I didn’t want to remain completely out of the markets, though, so I setup a passive portfolio in the stock-market. And even though I’m not in the exciting ups-and-downs of trading, I still wanted to share my portfolio and it’s results with you.

For this portfolio, I invested in 18 ETFs across various categories — with the goal of having the portfolio rise when the market does; not suffer too badly when the overall market drops (such as the major Indices like the S&P 500, DOW, or NASDAQ), and to hopefully make relatively outsized gains in the future.

As of right now, we’re currently achieving that goal! Read on to see how.

Year-to-Date Performance

Like I mentioned, one of the goals of this portfolio is to not suffer too badly during market down-turns, and that’s exactly where . On the year, while the DOW, S&P 500, and NASDAQ dropped 1%, 4%, and 9.5% respectively, my portfolio dropped less than 1/2 of a percent (0.39% to be exact).

There’s not much to call out here individually, PSCT lost a point, but that’s about it. Here’s how each of them performed:

Monthly Performance

Along with everything else, my stock-market portfolio dropped a decent amount on the month. From the open on March 3rd, to the close on March 31st it lost nearly 4%. It’s still outpacing the major Indices, though as the DOW, S&P 500, and NASDAQ all lost 5%, 6%, and 8%(!) respectively.

PEJ — the leisure and entertainment ETF, and PSCT — the small-cap tech ETF were the worst performers over the month, losing ~0.6% and 0.5%; and the only ETF to not lose money this month was XLE — the energy ETF. Here’s how each fund performed over the last month:

Updates

Given the fact that it’s a new quarter, I’m planning on buying more shares of some of the ETFs, in order to add to the portfolio. Given the dip we’ve seen, I’m able to buy a good amount this time around.

I’m more interested in maintaining the correct ratios in the fund, so that’s what I’m basing these purchases on. I’m not looking at how each ETF is doing individually. So, in order to maintain the ratios, I’m adding more AIQ, IDRV, PEJ, PSCT, PSI, ROBO, VNQ, XLE, XLF, and XLI.

Conclusion

Thanks for reading! How’s your stock portfolio doing right now? Let me know in the comments. And make sure to check back for more updates

The post No Foolin’ Still Above the Market! | Stock-Market ETF Portfolio Update April 1st, 2025 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

Over the past couple of years, I’ve solely been focused on maintaining my long-term portfolio. I’ve been itching to get back in to trading, but I think I need to save up a little more before I do so. I’m getting there.

In the meantime, though, I put together 18 ETFs across varying sectors with the goal of maintaining pace with (or even beat) the market in good times; and to not suffer as bad of losses as the market during downturns. Check out the portfolio page if you want more info on the ETFs and why I chose them.

Monthly Performance

Over the last month (between February 3rd and March 3rd) the portfolio was down a little under 2%. This was better than the S&P, DOW, and NASDAQ, which lost 3%, 3%, and 6.5% respectively.

The decline was largely due to PSI which lost 11.5% and PSCT which lost 11%. These were both technology stocks (small-cap tech companies & semiconductors), and given the fact that tech stocks across the board have taken a huge hit, it makes sense.

XLP and XLRE (consumer staples & commercial real estate) each gained a little over 5% over the past month, which were the best performers.

Year-to-Date Performance

Since the start of the new year, this portfolio has gained about 2% which is slightly outpacing the DOW at 1.8%, and more-greatly outpacing the S&P and NASDAQ. The S&P is almost even on the year (lost 1/3 of a percent), but the NASDAQ is down nearly 5%. The tech stocks in my portfolio are also taking the biggest hit, which is why I’m glad I’m diversified.

I’ve said that the point of the portfolio is to maintain/outperform in down markets so I don’t suffer too badly, and as of right now, that seems to be happening. It’s too early to call this a down-market overall, though, so time will tell, but I’m satisfied with how things are going right now.

Conclusion

Beating the market feels good, even if I was down a little as well. Gotta look at the positives. On top of that, I’m up on the year, and am well above the NASDAQ. Given the dips in the market, too, I’m looking forward to adding a good amount to the portfolio.

Thanks for reading! Let me know in the comments how your portfolio is doing and how it compares to the market. And if you have any questions, let me know, I’m happy to clarify anything that might not make sense here. I’m here to help and learn together, so let’s collaborate!

Unless something changes, my next post should be in early April, where I give a quarterly update and add more dollars to the portfolio. So, make sure to check back for that!

The post Beat the Market Again! | Portfolio Update March 3rd, 2025 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

The Portfolio

In total, it consists of 18 ETFs across various sectors, in order to be relatively well diversified. I chose them with several things in mind: growth during strong market environments, enduring market downturns, and to be invested early in up-and-coming sectors.

I chose the ratios with a mind toward that, and picked the ETFs based on volume. As something long-term, I wanted stable ETFs to invest in. Now that I’m thinking about it, too, there may have been cases where I chose a “second choice” ETF when I couldn’t afford the one I wanted, so that I could still get in to the sector right away. And truthfully, there may be better-performing ETFs in some of these sectors. Maybe an audit is due. I’ll have to create a plan and a criteria before I do that though.

A Quick Note

I built a calculator to keep track of the ratios of each security; and in that calculator, I also track the portfolio’s performance. When I made my last post, I noticed an slight oversight with one of my calculations, though. I was only taking into account the ending weight when comparing a time period, not the starting weight.

To be more specific, my “Overall” calculation — how the portfolio has performed since it’s inception — didn’t have the exact original ratio of each ETF. I’ve done my best to maintain the ratios, but I give myself about a 1% buffer in either direction, so they’ve varied over time. Only looking at the ending percentages doesn’t quite give an accurate picture.

I used a calculation* I found and while it’s not wrong I think it could be better. The original calculation would make sense if the ratios are maintained exactly, but as I’ve mentioned, that’s not the case. I think Schwab’s calculation makes more sense, and get’s to a more accurate number, so I’ve updated my calculators to use this new formula.

*Here’s the link to the calculation: https://www.fortunebuilders.com/how-to-calculate-portfolio-return/ But at the time of publishing this post, it’s dead. You may be able to find an archived version, though.

Actually, this post took an extra few hours because I was building said calculators. Initially I was going to just use Schwab’s number, but the data there only goes back to May of last year when my account was migrated over from TD Ameritrade . In order to get the full picture and the whole number, I had to make it myself. Also, in the future if something were to happen where the account exchanges hands again, at least I have all of the data and calculations setup in my own personal doc.

I’ll still use the original calculation for both the monthly changes (especially when I don’t add any more money) and to show the weighted percentage change of each individual ETF. There may be a way to drill down to the individual ETF level with this calculation, but it’s something I’ll have to work on in my head. And for the purposes of this blog, I’m happy with the current numbers.

Let me know in the comments if you’re interested in my calculator/tracker by the way. I might offer it up if there’s enough interest.

Changes

Between the first trading day and the last trading day in January (1/2 – 1/31), my portfolio had an increase of 4%, compared to a 2.78% increase in the S&P. I’m slightly outpacing it right now, but, really, I’m basically in lock-step with it.

Since inception, using the new calculation, the time-weighted return of my portfolio is 34.5%. The S&P, over the same period is up 58%, and the DOW is up 44%. I’m lagging the market overall, but (as I’ve mentioned before) this portfolio hasn’t been tested in a true down-market environment. If I’m planning on holding this portfolio for many years, it’s technically still pretty “young”, so I’m not jumping to many conclusions just from these numbers.

Additionally, some of the ETFs are specifically in sectors that I don’t expect to start to perform for several years (like self-driving cars and robotics) so they’re naturally going to hold down the portfolio a bit right now. The fact that I am relatively on-par with the market overall is a big win.

Like I mentioned, maybe an audit is due — see if there are better-performing ETFs in each sector — but I don’t want to make any rash moves. So for now, I’m going to leave it be; check in next month; and add more dollars to the fund in April. Make sure to keep checking back to see how it continues to perform!

Conclusion

Overall, I’d say the portfolio is in a great spot. I’m making money, and it technically beat the market last month. We’ll see what the future holds, I’m going to try to stay positive either way. If it grows, fantastic, if it falls, well, that’s opportunity to add more to the fund. Win-win.

Thanks for reading! Let me know in the comments what you think about this portfolio — if you think there are better ETF options out there or if I could improve it in any way. Or, let me know how your portfolio is going; I’m here so we can learn and grow together!

See you soon

The post Portfolio Update February 3rd, 2025 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

The Portfolio

If you’re new to the blog, I created a portfolio of 18 ETFs that I’ve decided is going to be my long-term investment strategy. These ETFs are across many sectors like healthcare, consumer staples (toilet paper, toothpaste etc.), food and entertainment, real estate, self-driving cars and more.

I allotted a percentage to each based on how risky I wanted the portfolio to be. I’ve got an eye on the future with this portfolio, for sure, but I also made sure that there was a substantial amount in more consistent ETFs. The goal is to match (or ideally beat) the market overall in good conditions, while not suffering too bad of losses in a bad conditions. For a break down of the ETFs I’m holding and the percentage I’m targeting for each, check out the portfolio page.

Quarter over quarter Changes

The last time I updated the portfolio was early October where I added more shares of IDRV, PBJ, PEJ, XLB and XLE. All of my moves are made purely in order to maintain my ratios within my portfolio — so when I add more money to the fund, I do so based on what I already have; not based on how each individual ETF is performing.

I built a calculator in excel that largely does all of the work for me. I simply update how much I want to add to the fund each month and it shows me which new shares to buy (and how many of each). So, based on that calculation, those were the ETFs I added.

Overall, The market was up about 3% over the last quarter and my portfolio was down roughly 1.5%. There’s been some clear stagnation in equities overall, and my portfolio is taking a bit of a hit. Times couldn’t be all good, so I’m prepared. In fact, it’s this type of market where I’m able to add more shares which will ultimately mean a larger fund in the future, so I’m taking it all in stride.

Speaking of, for this period I added shares of:

• IDRV – Self Driving & EV ETF
• PBJ – Food & Beverage ETF
• PSCT – Small-Cap Technology ETF
• VNQ – REIT ETF
• XLB – Materials ETF
• XLP – Consumer Staples ETF
• XLRE – Commercial Real Estate ETF
• XLU – Utilities ETF
• XLV – Health Care ETF

Here’s the break down for how each ETF changed over the last quarter:

Yearly and Overall Changes

Since January 2nd 2024, my portfolio is up roughly 14% with the S&P being up 24% over the same time period. Since it’s inception, the portfolio is up 35%, compared to 54% in the S&P. Unfortunately, I’m not accomplishing my goal of beating the S&P right now, but it’s relatively quite early in the fund’s “life” and I have yet to see how it performs during actual turmoil.

Also, I’m invested in ETFs that I don’t expect to perform now. Things like robotics and self-driving cars are future plays, so I’m not shocked to see them under-performing right now. In general, I’m quite comfortable with where the portfolio is, and am excited for the future.

Here’s a more detailed breakdown of each ETF and how they’ve changed:

Conclusion

Like I’ve said, I’m happy with how things are going, and am looking forward to 2025. If the market remains strong, great! I get to see gains in my portfolio. If it’s down, fine! I get to add more shares to it, increasing it’s potential when the market recovers. And, a goal of mine is to start more active trading again in 2025, so hopefully that will just make everything increase that much more. Like I said, I’m excited.

Thanks for reading! How’s your portfolio doing? If you’ve got any thoughts or questions leave them in the comments! Also, I think, despite whether or not I add to the fund, I’m going to provide monthly updates for how it’s performing. It’ll be a nice check-in and we can see how we’re pacing vs each other and the market, so stay tuned for that!

The post HAPPY NEW YEAR! Portfolio Update January 2, 2025 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

The Portfolio

I chose 18 ETFs and gave them each a weight (based on how risk-averse and future-minded I wanted the portfolio to be); and I built a calculator to maintain the ratios and calculate the changes each quarter. Here are those securities and their percentages:

Read on to see how the portfolio changed in Q3 2024.

Quarter Over Quarter Percentage Changes

The market overall remained relatively steady, increasing another 4% (same as the prior quarter) for the quarter, and increasing to 49% overall. My portfolio outpaced the S&P over these last three months, though, increasing 7.8%. Overall, it’s still under the market, at only 30.3%, but still doing well.

I was able to add a little more than usual to the portfolio this quarter, so even with the gains I added a few more shares to the fund. This time I added more IDRV, PBJ, PEJ, XLB and XLE.

Conclusion

I’ve said it in the past that I’m not expecting to outperform the market; but it’s nice when I do — and I can’t say I’m not hopeful for more of the same. I’m realistic though and know that there will also be times where I don’t, I just have to be consistent and maintain my resolve in downtimes. Truthfully, that’s where the largest gains are ultimately going to come from.

Thanks for reading! If you’ve got any questions about my portfolio, or any thoughts on it let me know in the comments! I don’t pretend to be an expert, I’m just acting on what I’ve read, so I appreciate feedback. Let’s learn together!

The post Portfolio Update October 1, 2024 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

The Portfolio

I put together 18 ETFs across multiple sectors and gave them a weight based on how risky I wanted the portfolio to be. It’s been performing fairly well, and while it hasn’t quite kept pace with the market overall, I’ve been happy with it.

I mentioned this before but I’m expecting to underperform the gains of the market overall in good financial times, but suffer fewer losses in more tumultuous financial times. Read on to see how it’s performed over the last 3 months.

Quarter Over Quarter Percentage Changes

Since it’s inception, my portfolio is up 23.5%; while the S&P is up 43% over the same time period. Over just the previous quarter, I’m down nearly 1% (-.7%), with the S&P being up 4%. The market took a bit of a hit this quarter, and my portfolio reflects that.

Given their weights, XLU and XLP gave me the most gains this quarter, gaining 17% and 15% respectively, however ROBO and XLB each suffered 6% losses. Couple that with the rest of the ETFs either having low or negative gains, and overall I roughly broke-even.

Down markets are buying opportunities, though, so I was able to get more shares in IDRV, PBJ, PSCT, VNQ, XLP, XLRE, and XLU.

Conclusion

Like I said, though, I don’t fully expect to keep pace with the market overall, so I’m fine with the performance. I was able to add a decent amount of shares to my account this quarter, which will lead to compound gains in the future.

Thanks for reading! Let me know in the comments if you’ve got any questions or thoughts on my portfolio. Also, don’t forget to check back in a couple months to see the next update on the portfolio; it’s going to be fun watching it grow!

The post Portfolio Update July 1, 2024 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

I think I’m just doing this to do something. I hope it works out, but ultimately, I just hope that it triggers so I have something to write about. It’s not a great position to be in, but here I am.

I, as with all of the trades that I make, like the movement here. I’m doing something a little different, though. I’m setting a limit order to short this at the top of this small range since price is currently pushing up a bit. With the limit entry, and my stop being above the next key area to the upside, I’ve got a nice 3 R:R.

Entry – 164.408

I noticed this pattern first on the 4 hour chart, and am ultimately setting my entry on the hourly. I like the key areas and the R:R, so I set it. Hopefully it works out.

Exit – 164.6

It didn’t. It took a little bit to trigger, but I looked at the chart to see how it was moving and as I was looking price shot up and triggered my entry and got within a couple pips of my stop within a couple seconds. There was a bit of a pullback from there — only for a couple minutes though — before price pushed up again and triggered the exit.

From there, price has pushed down and is sitting on my entry right now. I considered shorting it again, but I don’t want to chase or “revenge trade”.

I’ll leave the lines for now, so we’ll see how it goes in the coming hours; but I’m done for now. Like I said, I did it to do something, and I’ve got a decent plan for the next few trading days. I guess building a factory is satisfying/fulfilling enough.

Thanks for reading. Let me know in the comments what you thought about today’s trade and/or if you were able to capitalize on movement in this pair. And stay tuned for more trades, I’ve got some exciting plans for the future.

The post EUR/JPY Short Forex Trade | April 10, 2024 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

If you’ve been following my blog, you’d know that I haven’t been trading much lately. My performance has been sub-par, and I’ve been putting my focus on other means of income; building them up to be more steady so I’m not as affected when I *do* lose a trade.

That said, I know how important it is to be in the markets, so I’ve decided to create a diversified portfolio that I’ll passively invest in. That will hopefully grow through good market conditions and bad, while I build a solid bankroll to trade with.

The Portfolio

I built a calculator to maintain the proportions of each ETF whenever I add money to the fund — but given the fact that their prices vary pretty wildly, it’s hard to maintain an exact percentage. After making the adjustments to the portfolio this time around, here’s how the percentages shake out

Quarter over Quarter Percentage Changes

Not every ETF was up over this period, but overall the portfolio increased in value. Here’s how each security changed; both individually and how those changes affected the overall portfolio.

In total, the portfolio is up 24.6% compared to 37% in the S&P, and my monthly percentage gain was a little more than half that of the S&P — 6.6% compared to 11%. I’m slightly underperforming the market overall, but I’m comfortable with that.

My portfolio has ETFs that I don’t necessarily expect to perform right now — I’m okay with lesser gains now, as long as I have lesser losses in economic down-turns; and I have assets that I don’t expect to perform until years, maybe decades from now.

Conclusion

Overall, I’m happy, and other than the subtle changes to maintain percentages when I add funds to the portfolio, there’s nothing that I plan on adjusting right now.

Thanks for reading! Let me know in the comments your thoughts on this portfolio or if you have any questions. Honestly, I still consider myself to be still (always) learning, so we can help each other out. Make sure you stay tuned, too, to see how the portfolio continues to perform, your views and clicks are appreciated!

The post Portfolio Update April 1, 2024 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

Full disclosure, I took this trade on March 28th, but I didn’t take notes about it right away — only screenshots. Today’s 4/3, so I’m analyzing this trade in hindsight.

Starting on the 4 hour chart, price made a peak a couple of days prior, but pulled back over the next few days. After about 3 days of pulling back, price pushed up a bit and moved sideways. On the day I took this trade, price had made another push down, and was seemingly stalling at the key area that was formed after that first 3-day pullback.

Price appeared to be struggling to push through that level, and the most-recently closed candle had a long lower wick. It looked like strength was coming back in to this pair.

Dropping down to the 15 minute chart, there was a pretty clean pullback that had just formed, so I set a long entry order.

Entry – 163.541

The pullback completed fairly quickly, and only about 6 minutes after setting the order, price pushed up enough to trigger the entry in to the trade.

Exit – 163.38

Price looked strong initially. It gained close to 5 pips (~.5R) over the next 5 minutes, but immediately started dropping from there. After only another 15 minutes, price had pushed down enough to trigger my exit for a full loss.

On the 4 hour chart, price had been strong overall, and while there had been some weakness over the week prior to this trade, that weakness appeared to be ending when I got to this chart. Price stalled at some support and while the MAs had touched, they hadn’t crossed over yet. On top of that, RSI was around 50 (though, technically, it was below that line and sloping down).

On the 15 minute chart, the faster MA was starting to slope up, and RSI was above 50, and there was a pretty clear bull-pullback. While there were some conflicting signals, overall, a lot of evidence pointed toward strength. On top of that, the pattern I traded directly around suggested strength.

Conclusion

I, once again, am feeling at a loss. I find these setups that look relatively great, but they don’t work out… It’s frustrating. I’m not in the prediction business, though, and I think I’m still getting hung up on that. I’m in the probabilities business. I need to take a larger amount of trades with great setups so I can reap the rewards of the ones that do break.

I’m tired of saying the same things, though, and not being better. Somethings gotta change.

Thanks for reading! Let me know in the comments if you have any suggestions, and stay tuned for more trades.

The post *Shrug Emoji* | EUR/JPY Long Forex Trade | March 28, 2024 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

First of all, I need to make sure that I’m logged in to Oanda on my phone. I’m doing another manual OCO order, so I’ll to cancel one order when the other triggers, but I’m going out tonight. It’s dangerous, but I’m taking a stab at it.

Price looked to be rolling to the upside, but that was after a pretty sharp down-move. Price could be retesting here before it heads to the downside, or it could be regaining the strength it seemed to have for the month prior to the drop. There’s been a pretty tight 4 hour base, so I put both a buy and a sell order around the base; with the long entry being my short stop and vice versa.

Like I said, I’m going to be doing my best to keep a close eye on this one. Maybe I’ll set a recurring timer or something on my watch, something to remind me to check periodically incase the notifications don’t come through. We’ll see. For now, the orders are out and fingers crossed it works out well.

Entry – 164.011

4:22 pm

Freaking slippage. The short order filled, but it filled about 3 pips below where I  wanted to; and on top of that, on the chart the candle didn’t even push to that level. Didn’t even do so enough to trigger the alert on the line I drew. And yet, the order still filled. Below that. Oh well, that’s slippage that’s trading. It looks weak; hopefully I made the right call.

After my entry triggered, price did eventually actually push through my entry price, but not very far. About 5 pips of profit is all this got before it started rallying. I kept an eye on my phone throughout the night; ensuing I was ready when/if I needed to make a move, but I never got any notifications.

I checked the chart one more time before I wound down for the night and saw that price was sitting just above my entry. Not great, but still had the potential to push down.

Exit – 164.251

This morning I woke up and didn’t see any notifications, so I was hopeful. I checked the chart to discover that price had in fact pushed decently through my stop loss.

Since I didn’t get the notification, I panicked — wondering if I accidentally cancelled my stop when I canceled the buy order. But that wasn’t the case. My stop was hit normally for a full loss; and I didn’t accidentally lose a lot more than I originally planned.

That was a minor sigh of relief in an overall disappointing trade. I didn’t really have a plan, or really a great outlook. I saw something and thought it had the potential to break in either direction; and it turned out to not break at all. Can’t even say I mistimed this one.

Conclusion

I don’t hate the process I’ve been in of simply looking at charts and putting out orders where I see fit; rather than doing a full pre-trade analysis. I just need to tweak it a little bit. I’m going to start earlier, and I’m going to take a few trades in a practice account.

I don’t start playing basketball without warming up and stretching and I don’t play golf without hitting the range first (or at the very least taking a couple practice swings), and I need to approach trading the same way. Knock the rust off each morning, then proceed once I’m warm and in the zone.

I’m still experimenting with time-frames; and I think if I’m trading before the US market opens and only plan to trade a couple hours into it (and be completely done when I’m done, rather than holding while I do other things and hope) then I think I want to focus on the 5 min. chart. I’ve had some problems with it later in the day, hopefully things work out if I start earlier.

Thanks for reading! Stay tuned to see how my new process plays out, and if I can overcome the struggles I’ve been having for a while. And if you’ve got any advice or words of encouragement, let me know in the comments!

The post Another OCO Order | EUR/JPY Short Forex Trade | March 25, 2024 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.