The so-termed “Santa Claus Rally” says that stocks have a high likelihood of rallying in the final trading days of the year (after Christmas), often extending into the first couple of days of the new year. The statistics on this seasonal pattern vary depending on who you ask and what timeframe is being used. Generally speaking, though, the consensus is that stocks have a greater than 60% chance of going up during this period, based on history.1
But Santa never arrived in 2022.
Instead, U.S. stocks gave up some of the strong gains posted from mid-October through the end of November, ending the year with a whimper.
The Santa Claus Rally Didn’t Happen in 2022
Amongst the many lessons that can be learned from market volatility, the most important lesson is not to time the market.
When Is It the Right Time to Invest?
There is no right time to invest, but there are key forecasts and data available to help you make the most out of 2023. I recommend taking a look at our just-released January 2023 Stock Market Outlook report.
This report will provide you with insights into the new year and key forecasts to consider such as:
- Setting U.S. return expectations for 2023
- Zacks forecasts at a glance
- What produces 2023 optimism?
- And more…
If you have $500,000 or more to invest and want to learn more about these forecasts, click on the link below to get your free report today!
IT’S FREE. Download the Just-Released January 2023 Stock Market Outlook3
The lack of a late December rally has some arguing that it could be a sign of things to come in 2023. Part of the Santa Claus market lore is that a rallying market at year-end, and early in the new year, has been a good predictor of the gains to come. But an investor needs only a look back to 2021 to see the fallacy in this argument. During the 7-day Santa Claus rally period of 2021, the S&P 500 notched a solid +1.4% gain. 2022’s bear market started the next day.
Now that we’re in a new year, some investors are looking for signs that the “January Effect” is taking hold. This seasonal quirk says that stocks – and in particular smaller, value stocks that experienced selling pressure in the previous year – tend to rally in the early days of January. The causes for this supposed rally range from hopefulness in a new year to investors repurchasing stocks following year-end tax loss harvesting.
Next up on the investment calendar is the ‘Sell in May’ adage, which says that investors should ditch stocks at the end of April, wait on the sidelines until Halloween or some arbitrary date in the fall, and then reinvest in time for the aforementioned Santa Claus late-year rally.
Investors shouldn’t buy into any of this.
In my view, the Santa Claus rally, January Effect, and Sell in May are all just market-timing strategies dressed up as seasonal, statistics-driven investment approaches. But any adage or rule that suggests investors should be getting in and out of stocks over weekly or monthly time frames is not only wrong, in my view, but also harmful to an investor’s long-term return potential.
Stocks have delivered annualized returns of over +10% since 1926, which includes the Great Depression, high inflation during the 1970s, the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, and every other bear market and correction over that time. Trying to dance around seasonal quirks likely means missing significant amounts of the upside needed to capture that total return.
In my book, The Little Book of Stock Market Profits, I wrote: “Over the years I have yet to find a successful investor who obtained his or her returns through market timing…Active investment strategies can be developed that outperform the market over time – but engaging in behavior that borders on day-trading, because of what day is on the calendar, is ill-advised.”
In the years since I wrote that book, my opinion hasn’t shifted one bit.
Bottom Line for Investors
In the financial media, I have seen reputable pundits and even financial institutions still leaning into seasonal adages like the Santa Claus rally and the January Effect.But prudent investors should not try to time the market by season or any arbitrary date on the calendar. That’s because stocks don’t follow calendars, which means fundamentals-focused investors shouldn’t follow them, either.
To better guide your investing decisions in the new year, I am offering all readers our Just-Released January 2023 Stock Market Outlook Report. This report will provide you with key forecasts along with additional factors to consider, such as:
- Setting U.S. return expectations for 2023
- Zacks forecasts at a glance
- What produces 2023 optimism?
- And more…
If you have $500,000 or more to invest and want to learn more about these forecasts, click on the link below to get your free report today!
Disclosure
2 Fred Economic Data. January 3, 2023. https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/SP500
3 Zacks Investment Management reserves the right to amend the terms or rescind the free-Stock Market Outlook Report offer at any time and for any reason at its discretion.
4 Zacks Investment Management reserves the right to amend the terms or rescind the free-Stock Market Outlook Report offer at any time and for any reason at its discretion.
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