re: The first of the oil majors, COP, cuts the dividend

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Remember the sum of the parts 11 years ago still contained PSX. I own COP but have a bad feeling it's headed lower...

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Had forgotten about the spinoff with PSX. I guess that justifies some of the downturn. Sub $30's, I think I will have to get into this. I have been thinking getting into several of the majors (w/ dividends) in the next month or so.

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The problem I see with that strategy is that you could miss out on substantial opportunities when markets dip.

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Market timing doesn't work, DCA is the best way. There are numerous studies on this fact by people way smarter than us who've tried to find evidence to support one's ability to time the market, but its just not there.

Dollar cost averaging already seizes the opportunity you mention when you buy a fixed amount on a fixed schedule, as you're buying more shares when markets fall just as you describe, thus lowering your average cost basis and increasing your returns.

The best strategy to combine the 2 hypotheses would be to increase your DCA amount on a periodic basis if you thought there was a sustained downturn, never falling below your starting basis amount.

For example, if he's exchanging from cash to an index every week at $105, go to $210 each week and start funnelling in next year's money on the same schedule (as the accelerated exchange will occur in half the time). You could always back down to $105 if you thought the market was peaking at some point in the future.

Fair point and I do that with several positions. I'm just saying it makes sense to pull the trigger when I find value. We likely won't have the opportunity to purchase XOM at a 3.6% yield a year from now, so if that's a core holding, as it is for me, load up when it's down.