"I sold Samsung Electronics and SK hynix at a profit, but I still keep thinking about it." Investors regret taking gains [Office Worker Joys and Sorrows]

[Financial News] "I sold it yesterday, but it went up even more today."
A salaried worker in his 30s, identified as A, said he had not felt at ease after recently selling his semiconductor stocks. He had not taken a loss. He sold them after making more than 8% in just a few days. The problem came the next day. Prices rose again, and A kept opening his stock app during work to compare the price he sold at with the current one.
A said, "I did not lose money, but I still felt like I had lost out for no reason." He added, "Before selling, I was anxious that prices might fall. After selling, I kept checking because I was worried they might rise even more."

As stock market volatility has increased, so-called 'regret after taking profits' has also become more common among retail investors. Taking profits means selling a stock after making a gain. It is a successful trade in the sense that it avoids losses, but if the stock rises further after the sale, investors may still feel regret even though they made money.

In recent market conditions, returns have often changed sharply from one day to the next. The KOSPI (Korea Composite Stock Price Index) hit an all-time closing high of 9,114.55 on the 22nd of last month. But on the 2nd, it plunged 7.89% to 7,648.09, before rebounding 5.76% to 8,088.34 on the next trading day, the 3rd.
Large-cap semiconductor stocks followed the same pattern. On the 2nd, Samsung Electronics fell 9.06% and SK hynix dropped 14.57%. The next day, Samsung Electronics rose 8.22% and SK hynix gained 10.88%. It was a market in which investors who cut losses on the day of the plunge, as well as those who took profits the day before the rebound, could not help but feel disappointed when they looked at prices the following day.
A salaried worker in his 40s, identified as B, said, "I sold because I thought I should take profits when I had them, but if it goes up more the next day, I feel like I sold too early." He added, "The account shows a profit, but sometimes it feels like a loss in my mind."

This kind of regret appears more clearly when selling than when buying. If a stock you did not buy goes up, you may think you missed it. But if a stock you actually owned rises after you sell it, the comparison is much more direct. Investors keep checking the price they sold at and the price afterward.


Regret after taking profits is not simply a matter of greed. Investors tend to focus on the money they could have made rather than the profit they actually earned. Even if they made 100,000 won, they may feel more disappointed than satisfied if they think they could have made 300,000 won by holding on.
The problem comes with the next trade. If the stock keeps rising after the sale, investors may want to buy back in at a higher price. What began as profit-taking can then lead to repurchases and short-term trading. Without a clear selling rule, even a profitable stock can become a new source of anxiety.
A salaried worker in his 30s, identified as C, said, "If it goes up more after I sell, I start wondering whether I should buy it again." He added, "But if I buy it back, it always seems to start moving against me from that point, which makes it even harder." He said, "I did not have a set target price from the beginning, so I kept regretting the sale afterward."
According to 'Behavioral Biases of Individual Investors in the Stock Market,' published in Capital Market Focus in August 2021 by the Korea Capital Market Institute, the disposition effect refers to the tendency to hold losing stocks for too long and sell winning stocks too quickly. The report explained that this reflects both the desire to lock in gains and feel relief, and the tendency to delay realizing losses.

The institute said the disposition effect can cause investors to give up additional upside in winning stocks while allowing losses in losing stocks to accumulate.


Taking profits is not a bad thing in itself. Locking in gains is a necessary part of investing. The problem is selling without being able to explain why. The judgment changes depending on whether the sale was made after reaching a target return, because the company’s earnings outlook changed, or simply because the investor feared volatility.

If there is a selling rule, regret is reduced even if the stock rises further. If the original goal was a 10% gain, any later increase can be seen as outside that plan. By contrast, if there was no clear rule, the investor’s judgment wavers every time the stock rises.
What investors need is not selling at the absolute peak. In reality, no one knows the top until after it has passed. Salaried workers also cannot keep watching intraday moves all day. When prices swing sharply during meetings, commutes, or work, it becomes even harder to respond.

In the end, B, the office worker, recently began setting separate selling rules for each stock he holds. He now predefines a target return, an earnings announcement schedule, and a loss limit. He said, "In the past, if a stock went up more after I sold it, I would think about it all day." He added, "These days, if I sold according to my own rules, I try not to look at the price as much afterward."

hsg@fnnews.com Han Seung-gon Reporter