Friday The 13th: An Unlucky Day For The Stock Market?

by Erica Kollmann Benzinga Staff Writer

Zinger Key Points

According to Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist for LPL Financial, the S&P 500 holds up relatively well on Friday the 13th.
Since 1928, the broader market has posted an average gain of 0.09% across all 164 Friday the 13th trading days.

The stock market’s performance on Friday the 13th is generally positive, contrary to superstitious beliefs. Historical data shows that the supposedly unlucky day has actually been favorable for investors.

What To Know: There are many origin stories related to Friday the 13th. Some sources trace its origins back to the arrest of the Knights Templar on Friday, Oct. 13, 1307.

Other sources trace the superstition to Christian traditions where the number 13 is associated with the Last Supper. Judas Iscariot was supposedly the 13th guest who betrayed Jesus. Friday could also be considered unlucky because it was the day of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion.

A popular novel written in 1907 titled "Friday, the Thirteenth” doesn’t feature Jason Voorhees, but rather a stockbroker on Wall Street. Author Thomas William Lawson‘s story of manipulating the market may have contributed to the modern resurgence of superstitions on that particular date.

Market Performance: According to Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist for LPL Financial, the S&P 500 has held up relatively well on Friday the 13th.

He noted that since 1928, the broader market has posted an average gain of 0.09% across all 164 Friday the 13th trading days. This compares to an average gain of 0.05% for all Friday closes that exclude Friday the 13th and the average gain for all trading days of 0.03%.

Turnquist pointed to Friday the 13th in October 1989 as the worst for the stock market after an employee-led buyout of United Airlines' parent company broke down and the S&P 500 plunged 6.1%.

Interestingly, United Airlines Holdings, Inc. UAL does not have a row 13 on any of its planes, nor does it schedule any flights with the number 13.

Friday, Dec. 13, 2024: U.S. markets traded relatively flat on the final Friday the 13th of 2024. The SPDR S&P 500 SPY which tracks the S&P 500 index is trading 0.03% higher at $604.52 and the Invesco QQQ Trust QQQ which tracks the Nasdaq 100 index is trading 0.81% higher at $530.74 heading into Friday's closing bell.

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