Five Reasons Not To Sell In May

Ted

FYI: “Sell in May and go away” is probably the most widely cited cliché in stock market history. May is upon us, which sparks a barrage of Wall Street commentaries, media stories, and investor questions every year about the popular stock market adage. This week, we tackle this widely cited seasonal pattern, but focus on some reasons it might not work this year.
Regards,
Ted
http://www.fa-mag.com/news/five-reasons-not-to-sell-in-may-32708.html?print

Old_Skeet

If it was a sure thing then I'd think most investors would be following the strategy. While, I have found that it works more times than not ... I can understand there are those that for whatever reason(s), might not wish to follow the strategy.

Please know, I don't sell out of equities as summer approaches I rebalance towards the low end of my equity allocation and come fall I'll rebalance towards the high end.

LLJB

Part of the reason most investors don't do this, I think, is because returns during the summer months are still historically positive even if they're lower than the other 6 months of the year. There are quite a few versions of this strategy that tend to have a similar approach to what @Old_Skeet is doing- adjusting allocations away from higher volatility stocks and into more defensive assets even if in some cases its still equities. Based on the few things I've seen that seems like a far better idea than the simple "sell in May and go away".