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Legends of Trading: Matthew Monaco

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Written by Timothy Sykes
Reviewed by Jack Kellogg Fact-checked by Ellis Hobbs
Updated 12/12/2024 12 min read

Matthew Monaco is a trader with the superpowers of dedication and perseverance in the stock market. Starting as a college student with no prior trading experience, Matt joined the Timothy Sykes Trading Challenge in 2017 and worked tirelessly to build his skills. Today, he’s surpassed $2 million in career trading profits, proving that with the right mindset, strategy, and discipline, it’s possible to achieve substantial success even as a young trader. His journey from novice to top earner is a testament to the power of focused education and hard work.

Read this article for the trading strategies and insights that propelled Matt from an aspiring trader to a top performer, offering practical lessons for traders at all levels.

I’ll answer the following questions:

  • Who is Matthew Monaco, and what sets him apart in the trading world?
  • What trading strategies has Matthew Monaco used to achieve consistent success?
  • How did Matthew Monaco develop his trading approach?
  • What challenges did Matthew Monaco face early in his trading career?
  • How does Matthew Monaco manage risk and position sizing?
  • What trading tools and resources does Matthew Monaco recommend?
  • Why do traders look up to Matthew Monaco’s mentorship and insights?
  • How can traders apply Matthew Monaco’s lessons to improve their own trading?

Let’s get to the content!

Who Is Matthew Monaco?

Matthew Monaco began his trading journey as a college student studying software engineering, but he quickly discovered his passion for the stock market. He joined my Trading Challenge after high school, motivated to learn and make trading work despite having no experience. Matt’s approach to learning was rigorous—he spent his entire freshman summer studying my DVDs, webinars, and trading resources. This educational immersion laid the groundwork for his success, showing the importance of building a strong knowledge base before starting to trade seriously.

Matt fully believed in his potential as a trader, sacrificing opportunities like a paid internship to focus solely on trading. He was patient with the challenges of learning how to trade, understanding that progress would take time and effort.

Over the next few years, he balanced college life with trading, gradually gaining experience and refining his approach. His story highlights the importance of discipline and patience, qualities that helped him transition from an unprofitable trader to a profitable one.

Is Matthew Monaco Legit or a Scam?

Matthew Monaco’s trading success is well-documented and transparent, proving that he is a legitimate figure in the trading community. His achievements have been verified through Profit.ly, where he shares his trades, both wins and losses. Matt’s journey, marked by disciplined effort and smart risk management, aligns with the values I teach in my programs: learning from mistakes, maintaining transparency, and staying committed to growth. His steady progress, from making small gains to achieving consistent profitability, showcases the legitimacy of his path and dedication.

Matt’s trading story is not one of overnight success; it’s built on years of education, disciplined practice, and constant learning. Like many of my successful students, he faced setbacks, including early losses while learning to navigate the stock market. Yet, his open sharing of both successes and challenges has reinforced his credibility. For anyone skeptical about trading claims, Matt’s public trading history and willingness to share his journey provide assurance that his achievements are genuine.

Matt is a legit enough stock trader that Business Insider reported on his killer day trading streak $600k ago!

What Trading Strategy Is Matthew Monaco Famous For?

Matthew Monaco is known for his disciplined momentum trading, focusing on penny stocks and other highly volatile securities. His approach centers on capturing small, consistent gains rather than risking large amounts on a single trade. Matt’s strategy is built on identifying opportunities where stocks show momentum and executing quick trades that align with clear entry and exit points. This emphasis on disciplined trading and risk management allows him to maintain a steady growth curve in his trading account, a principle I stress in all my lessons.

Matt’s success comes from a blend of technical analysis and careful observation of market trends. He studies chart patterns, volume data, and price action to make informed trading decisions, using my 7-step pennystocking framework as a guide.

His favorite trades often involve momentum-driven breakouts where the potential for quick gains is high, but he ensures that losses are cut early if trades don’t go as planned. This approach reflects the importance of discipline and consistent execution, key lessons that every trader should incorporate into their strategies.

Momentum Trading in Penny Stocks

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Matt’s most effective trading strategy involves momentum trading, where he looks for penny stocks that show significant price movement. He capitalizes on these by entering and exiting positions quickly, securing profits before the trend reverses. This method requires not only identifying the right opportunities but also maintaining a strong mindset to stick to predetermined risk levels. Consistent application of this strategy has helped him build his account and achieve significant profitability.

What sets Matt apart is his focus on smaller, manageable gains. He often mentions that aiming for steady returns over time, rather than hoping for a single big win, has been key to his success. This trading philosophy aligns with the idea of “singles adding up,” a concept I teach that emphasizes the power of compounding small gains to grow a trading account sustainably.

How Did Matthew Monaco Get Started?

Matthew Monaco’s trading journey started while he was still in college, with a strong desire to learn the stock market and create a path to financial independence. He first learned about me and my trading strategies during high school and decided to join my Trading Challenge when he had saved enough money. Matt’s early years were filled with study, watching DVDs, attending webinars, and analyzing charts, but he didn’t rush into trading. Instead, he spent months building his “knowledge account” before placing real trades.

Matt’s initial attempts at trading were far from smooth. Like many new traders, he faced early losses and struggled to piece together consistent gains. From 2017 to 2019, his journey was marked by periods of slow progress and small setbacks. However, he never wavered in his commitment, learning from every trade and understanding that building a profitable strategy would take time. This period of trial and error taught him invaluable lessons about patience, discipline, and risk management.

What Are the Early Trading Successes of Matthew Monaco?

Matt’s first significant milestone came at the end of 2019, after years of refining his strategy and gaining experience. By then, he had made almost $12,000 in trading profits—an achievement that validated his dedication to learning. However, it was in 2020 when Matt’s efforts truly paid off. He started the year strong and, by June, had crossed the $100K profit mark. These early successes were built on careful study, disciplined trade execution, and learning from other top traders, including those he interviewed on the podcast he co-founded, Beyond the PDT.

Matt still loves the limelight—here’s a clip from the short-lived “Matt Monaco Trading Show!”

His collaborator on Beyond the PDT—Bryce Tuohey—is another one of my millionaire students. Bryce is currently sitting at $1 million in career profits, and is also an emerging name among stock trading and investing teachers. Like Matt, Bryce’s story emphasizes the value of paying attention to fundamentals and technical information, maintaining discipline in your order execution, and careful choice of investment.

Learn more about Bryce Tuohey’s trading achievements and strategies here.

Which Stock Picks Are on Matthew Monaco’s Watchlist?

Matthew Monaco often focuses on penny stocks and small-cap stocks with momentum. His watchlist typically includes stocks that are gaining attention due to news catalysts or increased trading volume, indicating a potential for sharp price movements. Matt’s approach is to find stocks that align with his momentum trading strategy, which allows him to spot breakout opportunities that offer a high probability for quick gains.

Matt pays close attention to sectors that show sudden interest from investors, as well as individual stocks making significant moves on the Nasdaq and OTC markets. His ability to anticipate and act on these movements has been honed through years of study and practice in my Trading Challenge. By focusing on stocks with the right combination of volume and volatility, Matt ensures that his watchlist is tailored for trading setups that match his strategy for optimal entry and exit.

Matt also has some crypto in his portfolio—which goes to show that no matter the medium, the rules of trading stay the same.

Another millionaire student of mine, Mark Croock, has adapted my penny stock strategies to the world of options. He is no less profitable for it—he’s over $4 million in career earnings! (Disclaimer: most traders lose.) Mark’s approach involves tactical adaptation to ever-changing market conditions, showcasing an alternative path to profitability. His contributions include strategies that balance risk and reward, which can be especially helpful for those aiming to develop their trading systems. The varied paths these traders took show that no single method or choice of broker guarantees success—finance has as many success stories as different paths to get there.

Discover more about Mark Croock’s trading approach here

What Is Matthew Monaco’s Net Worth?

As of now, Matthew Monaco’s career trading profits have surpassed $2 million, showcasing how far he has come from his beginnings as a college trader. His disciplined approach, rooted in extensive study and consistent application of trading rules, has contributed significantly to his financial growth. Matt’s net worth is a direct result of his ability to stay focused on his goals and manage his risk effectively, traits that I teach every student to develop if they want to succeed in trading.

Matt’s journey from college student to self-made millionaire emphasizes that substantial financial success in trading is possible with the right mindset and commitment. His path shows that while the journey may start with small gains and gradual learning, persistence and discipline can lead to large returns over time. His success story reinforces the importance of continuous education and the application of proven trading strategies.

Trading isn’t rocket science. It’s a skill you build and work on like any other.

Timothy Sykes built his Trading Challenge to pass on the things he had to learn for himself.

Apply to the Trading Challenge here.

Trading is a battlefield. The more knowledge you have, the better prepared you’ll be.

Who is your favorite trader? Write “I’ll put in the work” in the comments if you understand how Matt got to where he is!

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FAQs About Matthew Monaco

How Old Is Matthew Monaco?

Matthew Monaco is in his mid-20s, having started his trading career in his college years. His age shows that success in trading is possible at a young age when combined with discipline, education, and a strong work ethic.

Does Matthew Monaco Have a Blog or Website?

While Matt is active in sharing insights and trading advice, he does not have a personal blog or website. Instead, he shares valuable content through platforms like YouTube and social media, where he discusses strategies, trading updates, and market insights. His involvement in community-driven platforms ensures that aspiring traders can benefit from his experience and lessons learned.

Does Matthew Monaco Have a TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram Account?

Matthew Monaco is active on YouTube and X/Twitter, where he posts content about trading, shares his journey, and offers advice to other traders. Check out my YouTube playlist for this “Boy Wonder!”

Does Matthew Monaco Offer a Course?

Matt is an active mentor in the Trading Challenge community. Here’s a link to the trade alerts he uses.

He also built an algorithm designed to deliver his trading strategies by identifying “dark” price anomalies in real time. Try the Alpha Scanner here!


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* Results are not typical and will vary from person to person. Making money trading stocks takes time, dedication, and hard work. There are inherent risks involved with investing in the stock market, including the loss of your investment. Past performance in the market is not indicative of future results. Any investment is at your own risk. See Terms of Service here

The available research on day trading suggests that most active traders lose money. Fees and overtrading are major contributors to these losses.

A 2000 study called “Trading is Hazardous to Your Wealth: The Common Stock Investment Performance of Individual Investors” evaluated 66,465 U.S. households that held stocks from 1991 to 1996. The households that traded most averaged an 11.4% annual return during a period where the overall market gained 17.9%. These lower returns were attributed to overconfidence.

A 2014 paper (revised 2019) titled “Learning Fast or Slow?” analyzed the complete transaction history of the Taiwan Stock Exchange between 1992 and 2006. It looked at the ongoing performance of day traders in this sample, and found that 97% of day traders can expect to lose money from trading, and more than 90% of all day trading volume can be traced to investors who predictably lose money. Additionally, it tied the behavior of gamblers and drivers who get more speeding tickets to overtrading, and cited studies showing that legalized gambling has an inverse effect on trading volume.

A 2019 research study (revised 2020) called “Day Trading for a Living?” observed 19,646 Brazilian futures contract traders who started day trading from 2013 to 2015, and recorded two years of their trading activity. The study authors found that 97% of traders with more than 300 days actively trading lost money, and only 1.1% earned more than the Brazilian minimum wage ($16 USD per day). They hypothesized that the greater returns shown in previous studies did not differentiate between frequent day traders and those who traded rarely, and that more frequent trading activity decreases the chance of profitability.

These studies show the wide variance of the available data on day trading profitability. One thing that seems clear from the research is that most day traders lose money .

Millionaire Media 66 W Flagler St. Ste. 900 Miami, FL 33130 United States (888) 878-3621 This is for information purposes only as Millionaire Media LLC nor Timothy Sykes is registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser. No information herein is intended as securities brokerage, investment, tax, accounting or legal advice, as an offer or solicitation of an offer to sell or buy, or as an endorsement, recommendation or sponsorship of any company, security or fund. Millionaire Media LLC and Timothy Sykes cannot and does not assess, verify or guarantee the adequacy, accuracy or completeness of any information, the suitability or profitability of any particular investment, or the potential value of any investment or informational source. The reader bears responsibility for his/her own investment research and decisions, should seek the advice of a qualified securities professional before making any investment, and investigate and fully understand any and all risks before investing. Millionaire Media LLC and Timothy Sykes in no way warrants the solvency, financial condition, or investment advisability of any of the securities mentioned in communications or websites. In addition, Millionaire Media LLC and Timothy Sykes accepts no liability whatsoever for any direct or consequential loss arising from any use of this information. This information is not intended to be used as the sole basis of any investment decision, nor should it be construed as advice designed to meet the investment needs of any particular investor. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future returns.

Citations for Disclaimer

Barber, Brad M. and Odean, Terrance, Trading is Hazardous to Your Wealth: The Common Stock Investment Performance of Individual Investors. Available at SSRN: “Day Trading for a Living?”

Barber, Brad M. and Lee, Yi-Tsung and Liu, Yu-Jane and Odean, Terrance and Zhang, Ke, Learning Fast or Slow? (May 28, 2019). Forthcoming: Review of Asset Pricing Studies, Available at SSRN: “https://ssrn.com/abstract=2535636”

Chague, Fernando and De-Losso, Rodrigo and Giovannetti, Bruno, Day Trading for a Living? (June 11, 2020). Available at SSRN: “https://ssrn.com/abstract=3423101”