EQUIALGO

Combined Long/Short Strategy

A dynamic capital allocation strategy that combines momentum longs with weakness shorts, adapting exposure based on market regime for enhanced risk-adjusted returns.

Strategy Highlights

6,325%
Total Return
23.5%
Max Drawdown
12.5
Calmar Ratio
1

Strategy Overview

Core Concept

The combined strategy operates both long and short positions simultaneously, using a shared capital pool. This approach captures gains from both rising and falling stocks while reducing overall portfolio volatility through natural hedging.

Long side enters new positions only when QQQ > 14-day MA
Existing longs held in bearish regime until score drops
Short side operates regardless of market regime
Regime transitions trigger short position trimming

Current Configuration

Initial Capital$100,000 shared pool
Long PositionsUp to 10 stocks
Short PositionsUp to 20 stocks
Market FilterQQQ 14-day MA
Short Stop-Loss30% rally
2

Dynamic Capital Allocation

The combined strategy dynamically allocates capital between long and short positions based on the market regime. This ensures the portfolio is always positioned to capture opportunities in the prevailing market condition.

Bullish Regime (QQQ > 14-day MA)

Long Allocation50%
Short Allocation50%

Bearish Regime (QQQ < 14-day MA)

Long AllocationHold existing only
Short Allocation100%
No new long entries or rebalancing. Existing longs exit only when score drops.

Regime Transition Logic

When the market transitions from bearish to bullish (QQQ crosses above its 14-day MA), the strategy performs a rebalancing operation to free up capital for long positions.

Bearish → Bullish Transition

1
Detect QQQ crossing above 14-day MA
2
Cover 50% of all short positions (trim to half)
3
Freed capital becomes available for long entries
4
Resume 50-50 allocation for subsequent days
3

Strategy Components

Long Strategy

The long component uses a 7-factor momentum scoring system to identify strong stocks with bullish technical characteristics.

Min Momentum Score63 / 100
Portfolio SizeTop 10 stocks
Market FilterQQQ > 14-day MA
ExecutionNext day open
Learn more about Long Strategy →

Short Strategy

The short component uses a 7-factor weakness scoring system to identify weak stocks with bearish technical characteristics.

Min Weakness Score70 / 100
Portfolio SizeTop 20 stocks
Price Range$40 - $150
Stop-Loss30% rally (immediate)
Learn more about Short Strategy →
4

Trade Execution & Rebalancing

Next-Day Execution

All signal-based trades use a pending trades pattern. When a signal is generated at market close (Day N), the trade executes at the next day's open price (Day N+1). This eliminates look-ahead bias and reflects realistic execution.

1
Signal generated at Day N close
2
Trade queued as "pending"
3
Execute at Day N+1 open price
Exception: Stop-Losses
Short stop-losses execute immediately (same-day) for intraday protection when a position rallies 30% against us.

Daily Rebalancing

The strategy maintains equal-weight positions through daily rebalancing. Each position is resized to its target allocation based on current portfolio value.

Underweight Positions
Buy/Short more shares to reach target allocation
Overweight Positions
Sell/Cover excess shares (threshold: 5 shares min)
Trade Reason: Each trade is tagged as either SIGNAL (entry/exit) or REBALANCE (position sizing adjustment).

Equal-Weight Allocation Formula

Target allocation per position is calculated daily based on total portfolio value and the number of target positions in each strategy.

// Long side (bullish regime)
allocation = (portfolio × 50%) / 10 positions
// Short side
allocation = (portfolio × 50%) / 20 positions

Example

Portfolio Value$1,000,000
Long Target (50%)$500,000
Per Long Position$50,000
Short Target (50%)$500,000
Per Short Position$25,000
5

Performance Comparison

The combined strategy delivers strong absolute returns by capturing opportunities on both sides of the market, with a higher Calmar ratio than the short-only strategy.

StrategyTotal ReturnMax DrawdownCalmar Ratio
Long Only2,897%18.3%11.22
Short Only2,752%28.5%7.03
Combined6,325%23.5%12.47

Key Observations

Combined captures returns from both market directions
Shorts profit when longs are sidelined in bearish regimes
Dynamic allocation adapts to market conditions
Higher Calmar ratio than short-only strategy

Explore the Combined Strategy

View the combined portfolio with live positions, performance metrics, and daily trades.