Financial advisor: Market volatility continues, but should not deter long-term investors

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Friday capped a rough week in the stock market, with the Dow, Nasdaq, and S & P 500 all finishing down on the week.

"I think this is just a slight, normal pullback. I don't think we're heading into correction territory because if you think about it, the previous couple weeks were very, very strong, especially for the Nasdaq," said Robert Turner, the CEO of Raleigh-based Capitol Financial Solutions.

The swings - both up and down- have become more common.

"Over the last couple years, the market's been more volatile, as we've had a lot of world events and of course the pandemic," said Turner.

While the changes can be jarring, Turner stresses a long-term approach for his clients.

"If they know that they have chosen their risk correctly and they're invested correctly to match up with that risk, then they know they can be in it for the long-term. And quite frankly, what the value of someone's 401K is today if they have 20 years to retirement is really pretty irrelevant. The most important thing is to continue to invest in a systematic basis," Turner said.

Retail investors have helped fuel massive price movements in stocks over the past two months, most notably GameStop. The company, which opened the year at around $17 a share, hit $500 a share in late-January, before sharply falling to below $50 a share as of earlier this week.

"The small investor who maybe is just getting started in the market like they should, sees these crazy gains and try to chase them. And then they get burned and then they're going to stay out of the market forever," Turner said.

The stock has seen renewed momentum in the past few days, hitting $177 a share on Thursday, before ending the week hovering around $100.

"These are the wildest price swings we've seen on individual stocks in any time that I can remember. And again, what I'm afraid of is that small investor looking to hit a home run, and gets totally left behind when (they fall), and that that's going to scar them for life in terms of how they're going to invest," said Turner.

Volatility isn't necessarily a negative, especially for investors with sound portfolios and long-term visions.

"In times of volatility, it's important to continue to invest along the way. When the market dropped to (close to) 18,000 (in March 2020), we encouraged our clients to use that as a buying opportunity and to continue to systematically invest. And if you do that, you're going to take advantage of the price volatility in the long-run. And so, I think one great thing right now is that more people are investing in the market than ever, and (it's) those that normally might not have twenty years ago, and I think that's a great sign. But I think they really need to understand long-term investing and taking reasonable amounts of risk," Turner said.

Turner suggests young people to invest their money, but do so with an eye towards the future.

"If an investor starts investing at say 25 years old, and invests $10,000 a year until they're 35, and then they stop. And then another investor starts investing at 35, $10,000 a year, all the way until their 65, the person that did it for 10 years, from 25-35 will have more money," said Turner.

Mortgage rates continue to rise, though still are closer to the low-end of 52-week ranges.

Despite the recent slide, the Dow, Nasdaq, and S & P 500 are all well above pre-pandemic levels.