Dollar cost averaging (DCA) in RAIL means investing a fixed amount at regular intervals, regardless of share price. This strategy reduces timing risk and builds wealth steadily through market ups and downs.
How This Calculator Works
Our DCA calculator simulates real market conditions using historical price data. It accounts for dividend reinvestment (DRIP), where each dividend payment automatically purchases additional shares. You can adjust the investment amount, frequency, time period, and compare against benchmarks like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100.
Same amount invested each month — only the day of purchase changes. How much does intra-month timing actually matter?
Best Timing DCA
StrategyBuy on monthly low
Total Return+184.5%
Final Value$136.6K
Perfectly timed — impossible in practice
Your DCA
StrategyBuy on 1st of month
Total Return+157.5%
Final Value$123.6K
Consistent — no timing needed
Worst Timing DCA
StrategyBuy on monthly high
Total Return+127.9%
Final Value$109.4K
Worst possible — still beats not investing
Best vs Worst gap56.6 pp
Your timing vs best-27.0%
Your timing vs worst+29.6%
If You Keep Investing…
Based on this stock's historical CAGR of 16.1%/yr — put in vs. walk away with.
Your Plan
At $500/mo, this could grow into:
3 Years$23K~1.3x your moneyfrom $18K invested
5 Years$44K~1.5x your moneyfrom $30K invested
10 Years$138K~2.3x your moneyfrom $60K invested
20 Years$750K~6.2x your moneyfrom $120K invested
Compare Other Monthly Amounts
Same CAGR assumption. Use this to pressure-test different monthly commitments.
Monthly
3 Years~1.3x your money
5 Years~1.5x your money
10 Years~2.3x your money
20 Years~6.2x your money
$100/mo
$5K+$912 est. gain
$9K+$3K est. gain
$28K+$16K est. gain
$150K+$126K est. gain
$250/mo
$11K+$2K est. gain
$22K+$7K est. gain
$69K+$39K est. gain
$375K+$315K est. gain
$500/mo
$23K+$5K est. gain
$44K+$14K est. gain
$138K+$78K est. gain
$750K+$630K est. gain
$1,000/mo
$45K+$9K est. gain
$89K+$29K est. gain
$275K+$155K est. gain
$1.5M+$1.3M est. gain
* Projection assumes historical CAGR of 16.1% continues. Actual returns will vary.
Your DCA Results by Date
77 purchases
Date
Price
Invested
Portfolio Value
% Gain
Gain ($)
Jan 2, 2020
$2.15
$10,000
$10,000
+0.00%
$0
Feb 3, 2020
$1.59
$10,500
$7,895
-24.81%
$-2,605
Mar 2, 2020
$1.59
$11,000
$8,395
-23.68%
$-2,605
Apr 2, 2020
$0.90
$11,500
$5,252
-54.33%
$-6,248
May 4, 2020
$1.19
$12,000
$7,444
-37.96%
$-4,556
Jun 2, 2020
$1.19
$12,500
$7,944
-36.44%
$-4,556
Jul 2, 2020
$1.25
$13,000
$8,845
-31.96%
$-4,155
Aug 3, 2020
$1.65
$13,500
$12,175
-9.81%
$-1,325
Sep 2, 2020
$1.73
$14,000
$13,266
-5.25%
$-734
Oct 2, 2020
$2.38
$14,500
$18,750
+29.31%
$4,250
Nov 2, 2020
$1.61
$15,000
$13,184
-12.11%
$-1,816
Dec 2, 2020
$2.58
$15,500
$21,627
+39.53%
$6,127
Jan 4, 2021
$2.25
$16,000
$19,361
+21.00%
$3,361
Feb 2, 2021
$3.75
$16,500
$32,768
+98.59%
$16,268
Mar 2, 2021
$3.54
$17,000
$31,433
+84.90%
$14,433
Apr 5, 2021
$6.34
$17,500
$56,795
+224.54%
$39,295
May 3, 2021
$6.98
$18,000
$63,028
+250.15%
$45,028
Jun 2, 2021
$7.11
$18,500
$64,702
+249.74%
$46,202
Jul 2, 2021
$5.78
$19,000
$53,099
+179.47%
$34,099
Aug 2, 2021
$5.11
$19,500
$47,444
+143.30%
$27,944
Sep 2, 2021
$5.26
$20,000
$49,336
+146.68%
$29,336
Oct 4, 2021
$4.34
$20,500
$41,207
+101.01%
$20,707
Nov 2, 2021
$4.51
$21,000
$43,321
+106.29%
$22,321
Dec 2, 2021
$3.67
$21,500
$35,752
+66.29%
$14,252
Jan 3, 2022
$3.90
$22,000
$38,493
+74.97%
$16,493
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Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about DCA investing in RAIL
Investing $500 per month in FreightCar America, Inc. (RAIL) over the past 6 years would be worth approximately $124K today. That's +157.5% total return on $48K invested, with a +16.1% compound annual growth rate (CAGR).