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Josh Dunn

Daily Recap: Small Profits, Big Lessons in Trading

Today, I took three trades, two of which were smaller positions. Despite the challenges, I ended the day with a modest profit of $8.19, bringing my account total to $1,114.29. Reflecting on my trades, I realized that I held onto my loss too long and didn’t hold my winner long enough. Here’s a detailed breakdown of each trade and the lessons learned.

Trade 1: VRPX

My first trade was on VRPX, and it was a classic example of a forced trade. I attempted to ride the momentum up, entering at $3.01, just above the $3.00 resistance level. Unfortunately, the momentum had already died out. My entry was poorly timed, and I set a stop loss at $2.70, just below the previous low. The price initially moved up but then corrected quickly. I should have exited around 7:50 when the price started trending down, but I held on until my stop was hit, resulting in a $23.26 loss. I could have minimized the loss to about $10 if I had exited earlier.

Trade 2: QURE

The second trade was with QURE. I noticed the stock ramping up and decided to ride the momentum. I set a buy order at $7.28, just above the high at the time. However, my order didn’t get filled, so I bought at market for $7.33. The price increased, and I exited at $7.63 when I saw some pullback and uncertainty at 8:06. Although I could have held longer for a bigger gain, I still made a $30 profit. This trade taught me the importance of monitoring the 5-minute chart and adjusting stops accordingly. Despite the missed opportunity for a larger profit, I consider this a win and a valuable learning experience.

Trade 3: VRPX

My final trade was another attempt on VRPX during a ramp-up. I entered at $2.82, slightly above the previous high wick of $2.80 at 8:06. Again, this felt like a forced entry without a solid setup. The price moved up, but I held too long, hitting my stop at $2.85. This resulted in a small gain of $1.43 due to the small position size. I should have exited at 8:18 when I noticed indecision. The exit wasn’t terrible, but the stock didn’t ramp up as expected.

Key Takeaways

  1. Don’t Hold Losses Too Long: If a stock is trending down, exit before the stop is hit to minimize losses.
  2. Improve Entry Points: Patience is crucial. Forced entries often lead to poor outcomes.
  3. Monitor Different Timeframes: Use the 5-minute chart to make more informed decisions about holding or exiting trades.
  4. Learning from Mistakes: Each trade offers a learning opportunity. Today’s small profit and the lessons learned will help me become a better trader.

Overall, today was a reminder to be patient, make better entries, and manage my trades more effectively. I’ll continue practicing and refining my strategies to improve my trading performance.