No single number can tell you whether a bot is profitable. A published profit factor, win rate or equity curve is a historical summary, and it leaves out costs, slippage, regime changes and how the bot behaves once it's live. So this article doesn't quote performance for Marty. It explains what the bot is built to do and how you'd judge it yourself.
What Marty is
Marty is a mean-reversion bot for ES and NQ futures. Mean reversion is the idea that when price stretches far from a recent average, it tends to move back toward it. A mean-reversion bot looks for stretched conditions and trades toward the average. The exact entry conditions, filters and current template variants are documented in the Marty Bot specs, and I'm not restating them here because they change. Bot access is part of Pro, $795/month with no trial. Intro and VIP don't include bots.
Where mean reversion breaks
Your next step
Review the setup before you automate it.
Read the NinjaTrader setup and strategy limits, then test in SIM. YMI bot access belongs to Pro. Check your broker or prop firm's rules before enabling automation.
The structural weakness is the same for every mean-reversion approach: a move that doesn't revert. On a one-directional trend day, each stretched signal can be the next step in the trend, and the bot keeps fading it. Scheduled news can do the same in seconds. Sustained high-volatility periods are hard too, because the normal range keeps expanding and recoveries take longer. How often markets trend versus range depends on how you define it, the period and the market, so I won't give you a percentage.
Why costs decide the question
Here's a hypothetical, not Marty's results. A bot takes 100 one-contract MES trades. 55 winners average $30 and 45 losers average $30.
| Scenario | Gross profit | Gross loss | Net | Profit factor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before costs | $1,650 | $1,350 | $300 | 1.22 |
| After $2.50 round-turn cost per trade | $1,512.50 | $1,462.50 | $50 | 1.03 |
| Plus 1 tick slippage each side ($1.25 each, $2.50 per trade) | $1,375 | $1,600 | -$225 | 0.86 |
A strategy that looked comfortable before costs ends up losing money after realistic fills. That's why a backtest without commissions and slippage doesn't answer the profitability question. Short-term, small-profit-per-trade styles are the most exposed.
How to evaluate any bot
- Read the spec and write down the rules in your own words. If you can't, you won't know when something is wrong.
- Run a backtest with commissions and slippage. Thirty trades isn't a statistically proven edge, so you need a sample large enough to span trending, ranging and news conditions.
- Run it in SIM. Fifty SIM trades aren't live proof, and a simulated fill doesn't validate exchange queue position or real slippage.
- Compare SIM to the backtest on the same days and explain every gap.
- Go live at the smallest size and compare live fills to SIM.
- Set your pause rule before you start, such as a maximum drawdown or a number of rule violations.
The edge calculator is useful for the expectancy arithmetic in steps two to five.
Prop firms
Don't run Marty or any bot on an Apex evaluation or funded account. Apex prohibits automated or algorithmic preset bots that place, modify or cancel trades without personal real-time review, per its prohibited activities page. Topstep's bot and API rules depend on the account product. Its TopstepX API article describes API access for SIM, not Live, and says orders must come from a personal device, not a VPS, VPN or remote server. A funded account isn't the same thing as live trading, so read the terms of whatever account you hold.
Who it fits
Marty suits someone who understands mean reversion, supervises the bot, reviews fills after each session and accepts that losing stretches happen. It doesn't suit someone looking for guaranteed or steady daily profit, or someone unwilling to follow written rules through ordinary losing days. If that's you and you want bot access, Pro is $795/month with no trial, and you can see it on the Pro signup page.
About the Author
Founder, Young Money Investments · Quant Trader
Cameron trades ES, NQ, and futures across multiple market cycles. He founded Young Money Investments to teach systematic, data-driven trading and manages Magnum Opus Capital. His work emphasizes documented rules, risk controls, and review over outcome promises.
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Risk Disclosure & Disclaimer
Educational Purposes Only: The content provided in this blog is for educational and informational purposes only. It does not constitute financial, investment, or trading advice. Young Money Investments is not a registered investment advisor, broker-dealer, or financial analyst.
Risk Warning: Trading futures, forex, stocks, and cryptocurrencies involves a substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for every investor. The valuation of futures, stocks, and options may fluctuate, and as a result, clients may lose more than their original investment.
CFTC Rule 4.41 - Hypothetical or Simulated Performance Results: Certain results (including backtests mentioned in these articles) are hypothetical. Hypothetical performance results have many inherent limitations. No representation is being made that any account will or is likely to achieve profits or losses similar to those shown. In fact, there are frequently sharp differences between hypothetical performance results and the actual results subsequently achieved by any particular trading program.
Testimonials: Testimonials appearing on this website may not be representative of other clients or customers and is not a guarantee of future performance or success.
