Trading individual stocks aren’t always easy, and it can be even tougher to trade them somewhat actively. Such is the case for swing trading, where most traders hold their shares for a few days to a few weeks. Mindful Trader is a stock picking service that looks to help people with this process, and that will be the focus of this review.
One study found that the average swing trader made just 11.4% annually, hardly enough to make a living. In fact, there have been many years recently where passively investing in a total stock market index fund would have provided similar returns. Thus, going it alone may not be the best bet—especially for the average trader.
The good news is that there are quality services out there that can help you earn better returns without having to spend all your time researching. That’s exactly what Mindful Trader hopes to do, but this service hasn’t been around long.
So the question is: should you trust it? Is it worth the money? We’ll answer all that and more in this Mindful Trader review.
What is Mindful Trader?
Mindful Trader is a stock picking service that can help you make better trades with a good alternative being ZipTraderU. In particular, it focuses on swing trades, all of which are based on a historical quantitative edge. In other words, every trade is based on a statistical analysis Eric, who runs the program, has done.
He’s not making trades based on his gut or on a good feeling. Nor are his trades based on a bias he may have toward any particular company.
Eric graduated from Stanford University with a degree in economics. So, numbers and the economy are pretty much his bread and butter.
He started Mindful Trader because he was trying to find a service similar to this many years ago to no avail. Eric found that many of them were simply trying to upsell people or were too biased. He is not trying to do any of that. Instead, his goal is simply to make more money from his swing trades and also help you do so in the process.
One Thing You Should Know About Mindful Trader
One thing you should keep in mind about Mindful Trader is that it is a newer service. Thus, you won’t find hundreds of reviews that can vouch for the program like you will with The Motley Fool Stock Advisor. Nevertheless, Eric is far from new to swing trading. In fact, he has 20 years of trading data to show, including his annual return for each of those years.
So, you aren’t just buying into some hollow marketing pitch that’s trying to get as much money from you before you run. And other Mindful Trader reviews have come to the same conclusion. This is a subscription-based service that has proven to be successful over a long period of time.
Mindful Trader Strategy
Mindful Trader recommends trades that have a quantitative edge. In other words, each trade is tested against Eric’s strategies before recommending it. And that’s saying something because he has tested over 5,000 different trading strategies.
From that massive number, he has gotten it all the way down to a dozen or so strategies that work. According to the website, the vast majority would not generate a profit. One can only imagine how long it must have taken to get to where he is now. But, again, he’s been working on it for 20 years.
Also of note, he says that there is a lot of “noise” when looking at short time frames such as a few days or a few hours. Most trading strategies he has found don’t generate a profit over such short time periods, which is one reason he prefers swing trading.
Eric uses a trading edge to find favorable trades. He equates this to being the house in the casino; in other words, the odds are stacked in your favor. As such, Eric says, “A trading strategy must have great results over a backtest of at least 20 years for me to consider it.”
Simply put, the picks you receive from Mindful trader are those that have an edge and have been back-tested against 20 years of historical data, giving you a very high chance of success.
Stock Picks
Mindful Trader’s stock picks are the real meat of this review; after all, that is what you are really paying for. Typically, you will receive about 6-8 trade picks per week. That can be quite varied though since the market itself is different every day. Some days you might see a bunch of picks; some weeks may have none at all.
All of the stock picks are posted to Mindful Trader’s website; you can go there to find Eric’s recent picks. When you view a stock pick, the first word will be whether he bought or sold followed by the stock’s ticker.
Next is the exact share price he paid followed by the stop loss. If you aren’t familiar with stop-loss orders, they are exactly what their name implies: a way to stop losses. So if a stock you buy moves down instead of up, you can have your broker automatically sell your shares if it falls to your stop-loss order price. Lastly is the profit target, which is the price the stock must reach in order to turn the expected profit.
Most of the time, Eric is buying stocks as opposed to selling. However, you will sometimes see short sales. Short sales work the same way as far as Mindful Trader is concerned. The only difference is it will tell you the price at which he initially sold plus the profit price for you to buy the shares back.
Get started with Mindful Trader to start receiving stock picks.
Historical Returns
Again, this is one of the things you really want to know. After all, anyone can claim they have a great service, but do you have the receipts? Well, Mindful Trader certainly does.
Below, you will find Mindful Trader’s annual returns from 1999-2020. As of the time this was written, his median annual return is 181%.
It’s tough to say what is most impressive about his returns, though it is probably having 400% or greater returns two years in a row. That is actually quite incredible.
Eric also maintains a list of his daily trading returns over the past six weeks, free for anyone to view. Recently, he has had a modest return, but that will likely change soon. Regardless, the level of transparency is very much appreciated.
How Much Does Mindful Trader Cost?
Currently, Mindful Trader only has one pricing tier; the cost is $47/month. If that sounds expensive, keep in mind it is actually much cheaper than most day trading services, which can cost thousands of dollars per year.
So while it isn’t exactly cheap, it’s still quite a good value for what you get. Plus, the trade performance can more than make up for the cost of the service. Also note that this is a flat fee, which means larger portfolios can potentially reap huge rewards from using Eric’s stock picks.
Mindful Trader Pros & Cons
At the moment, Mindful Trader appears to be a promising service. The cost can be a bit high for some, but you do get a lot of value for the price.
Pros
- Great value
- In-depth analysis
- Over 20 years of strong returns
Cons
- Newer program (although it has a lot of historical data)
Is Mindful Trader Right For You?
Mindful Trader is undoubtedly a high-quality service. Eric, who runs Mindful Trader, has really done his homework, and now wants to share his expertise with you. Of course, he focuses on stock picks, so this service is not for you if you prefer to buy and hold for years—or if you prefer day trading.
But anyone who prefers swing trading should benefit from this service. If that sounds like you and the monthly cost is within your budget, Mindful Trader is worth considering.
Ready to get started? Head over to Mindful Trader to sign up.
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