When do you sell stocks?

Though timing a stock sale is a challenge, long-term investors typically should sell when underlying business factors deteriorate and the share price is likely to decline for an extended period, according to Kiplinger. Short-term traders typically try to sell at a near-term price peak, though.

Just like long-term investors, short-term traders want to maximize profit over time. They prefer to sell when a stock has peaked or is growing slowly so that they can put money in a faster-growing stock or one about to take off, according to Nasdaq. Some traders also use high price-to-earnings ratios and other indicators that a stock is overvalued to make sell decisions, according to Nasdaq.