StockCharts Insider: The SCTR Fast Track to Buy-the-Dips & Breakouts

Before We Dive In…

How do you turn a quick morning scan into a market edge? With SCTR Reports. In this article, we’ll cover how SCTRs rank stocks, how to scan them fast, and how to spot leaders, laggards, and turnarounds in minutes. This is your quick-start guide to making every morning scan count, especially on mornings when you’re in a rush.

Some mornings, I’m on a simple mission:

• Find the strongest stocks: Hunt for leaders that, hopefully, will be taking a breather soon so that I can scoop them up.
• Spot the emerging leaders: Catch stocks in early-stage uptrends before they run.

In short, I’m looking for buy-the-dip and breakout scenarios. All the while, I want to spot and dodge all the weak stocks without having to look twice.

I’ll admit, this isn’t the most thorough of market routines. Instead, it’s a “find me these types of stocks, fast” approach which typically means that I have very little time to do a comprehensive market scan, or, I’m just being impatient. Fast, not fancy.

I know you’ve had mornings like this. If you’re with me, I'll introduce you to my go-to default tool.

Take a SCTR (pronounced “scooter”)

With StockCharts' SCTR Reports, you already have desirable stocks evaluated and stacked up for you. These reports separate the top leaders from the bottom laggards, and ranks everything in between.

If you’re not familiar with the SCTR system, you might want to click here to get a deeper dive on our ChartSchool page. In a nutshell, SCTR compares the relative strength of every stock in a given peer group from 0 (weakest) to 99.99 (strongest) using six indicators across short-, medium-, and long-term timeframes. This ranking system makes it easy to spot stocks at their varying levels of technical strength in seconds.

Here’s a graphic from ChartSchool illustrating how you might think about the varying strength levels.

Quick Insider Tip: Customize these rankings to better match your strategy. For example:

• Many chartists skip anything under 30.
• Some only want to look at stocks 70 and above.
• Others see 40-50 as fair game for turnaround plays.

Now, let’s start with the SCTR Reports panel, which is on the top right side of your Dashboard.

Want to find the technically strongest stocks in a given market cap? They’re right there in your Top 10 list. You can also filter for mid-caps, small-caps, sector ETFs, or US Dow Jones industries, plus Canadian and Indian stocks. That quick scan can pull up names worth watching for buy-the-dip setups when they pull back.

Jump to Top Up and you’ll see the day’s strongest SCTR gainers. This is where you can find not just buy-the-dip candidates, but also potential turnarounds starting to gain technical strength.

A List of 10 Might Not Be Enough, So Let’s Look At the Big Report

The SCTR Reports panel comes in handy for a quick snapshot. But maybe you have time for a broader look. In that case, head over to the SCTR Reports listed within the Market Analysis tab at the top of your Dashboard.

This is the full SCTR Reports page that lists every stock in its categorical universe. You can even toggle the timeframe, from Intraday and End-of-Day to One Week. Using this full version, you can now hunt for turnaround candidates by accessing the mid-range SCTR scores.

As an example, take Apple, Inc. (AAPL), which, at the time of writing, has a SCTR score of 55.1.

I’ll click on the chart and customize it to get a better look.

Here’s what I see.

• AAPL just broke out of a three-month trading range, the top of which was around $215 (green shaded line). Also, notice how the SCTR line breakout above coincided with the price breakout (now the SCTR score is within my range of preference).
• Headwinds? Likely at $247.50 (magenta shaded line).
• RSI is in "overbought" territory—sure, it can hang out there for a while, but a pullback wouldn’t be a shock.

If that pullback happens, watch for a bounce at $215, where old resistance could flip into new support.

You get the picture. Now let’s sum it up with some insights.

Insider Insights: Getting the Most Out of SCTR

Want to turn SCTR into your morning rocket fuel? Here’s my personal cheat sheet. Feel free to modify it.

1 - Play the Strengths

• 90+: These are your strongest market leaders. They’re already winning, and some may be overbought and due for a pullback.
• 76 - 89: Think “top-tier” contenders. Depending on where they stand in terms of market structure, these may make good buy-the-dip or continuation plays.
• 40-75: These are the possible turnaround plays, as long as momentum is on their side.
• Under 40: I typically skip these, but then you may find value in them. So, check them out for yourself.

2 - Go Beyond the Top 10

That small SCTR panel on your Dashboard is perfect for a quick scan, but the full report is where it’s really happening. Try filtering by market cap, sector, or even country. Maybe you’ll find a few hidden gems.

3 - Watch the Middle Zone for Turnaround Plays

Scores between 40 and 75 can be the sweet spot for catching an underdog that’s about to become an emerging leader. Be sure to use other indicators when analyzing these stocks.

4 - Build Your Setups Wisely

Watch for breakouts and use momentum, volume, and even breadth indicators to analyze the surrounding technical context and confirm your entries. SCTR Reports point to the stocks. After that, you’ve still got homework to do.

And That’s a Wrap

Some mornings, you don’t have much time or energy for a lengthy market study. Still, you want to start strong. Think of SCTR Reports as your market espresso shot—fast, potent, and exactly what you need to wake up your watchlist. Cut through the noise and get right to the stocks you’re looking for. This is surely one way to turn a quick scan into a market edge.