Ask a Fool: How Can I Protect Myself From a Stock Market Crash?

There's no way to accurately time a market crash, so it's generally a bad idea to sell your investments in anticipation. Many experts were predicting one in 2015, but the bull market has continued, and the S&P 500 is up 18% since then. People who sold in anticipation of a market crash would have missed out on this additional upside.

The same logic applies now. The market will eventually crash, but it's entirely possible that we could have a few more years of strong returns first.

That said, it could be a good idea to allocate more of your portfolio to stocks that tend to hold up well during bear markets. Dividend stocks with excellent track records of increasing their payouts are a good example. For instance, shares of companies like Wal-Mart Stores and Procter & Gamble both handily beat the S&P 500's return during the 2008 crash. In fact, Wal-Mart gained nearly 20% in 2008, while the S&P 500 lost 38%.

Source: Fool.com