Position exits

↗See this in Fincanva — a strategy's Settings, on the Position exits card

Before you start

You need a strategy open in its settings, either while building one or later in Editing a strategy: the settings cards. Two of the four exits live on the Position exits card ("Auto-close rules applied to each position"); the other two live in the Pro-mode screening settings — see Where the four exit controls live below. If the strategy is public, you can open its settings but can't save an edit — make your own copy first.

Steps

Each exit is a toggle with a value, and turning the toggle off is what stops the rule from applying. While you build a strategy, the rules step asks it as a question — "When should positions be exited?".

1. Open the strategy's settings, while building it or later from the settings cards.
2. For Take profit or Stop loss, switch its toggle on in the Position exits card and enter a percentage. Take profit starts at 150%, Stop loss at −30%.
3. For Max hold or Reinvest delay, set the Screening card to Pro, then switch the control on and enter a number of months. Each starts at your rebalance frequency.
4. To stop a rule from applying, switch its toggle off. A rule with its toggle off is simply not evaluated.
5. Save the strategy and run a new Backtest to see the effect — see saving and running a strategy.

What you should see

On the Position exits card the status label reflects your choices as "No exits active", "Stop loss active", "Take profit active", or "Both exits active". With Stop loss or Take profit on, the card's footer names the level a position closes at, starting "Positions close at". When no exit rule is active the card shows "No exit rules active — positions only close at the next rebalance."

Where the four exit controls live

The four exits are split across two surfaces in the app, so where you find each one depends on the control. Take profit and Stop loss are on the Position exits card, described there as "Auto-close rules applied to each position". Max hold and Reinvest delay are Pro-mode settings on the screening surface, not on the Position exits card. All four behave the same way — a toggle plus a value, where turning the toggle off stops the rule from applying — but you reach the first pair and the second pair from different places.

What does Take profit do?

Take profit closes a position once it reaches a target gain, and it lives on the Position exits card — the card described there as "Auto-close rules applied to each position". Its value is a positive percentage (suffix "%") and it is off by default. When you turn it on it starts at 150%, and you can set it anywhere from 5% to 1000%. If you enter a value outside that band, the app blocks it with "Take profit must be between 5% and 1000%." A higher number means the position has to gain more before the rule closes it.

What does Stop loss do?

Stop loss closes a position once it has fallen past a threshold loss, and it sits on the same Position exits card, under the title "Stop loss". Its value is a negative percentage (suffix "%") because it describes a loss, and it is off by default. When you turn it on it starts at −30%, and you can set it anywhere from −100% to −5%. A value outside that band is blocked with "Stop loss must be between −100% and −5%." A number closer to −100% lets a position fall further before the rule closes it; a number closer to −5% closes it sooner.

What does Max hold do?

Max hold sells a position after you have held it for a set number of months, and it is a Pro-mode setting on the screening surface — not on the Position exits card. Its hint reads "Sell a position after holding it this long", its value is in months (suffix "mo"), and it is off by default. When you turn it on, the field is seeded with your own rebalance frequency — always a valid multiple, so the value it starts at depends on the strategy. You can set it from 1 to 120 months, and the value must be a whole multiple of your rebalance frequency — see How the rebalance frequency paces exits below.

What does Reinvest delay do?

Reinvest delay keeps an instrument out of the strategy's choices for a set number of months after its position closes, so the strategy cannot buy it straight back — it holds back the instrument, not the freed cash (see reinvest delay). It is also a Pro-mode setting on the screening surface. Its hint reads "Wait this long before re-entering an instrument after its position closes", its value is in months (suffix "mo"), and it is off by default. Like Max hold, turning it on seeds the field with your own rebalance frequency rather than a fixed number. It ranges from 1 to 120 months and must be a whole multiple of your rebalance frequency.

How does the rebalance frequency pace exits?

It paces two of the four and neither of the other two. Max hold and Reinvest delay are quantized to whole rebalance periods, which is why each must be a whole multiple of your rebalance frequency. If you enter a number that isn't such a multiple, the app blocks it with a message naming your frequency, such as "Must be a multiple of 3 months". So a strategy that rebalances every 3 months accepts a Max hold of 3, 6, 9, or 12 months, but not 4 or 5. Max hold acts at the strategy's scheduled rebalances only: a rebalance forced off schedule by a risk condition does not close a position for max hold. Take profit and Stop loss run on a different clock. Each position's gain or loss is checked on that position's own price bars, so either exit can close a position between two rebalances, on the bar that reached the threshold rather than at the next rebalance — see execution time for the price such a close books at.

What are the limits and validation messages?

Every exit control has a fixed range, a value it takes when enabled, and its own validation message, and all four are off until you turn them on:

• Take profit — 5% to 1000%, starts at 150%. Out of range: "Take profit must be between 5% and 1000%."
• Stop loss — −100% to −5%, starts at −30%. Out of range: "Stop loss must be between −100% and −5%."
• Max hold — 1 to 120 months, starts at your rebalance frequency, whole multiple of that frequency. Not a multiple: "Must be a multiple of 3 months" (the number shown is your rebalance frequency).
• Reinvest delay — 1 to 120 months, starts at your rebalance frequency, whole multiple of that frequency. Same messages as Max hold.

With all four off, the card confirms it: "No exit rules active — positions only close at the next rebalance."

Fincanva does not tell you which take-profit or stop-loss level is best for your money — see Is this financial advice?.

Common problems

Why does the card say "Stop loss needs attention"?

"Enter a value." under an exit means it is switched on with its field empty. "Take profit must be between 5% and 1000%." or "Stop loss must be between −100% and −5%." means its value is outside the range. While either message shows, the status label reads "Stop loss needs attention", "Take profit needs attention", or "Exit rules need attention" when both exits have a problem. To fix it, enter a value inside the range — every range is listed under What are the limits and validation messages?.

Why won't Max hold or Reinvest delay accept my number?

The field under the control names the reason:

• "Enter a value." — the control is switched on with its field empty.
• "Enter 1–120 months." — the number is outside the range.
• "Enter a whole number." — the number has a decimal part.
• "Must be a multiple of 3 months" — the number is not a whole multiple of your rebalance frequency; the figure shown is your own frequency.

To fix it, enter a whole number of months from 1 to 120 that is a multiple of your rebalance frequency — see How does the rebalance frequency pace exits?.

Related

Position exits act on individual positions; to make the whole strategy go defensive instead, see Risk conditions and Set up a risk condition. To change any of these controls on an existing strategy, follow Editing a strategy: the settings cards, then save and re-run to see the effect. For where exits fit among a strategy's parts, read What is a strategy?.