A Trend Asset Allocation Model review

May 19, 2024 at 13:11 PM EDT

Preface: Explaining our market timing models We maintain several market timing models, each with differing time horizons. The "Ultimate Market Timing Model" is a long-term market timing model based on the research outlined in our post, Building the ultimate market timing model. This model tends to generate only a handful of signals each decade.
The Trend Asset Allocation Model is an asset allocation model that applies trend-following principles based on the inputs of global stock and commodity prices. This model has a shorter time horizon and tends to turn over about 4-6 times a year. The performance and full details of a model portfolio based on the out-of-sample signals of the Trend Model can be found here.

My inner trader uses a trading model, which is a blend of price momentum (is the Trend Model becoming more bullish, or bearish?) and overbought/oversold extremes (don't buy if the trend is overbought, and vice versa). Subscribers receive real-time alerts of model changes, and a hypothetical trading record of the email alerts is updated weekly here. The hypothetical trading record of the trading model of the real-time alerts that began in March 2016 is shown below.

The latest signals of each model are as follows:

Ultimate market timing model: Buy equities (Last changed from “sell” on 28-Jul-2023)*
Trend Model signal: Bullish (Last changed from “neutral” on 28-Jul-2023)*
Trading model: Bullish (Last changed from “neutral” on 10-May-2024)*

* The performance chart and model readings have been delayed by a week out of respect to our paying subscribers.

Update schedule: I generally update model readings on my site on weekends. I am also on X/Twitter at @humblestudent. Subscribers receive real-time alerts of trading model changes, and a hypothetical trading record of those email alerts is shown here.

Subscribers can access the latest signal in real time here.

A Trend Model reviewOver the course of several discussions with readers, it was apparent that some didn’t understand the Trend Asset Allocation Model, otherwise known as the Trend Model. This is a model that applies trend-following principles to a variety of global markets and commodities to form a composite signal.

While a history of out-of-sample weekly signals are available dating back to 2013, there is no actual portfolio return track record. However, a simulated strategy of using the out-of-sample signals to either overweight or underweight the S&P 500 by 20% around a 60% S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and 40% 7-10 year Treasury ETF (IEF) would have yielded significantly better returns with 60/40 like risk.

This week I review the model’s internals to reveal why I am bullish on equities.

The full post can be found here.