Labor Day, the last hurrah of summer—marked by barbecues, friends, family, and one last chance to soak up the sun. As you set up your grill, we’ve grilled up some fun stats on how stocks have historically performed right before and after Labor Day.
By the way, before you wonder: “Is the stock market open on Labor Day?” The answer is “no,” and it’s time to relax—you deserve it!
We decided to plunge into 73 years of stock market data to discover its waves around Labor Day. As we all prepare to wave goodbye to summer, find out what waves the stock market has historically ridden.
Using the S&P 500 as our benchmark index, we surfed through the trends based on 3 days before and 3 days after the Labor Day holiday, from 1950 through 2022.
What did we find? The average daily return of those 438 days was…wait for it…
A tiny loss of -0.005%
Based on this rather boring number, the stock market seems to also enjoy chilling around the Labor Day holiday!
Curiosity led us to take a closer look at just the last 5 years as well.
It seems the waters were a bit warmer in recent years, with a slight average daily gain of +0.002%.
Just for fun, here is the yearly S&P 500 breakdown from 2018-2022 (3 days before and after Labor Day):
While the 73-year average was pretty steady, stocks tended to have a slight uptick on the Friday before Labor Day weekend. As for the first trading day post-celebrations? Be prepared for some volatility, as traders mark the end of the “summer doldrums” and get back to work.
Is there a magical Labor Day stock trading strategy? Hardly.
While these insights can be fascinating (at least for stat geeks like us), it’s never wise to anchor your decisions on seasonal shifts alone. Having a disciplined approach, with a proven trading strategy, is what truly matters for your long-term trading success.
Our north star? The Wagner Daily PRO, our flagship swing trading service.
Our guiding principle? Trade what you see, not what you think!
Before you set sail on your Labor Day adventures, we’d like to offer you a special invitation to join the MTG Tribe by diving into our popular Wagner Daily PRO service.
In addition to joining a tight-knit community of fellow traders in our exclusive Swing Trader Chatroom, you will receive explosive swing trade alerts while learning the proven MTG trading techniques. As an end-of-day swing trading system, it’s your perfect side hustle!
Here’s to a fun, happy, and safe Labor Day weekend! And remember, the stock market may take a Labor Day break, but we’re here, prepped and ready for the next wave when it’s back in action!
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View Comments
A very simple and to the point description of the Labor Day holiday effect on the marketplace. Thank you for such a thorough backtest.
Terry
Thanks for your feedback, Terry. Glad you liked the article.