A trader works on the New York Stock Exchange floor: fewer than 4 per cent of companies account for all stock market gains. Photograph: Sarah Yenesel / EPAMost stocks lose money. In 2016, Bessembinder calculated that just 89 companies accounted for half of total stock market gains. Put bluntly, losing money is perfectly normal, with the median stock return being a loss of 6.9 per cent. Stock market investing works not because most companies succeed, but because a small minority succeed spectacularly.

Source: The Irish Times March 30, 2026 08:11 UTC