I’m more interested in surviving the down-turns, while hopefully capitalizing on outsized moves several years in the future due to investments in up-and-coming industries.

That said, I do like to use the major indices as a bit of a measuring stick just to have some context. Read on to see how I’m comparing to the S&P 500 and DOW.

Month-Over-Month Performance

• My Portfolio: +1.1%
• S&P 500: +2.8%
• DOW: +0.8%

The July market came out of the gate cautiously, dragged down by soft labor data and rate-cut uncertainty. On July 31, the Dow dropped over 530 points after the actual jobs numbers came in well below expectations.

Still, my ETF portfolio quietly held its ground. The S&P popped more than 2.5% during the stretch, lifted by big tech earnings, meanwhile, the DOW made modest gains before the month-end stumble.

In the face of all that, my portfolio managed a tidy +1.1%. I consider that a win.

Top Month-Over-Month ETF Contributors (July):

Year-to-Date Performance

• My Portfolio: +7.0%
• S&P 500: +8.6%
• DOW: +4.7%

The market in early 2025 has been…. let’s say unpredictable. But while the S&P’s strength is anchored by megacap tech and a softening Fed, the DOW’s been more sluggish—reflecting uncertainty in consumer cyclicals, labor markets, and tariffs.

Still, my stock-market portfolio performance speaks for itself. Quietly up 7% YTD, it’s comfortably ahead of the DOW and only modestly behind the S&P. Not bad for a portfolio that isn’t leaning heavily into the mega-cap momentum trades.

YTD ETF Contributors (Jan–July):

Even my future-forward picks, like IDRV (+0.39%) and ROBO (+0.39%), are starting to creep upward. Slow and strategic still wins the race.

Since Inception (July 12, 2022 – July 31, 2025)

• My Portfolio: +36.0%
• S&P 500: +66.0%
• DOW: +42.4%

Let’s not sugarcoat it: the S&P 500 has absolutely crushed it over the past three years; and the DOW’s return, while more modest, is nothing to sneeze at.

My ETF portfolio? Up a respectable 36%. That trails the benchmarks, but it wasn’t designed to beat them in the short run. I’ve chosen sectors that might not hit their stride for 10+ years—autonomous vehicles, robotics, and AI infrastructure among them.

Top Overall Contributors Since Inception:

Portfolio Plan and Goals

Let’s revisit the original thesis behind this ETF strategy:

1. ETF-Based Diversification
   I’m not chasing meme stocks or betting the farm on one ticker. ETFs let me spread risk across entire industries—whether that’s energy, entertainment, or bleeding-edge computing.
2. Long-Term Focus
   I’ve deliberately allocated capital to areas like AI (AIQ), autonomous driving (IDRV), and robotics (ROBO). I don’t expect them to outperform in 2025, I expect them to define 2035.
3. Risk-Reward Resilience
   Balancing speculative slices with stability from consumer staples (XLP), utilities (XLU), and real estate (XLRE) lets the portfolio grow without giving me ulcers every earnings season.

Final Thoughts: This Race Is Long for a Reason

This ETF portfolio wasn’t built to beat the market this year. It was built to be steady, resilient, and provide outsized results in the long-term. So far?

• Month-over-month: Matched the DOW, trailed the S&P slightly
• YTD: Quiet outperformance over the DOW, slight lag to the S&P
• Overall: Respectable gains, with massive future upside in place

So while the S&P sprints and the DOW dips and dives, I’ll stay the course. Steady, strategic, and staked in sectors that will shape the next decade—not just this quarter.

The post Slightly Starting to Slide | Stock-Market ETF Portfolio Update, August 2025 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

I’m alright with that, though. The goal of this portfolio isn’t necessarily to be consistently beating the market right now. I hope to sustain downturns — as I have so far — while at the same time making plays that are designed to pay off years, decades from now.

So far, I’ll have to say I’m happy with how it’s performing.

Let’s get into the numbers. Here’s how my ETF portfolio has performed across three key periods: last month (June), year-to-date (July 1st), and since I first opened the portfolio in July of 2022.

June 2025: In Step with the Market

Let’s kick things off with June’s numbers:

• My Portfolio: +4%
• S&P 500: +5%
• DOW: +4.5%

While I technically lagged the market, I’d say I’m within the range of saying I’m pacing with it. The major indices had a pretty strong month, and edged me out slightly. But with a 4% gain, I’d say my portfolio held it’s own.

What drove this performance?

Year-to-Date: Quietly Beating the Market

Now let’s zoom out to 2025 so far (through close on 6/30). And here, things start to get a little more fun:

• My Portfolio: +6.3%
• S&P 500: +6.2%
• DOW: +4.5%

On the year so far, I’m actually out-pacing the market — certainly the DOW. Granted, given my remarks on the monthly performance, I’m actually in lock-step with the market. Not beating it. But this time I’m up, so I’ll take the W.

The truth is, when the market is roaring, this portfolio has historically under-performed. So, as the market turns back up, this is expected.

At the same time, historically this portfolio never really crossed above the gains of the S&P. And since it’s largely sustained that on the year, who knows what’s going to happen going forward. It’s been good, and I’m hoping for more of the same.

Top contributors so far in 2025:

• AIQ: +0.63%
• PEJ: +0.48%
• XLC: +0.81%
• XLI: +0.75%

The only slight underperformer has been PSCT and XLV (which lost about 1/4 and 1/10 of a percent respectively), but that hasn’t derailed the broader portfolio’s momentum. Here’s the breakdown of each ETF and how they’ve affected the portfolio overall.

Each ETF does a different job. Some are slow and steady, some are long-term moonshots, and a few are quietly outperforming without making headlines.

Since Inception (July 2022)

Here’s how things stack up as it’s approaching it’s 3-year anniversary:

• My Portfolio: +35.3%
• S&P 500: +62.5%
• DOW: +42.3%

Despite the recent shake-ups, the S&P has been quite strong. And, given the fact that there was a slight dip in the markets overall the week I got in; it’s gains are even more pronounced. It’s making me look a little bad, but as I’ve mentioned before, it’s well within my expectations for this portfolio.

I didn’t build this portfolio to win every race. I built it to win the right ones.

I’m holding ETFs in sectors focused on things like electric/autonomous vehicles and robotics — sectors I don’t expect to fully take off for another 10–15 years. People always talk about what they would invest in if they had a time machine, so I took that thought process when picking some if the things I wanted to be invested in.

I’ve tried to consider what life will be like in a couple decades, and what sectors will be commonplace then, that seem farfetched now. Obviously, hoping to capitalize on what these industries will become once they mature.

Here’s the breakdown of the ETFs and their affect on the portfolio since I opened it:

So yes, the total return of 35.3% lags behind the major benchmarks. But that return was built with deliberate exposure to future-facing sectors, which haven’t paid off yet. Hopefully, when we look back a decade or so from now, I won’t be playing the “if I had a time machine game”.

Diversification of ETFs Thought-Process

I’ve mentioned it a bit here and there throughout this post, but wanted to give a bit more details about my thought process behind why I chose each ETF. This is a curated strategy, built around three pillars:

1. Controlled, Consistent Growth

I’m not looking for 40% months—or 40% crashes. I want a stock-market portfolio that grows steadily, and lets me live my life without watching CNBC every morning.

2. Future-Oriented Sectors

I’m early on purpose. Self-driving cars, robotics, and artificial intelligence are all sectors I’ve chosen to invest in via ETFs like IDRV and AIQ. I’m fully aware they won’t dominate my returns right now. But by the time they do, I’ll already be in the driver’s seat.

3. Resilience During Down-Turns

The inclusion of ETFs like PBJ (consumer staples) and PEJ (media and entertainment) keeps the portfolio grounded. These act as ballast when the flashier sectors get rocky. It’s largely what kept June strong, and what keeps the whole thing from turning into a rollercoaster.

June matched the market and 2025 YTD has outpaced it. Since inception we’re a bit behind; but the thesis is still strong, and the best is probably still ahead.

Thanks for reading! Let me know in the comments what your investing strategy is, and how your portfolio is doing. I’m always looking to learn more. And if you have any questions, be sure to leave those, too! Hope to see you back here for the next post

The post Market’s Caught Up — But Still Going Strong | Stock-Market ETF Portfolio Update, July 2025 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

Goals

My goals for this portfolio are three-fold:

• Perform well when the market is up
• Not suffer too badly when the market is down
• Capitalize on emerging technologies several years in the future

I realize — maybe am now realizing — that the third goal is a bit of a hinderance on the first, but that’s alright. I don’t necessarily expect this to be an all-world, market-beating portfolio. At least not yet. So lagging the markets overall a bit (as long as there’s still pretty significant gains) is fine with me.

So far, I’m feeling really comfortable about where the portfolio is.

Month over Month Performance

On the month, my portfolio gained roughly 4.4%; which lagged the S&P a bit (it gained a little over 6%), but was right on par with the DOW (which gained a little over 4%). Major gains were made by PEJ, the leisure and entertainment ETF, and PSCT the small-cap tech fund. Here’s how each security performed based on it’s weight over the month of May:

Year to Date Performance

On the year, I’m still beating the markets — and I’ve officially gotten into profit for the year. The S&P gained about 1% and the NASDAQ lost about 3/4 of one. The DOW essentially had no change. My portfolio, however, has gained a little over 3%.

The main gains were had in XLI and XLU (Industrials and Utilities); while PSCT has really underperformed, losing nearly a point. Given the fact that it’s been largely down, it makes sense that it’s showing a relatively high return on the month.

Overall Performance

Since the stock-market portfolio’s inception (in mid-July of 2022), it’s gained 30.5%. That’s lagging the S&P pretty significantly, which has gained about 55%. But it’s closer to the DOW which is up ~36.5% in the same period.

Like I mentioned earlier, I’m not expecting this to have outsized gains right now. The plan is for those to come later when self-driving cars and more advanced robotics are part of our daily lives. So, I’m not upset in the slightest about my performance and how it currently compares.

Right now, I’m on a quarterly schedule of adding to the fund, so I’ve got another month before I make any more moves. In the meantime, I’m simply going to continue to monitor occasionally — but the point is to largely be hands off. Stay tuned for next month’s post to see which ETFs I end up purchasing when I make an update.

Thanks for reading! Let me know how your portfolio is doing in the comments — hopefully it’s doing better than mine. And if you’ve got any questions, please leave those as well. I’m happy to answer.

Hope to see you back here in July

The post Officially In Profit! | Stock-Market ETF Portfolio Update June, 2025 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

I took a step away for a bit, and just couldn’t get my performance back when I got back to it. So instead of slowly bleeding my account dry, I decided to take a take another break. This time, to rethink my game plan.

I haven’t gotten to a place where I’m happy with my strategy again yet, unfortunately. I’m working on it, though, and I think I’m getting close. I’d love for this to be more about trading again, so stay tuned for that.

Meanwhile…

In the meantime, though, I didn’t want to be out of the markets, so I’ve created a portfolio in the stock market consisting of 18 ETFs. ETF stands for Exchange-Traded Fund, and they’re essentially groups of stocks within a given category/industry/sector etc.

I wanted the portfolio to be in a diverse groups of industries — some so that it can grow steadily when times are good, some so that it doesn’t suffer too much when times are bad, and some for the far-future that will hopefully produce outsized returns in several years. A few examples of the sectors that the fund consists of are:

• Healthcare
• Consumer Staples (toothpaste, deodorant etc.)
• Consumer Leisure & Entertainment
• Real Estate
• Semiconductors
• Self-Driving Cars

I gave some thought into how risky I wanted the portfolio to be, and gave each ETF a percentage of the portfolio based on that. And when I add to it, I do so on the basis of maintaining those percentages. If you want more information about the portfolio overall, check out this page.

So far, the fund has been performing as I’d hoped — Read on to learn more.

Recent Performance

Since the beginning of the year, like I said, it’s performing pretty much exactly as I’m expecting. The market has been down, but my portfolio is at roughly break-even. Technically, it is down — but it’s only down a little under 2% while the S&P and DOW are down almost 5% and 4% respectively.

Month over month, the performance looks a little bleaker, but nothing to actually worry about. The portfolio ended the month ~1.5% under where it started, which isn’t too far behind the S&P which ended the month with a loss of just under a percent. That said, it outperformed the DOW pretty significantly which lost over 3%.

I update the portfolio every three months — January, April, July and October — so I just added more to it last month. The day I did though was literally the day before the S&P dropped about 6%. I watched literally my entire investment for the quarter disappear overnight. I held my resolve, though, and now I’m up that much more.

And truthfully, if you’ve been following closely, that means the day I did invest was after some pretty strong downward movement, and after a pretty sharp drop itself. I’m following the plan and holding for the long haul, though, so the plan is to execute it regardless of what’s going on. Prices being down are, really, just better buying opportunities.

Overall Performance

Since I started the portfolio in July of 2022 (using Schwab’s calculation), it’s up 25% — which is admittedly lagging the market overall, but how much depends on which market you use. I’m about 20 points behind the S&P which has gained 45% in the same time period; but I’m a little closer to the DOW, which has gained 31%.

Like I said, though, I’ve got several goals for this portfolio — some of them several years out — so lagging the market right now is okay with me. Plus, over the last couple months when the market has been down, I’ve been outperforming it; which was one of the goals. So all-in-all, I feel like I’m in a good place.

Right now, I’ve got myself on a quarterly schedule to add dollars to this stock-market portfolio; so I’m not making any updates right now. The next time will be in early-July. Hopefully that time I don’t do so right before a big dip like I did last month .

Either way, I’ll be checking in again at the beginning of June, so stay tuned for that! Are any of you holding on to long-term portfolios? Let me know in the comments how yours is doing. Thanks for reading!

The post Surviving the Market Drops | Stock-Market Portfolio Update May 1st, 2025 appeared first on Anthony Bradley's Trading Journal.

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!

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