Asymmetric Investment Returns is a blog authored by Mike Shell since 2006, covering topics about asymmetric investing and trading for asymmetric risk/reward in pursuit of asymmetry.
Investment Drawdowns from Market Losses Work Geometrically Against You Losses don’t scale linearly—they scale exponentially in how they hurt compounding.
BREADTH THRUST: As of April 24, 2025, all three major Bullish Percent Indexes have confirmed significant upward reversals in participation, with the Nasdaq Bullish Percent exploding higher in a breadth thrust.
The VIX futures curve continues to send a clear message: volatility remains elevated, and the market still expects it to fade—but not just yet.
To compound capital efficiently over time, downside risk must be actively mitigated. The key to long-term wealth creation isn’t just capturing upside—it’s protecting capital through asymmetric risk/reward positioning and strict portfolio risk exposure limits.
The market’s internal breadth collapse has intensified. While we are not yet seeing clear signals of reversal, the structure beneath the surface is setting up the conditions where asymmetric opportunity may form.
The stock market indexes are in bear market territory, with the S&P 500 down ~18% and Nasdaq ~21% from their highs two months ago. Here we share a recap of our tactical trading observations since the market peak to get a sense of how we mitigated the carnage.