When it comes to stock market performance, it's not always about reality. Many times, perceived problems can be a bigger problem than actual problems. As we wrap up 2021 and head into 2022, there's really no denying that inflation is a problem at both the consumer... READ MORE
It might take more than Old Saint Nick to sustain this current stock market rally. I'm not a believer this year. It reminds me of that catchy holiday tune: "StockCharts is making a chart and I've checked it twice, gonna find out that Wall Street&... READ MORE
It's been quite a volatile ride today, but one pharmaceutical stock has made 5 years' worth of returns in a couple hours. It's what happens when there's a huge imbalance in demand vs. supply on a stock and it breaks out to new... READ MORE
The Tuesday before the third Friday of each month gets the blood pumping at EarningsBeats.com. As momentum traders, it's EXTREMELY important to be aware as monthly options expiration approaches. We have seen time and time again how crazy the short-term market action can be when market makers... READ MORE
Most of you know I'm not a fan of the media. It has zero to do with who they are as people and everything to do with how they make their money. They need visitors at their websites in order to sell ads. The best way to attract... READ MORE
As technicians, what do we care about? The charts, right? Well, when I look at the charts of Bitcoin ($BTCUSD) and Ethereum ($ETHUSD), the choice between the two is relatively simple. The charts tells us everything, and this one simple price-relative chart says to go with Ethereum until further notice:... READ MORE
As the Volatility Index ($VIX) rises, it becomes fairly obvious that market makers are "on vacation." The primary role of the market maker is to provide liquidity when there's an imbalance between buyers and sellers. Rarely do we see panicked buying when buyers completely swamp sellers.... READ MORE
I practiced in public accounting for 20 years and was involved in a number of company valuations. I worked very little with public companies, but did have to value private companies on occasion. Most of the valuation metrics that I used in the 1980s and 1990s remain absolutely the same... READ MORE
News that a new COVID-19 variant has surfaced in South Africa spooked global equity markets on Friday. Was it an overreaction and an opportunity to buy some of your favorite stocks cheaper? Or is the start of a much deeper, panic-driven selloff. Unless you're a scientist with inside... READ MORE
Thanksgiving is celebrated here in the US on the 4th Thursday of November and is a day to give thanks. Let me say that I'm very thankful for God and family. I was blessed with my first grandchild a little over a year ago and she's... READ MORE
I have a favorite day each quarter. It's the day that I set aside hours to reassess the overall market to determine what I believe will take place over the next three months, focus on the best areas of the market, and ultimately select 10 equal-weighted stocks to... READ MORE
Before I begin this article, let me be clear that I remain extremely bullish for the long-term. We're nowhere close to where we're going, which is much, much higher. But in the very near-term, I'm growing increasingly bearish. There are a few reasons, which... READ MORE
Sometimes, when I look at a chart, I see conflicting signals. That is definitely the case for 10x Genomics Inc. (TXG), an $18.1 billion medical equipment company. Medical equipment stocks ($DJUSAM) have been consolidating for the past 2-3 months, which has led to relative underperformance by the group as... READ MORE
I'm partial to the formation of long bases, followed by breakouts, and breakouts of bullish continuation patterns. Well, I have two of these to share with you. Let me first start with CNH Industrial (CNHI), a $25.3 billion commercial vehicles & trucks company ($DJUSHR). They absolutely crushed... READ MORE
I spend hundreds of hours during each quarterly earnings season researching earnings reports, deciphering which beat revenue and EPS estimates and then annotating every one of those charts. It's what makes up our Strong Earnings ChartList (SECL), a ChartList that we update every 1-2 weeks for our EarningsBeats.... READ MORE
For me, the breakout in a particular area triggers a series of questions in order to find the best trading opportunities. Last week, small caps finally joined the U.S. equities party in all-time high territory. The chart breakout is simply the first step in my research: This provides us... READ MORE
Like most technicians, I take a "top down" approach when it comes to my trading strategy. I start with the overall market, which, I believe, continues to be insanely bullish. My two biggest worries in the market have been alleviated as both small-cap stocks ($SML) and transportation stocks... READ MORE
If you're not already familiar with relative strength, then I have to ask why not? Yes, absolute price action is extremely important, but so is relative strength. I'm going to give you a perfect example of why you need to be aware of relative strength. Texas... READ MORE
My favorite breakout is one that occurs after a lengthy basing period. Stocks that go through these frustrating periods can be quite rewarding when they finally make the breakout. And when those breakouts occur in an industry group that Wall Street loves, well, even better! Currently, there aren't... READ MORE
Have you ever heard a meteorologist describe the odds of a tornado touching down? They usually start by outlining the "conditions necessary" for a tornado. Early in the day, or possibly even the prior day, the meteorologist will say something like "this area has a 30% chance... READ MORE
I occasionally refer to myself as a Technifundahistorian, because I believe in technicals, fundamentals, and history. I practiced in public accounting in 20 years, so I cannot ignore those basics. Earnings matter. And beating earnings estimates and raising future guidance REALLY matters. That's why we regularly update our... READ MORE
Where should you invest your hard-earned money? That's a question that we ask ourselves quite frequently. And I don't know that there's an easy answer to this question. I like to see where Wall Street is investing its money and then make a decision... READ MORE
As we wrap up another October, it's time to start looking ahead at the seasonally bullish November period. U.S. equities have LOVED November for many years, as the S&P 500 has risen during November in each of the last 10 years. But which stocks ride... READ MORE
Earnings season presents so many opportunities, especially during a secular bull market advance. We appear to have another one of those advances underway and the daily opportunities are increasing. The difference between a breakout and a failed breakout, however, many times comes down to one simple number - the closing... READ MORE
When I began looking at my key index charts this morning, along with sector and industry charts, one thing became apparent very, very quickly. In the near-term, we appear to be running out of bullish momentum. 60-minute divergences are negative across many key indices, sectors, and industries, not to mention... READ MORE
I guess the first question I'd ask is, "Are we talking about the short-term or the long-term?" Because I'd say there's very little chance that we've just reached a long-term top. But could this be a short-term top? Absolutely. Let... READ MORE
On September 28th, I wrote a "Trading Places" blog article titled "Rising Yields Have A History of Favoring These Stocks; One Such Stock is Being Heavily Accumulated". The stock I wrote about was Opendoor Technologies (OPEN), which, after pulling back temporarily, has exploded higher recently. A... READ MORE
When I look at longer-term trading opportunities, I typically step back and view the weekly charts, which differs from my typical review of daily charts. There are times, however, that the bigger picture shows opportunities that you cannot see on the daily chart. Let me show you two charts of... READ MORE
I follow the money. Not the hype. Not the talk. Just show me the money! I remember growing up and learning to play basketball. Defensively, my first coach told me to "follow their hips". They can fake you with their eyes, they can fake you with their legs,... READ MORE
I've seen it over and over and over again. Very short-term, almost inexplicable moves, seem to occur around the 3rd Friday of each month, which just so happens to represent monthly options expiration. When stock market traders, particularly options traders, all line up on one side of the... READ MORE
There's an assumption that ETFs are well-diversified and that buying leading ETFs will be profitable. That may turn out to be true, but it may not. ETFs are no better than the stocks they own and they could be extremely risky depending on the weighting of their top... READ MORE
I have two reasons for writing this article. First, I'm hosting a FREE webinar relating to ETF selection on Saturday morning that I'll discuss later. Second, I was having a market-related discussion with a good friend a few nights ago and he was explaining his investment... READ MORE
That's never an easy question to answer while you're in the midst of a downtrend. It's a whole lot easier to be a Monday Morning Quarterback and say it's over when you've returned to a new all-time high. That'... READ MORE
Rising treasury yields can have a tremendous impact on which groups outperform and underperform. Many of us here at StockCharts.com write about the positive impact that rising yields can have on financials (XLF), especially banks ($DJUSBK) and life insurance companies ($DJUSIL). Because rising yields normally reflect Wall Street'... READ MORE
As you probably know, my background is in public accounting. I practiced as a CPA for two decades prior to turning my full attention to technical analysis. My analysis of the stock market always includes both fundamental and technical analysis, with a historical component sprinkled in. (I never met a... READ MORE
The Fed began its latest 2-day meeting this morning and it'll release its latest FOMC policy decision on Wednesday at 2pm ET. From past experience, I know there's been significant volatility after Fed announcements, so I thought I'd summarize the S&P 500... READ MORE
It's an interesting question. After all, during periods of economic expansion, transportation stocks ($TRAN) should ship more goods, report higher profits, and be rewarded with higher stock prices. If you're not already aware, the TRAN and the S&P 500 have a very tight long-term... READ MORE
One of my favorite times to trade is leading up to options expiration, because it's one time where I feel fairly comfortable which side of the trade that market makers are on. It's options expiration week and a time where we do a lot of research... READ MORE
Following rotation in 2021 has been difficult because few industry groups have maintained leadership roles for any length of time. There have been a few. Specialty finance ($DJUSSP), internet ($DJUSNS), and software ($DJUSSW) come quickly to mind among our 5 aggressive sectors. Outside of the aggressive sectors, I could certainly... READ MORE
Congratulations! We've made it through the first 10 days of September mostly unscathed. At the time of this writing, the S&P 500 is down slightly more than 0.50% month-to-date. Momentum remains fairly strong and the trend is up, so why should we worry? Well, let&... READ MORE