Over long periods, the stock market is a bona fide wealth creator. But moving from point A to B doesn't happen in a straight line.

Since the start of 1950, the benchmark S 500 has undergone 39 separate corrections totaling at least 10%. This works out to a double-digit downturn, on average, every 1.89 years. Despite pullbacks being a natural part of the investing cycle, they still have a habit of surprising people.

The interesting thing is that every stock market correction, bear market, and crash since the inception of the S 500 (save for the 2022 bear market) has eventually been cleared away by a bull market. In other words, investors with time on their side can use notable pullbacks in the major indexes as a surefire buying opportunity. With the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S 500, and Nasdaq Composite well below their all-time highs, bargains abound.

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Source Fool.com