon and risk tolerance. This presentation makes no implied or express recommendations concerning the way any client’s accounts should or would be handled, as appropriate investment decisions depend upon the client’s specific investment objectives.

Investment advisory services offered through Magnus; securities offered through third party custodial relationships. More information about Magnus can be found on its Form ADV at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov.

TERMS OF USE

This report is intended solely for the use of its recipient. There is a fee associated with the access to this report and the information and materials presented herein. Re-distribution or republication of this report and its contents are prohibited. Expert use is implied.

DEFINITIONS

Asset class performance was measured using the following benchmarks: U.S. Large Cap Stocks: S&P 500 TR Index; U.S. Small & Micro Cap: Russell 2000 TR Index; Intl Dev Large Cap Stocks: MSCI EAFE GR Index; Emerging & Frontier Market Stocks: MSCI Emerging Markets GR Index; U.S. Intermediate-Term Muni Bonds: Bloomberg Barclays 1-10 (1-12 Yr) Muni Bond TR Index; U.S. Intermediate-Term Bonds: Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond TR Index; U.S. High Yield Bonds: Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Corporate High Yield TR Index; U.S. Bank Loans: S&P/LSTA U.S. Leveraged Loan Index; Intl Developed Bonds: Bloomberg Barclays Global Aggregate ex-U.S. Index; Emerging & Frontier Market Bonds: JPMorgan EMBI Global Diversified TR Index; U.S. REITs: MSCI U.S. REIT GR Index, Ex U.S. Real Estate Securities: S&P Global Ex-U.S. Property TR Index; Commodity Futures: Bloomberg Commodity TR Index; Midstream Energy: Alerian MLP TR Index; Gold: LBMA Gold Price, U.S. 60/40: 60% S&P 500 TR Index; 40% Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond TR Index; Global 60/40: 60% MSCI ACWI GR Index; 40% Bloomberg Barclays Global Aggregate Bond TR Index.