Do Large Losses Loom Larger than Gains? Salience, Holding Periods, and the Disposition Effect

Individual investors are more likely to sell stocks with nominal gains and losses that are large relative to their brokerage portfolio value. The salience of nominal gains and losses affects stock sales in both taxable and tax-deferred accounts and across investor groups, but the effect of nominal losses is weaker for stocks with high valuation uncertainty. The effect has a time dimension: at short holding periods, individuals are more likely to sell stocks with large nominal losses than gains of the same size, mitigating the disposition effect. Investors may be compelled to revisit their beliefs after incurring large losses quickly.