MARKET OBSERVATIONS FOR October 13, 2013: The stock market’s rallies and declines over the past few months have ranged between 14 and 17 trading days. The October 8th bottom comes exactly 14 days after the most recent closing high in the Dow Industrial Average. The current rhythm of the market suggests that the next top should come between 14 and 17 days after the October 8th bottom. Since we are only 3-4 days into the rally phase, there is still lots of time for the stock market to continue its current uptrend.
Key market indicators show the following:
For now, my advice for traders is to look for weakness early next week in which to take short-term “rental” positions in the QQQ, IWM, SPY, and DIA Exchange-Traded Funds. Expect to hold these positions into the end of the month. Otherwise, be ready to lighten up as the market’s rally runs out of time.
MARKET OBSERVATIONS FOR September 29, 2013: The stock market has declined steadily since its recent new closing Dow high. The most recent advance and decline have been between 14 and 17 days long. That timing pattern would suggest that the market still needs one more week of declining action in order to reach a bottom around October 8-10. In the meantime, the current list of relevant indicators suggests that an oversold condition will likely be met in the coming week. That being said, it looks like a buying opportunity is starting to shape up over the near term.
Key market indicators show the following:
For now, my advice for traders and investors to keep your powder dry in anticipation of a good buying opportunity in the next week or two. At this point, the sentiment has not changed significantly enough to warrant a bottom. But with a steady flow of negative news, the market can quickly change to one where savvy traders and investors can take intelligent risks to the upside.
MARKET OBSERVATIONS FOR August 10, 2013: The stock market made a new closing high 5 trading sessions ago. Since that time, it has been in a slow, choppy decline where there has been an absence of buyers rather than an abundance of sellers. The previous high was largely confirmed by other major indicators and suggests that another “retest” rally will be made in the coming week. But the NYSE Summation Index is making the case for a significant low coming up in a couple of weeks.
Key market indicators show the following:
For now, my advice for traders is to wait for the next oversold condition and then take positions for an upside move into the Fall. But if the market were to rally here into an unconfirmed new high, I’d be wary that the highs for the year have been achieved and to stand aside in a defensive position of cash. Thus far, playing the short side of the market has been difficult to trade and is better off avoided by most people.
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The indicators for Apple (AAPL) read as follows:
- Current price: 454
- Relative Strength Indicator = 61 heading down
- Ultimate Indicator = 59 heading down
- Money Flow Indicator = 50 heading down
- 50-Day Moving Average = 435
The stock of Apple appears to have achieved its upside objective for this cycle in terms of price. I would wait to take new positions in the stock whenever any of the indicators (RSI, Ultimate, Money Flow) reach oversold readings. Of these, the Money Flow Indicator has been the most reliable one for swing trading. I’ve surmised that trying to chart this stock purely from a price standpoint has been an exercise in futility. The best trading results for the past year have been by simply relying on the Money Flow Indicator to identify low-risk buying areas to go long.
“Do you know what happens in a bull market? Prices open up lower and then go up for the rest of the day. In a bear market, they open up higher and go down for the rest of the day. When you get to the end of a bull market, prices start opening up higher. Prices behave that way because in the first half hour it is only the fools that are trading [pause] or people who are very smart.”
Source: Schwager, Jack D. (2012-04-25). Hedge Fund Market Wizards. John Wiley and Sons. Kindle Edition.
Categories: Trading & Investing Quotations Tags: AAPL, investing, QQQ, stock action, stock market, stock tips, stock trading, stock trading tips, trading, trading tips, wall street
“Staring at the screen all day is counterproductive. He believes that watching every tick will lead to both selling good positions prematurely and overtrading. He advises traders to find something else (preferably productive) to occupy part of their time to avoid the pitfalls of watching the market too closely.”
Source: Schwager, Jack D. (2012-04-25). Hedge Fund Market Wizards. John Wiley and Sons. Kindle Edition.
Categories: Trading & Investing Quotations Tags: AAPL, investing, QQQ, stock action, stock market, stock tips, stock trading, stock trading tips, trading, trading tips, wall street
MARKET OBSERVATIONS FOR July 17, 2013: The stock market has been pushing upwards with an absence of fear. It is now at the top of its trading range in an environment of investor euphoria. While this may not signal the end of the bull move, it should mark the general end of this current cycle. I’m sure that the first correction down from here will be met by dip buyers. But it’s the nature of the next rally that will determine whether the market has the strength to push to new highs or retreat to the lower-to-middle part of the trading range. But don’t be surprised if you look back at this time period and wish that you had sold out.
Key market indicators show the following:
For now, my advice for traders is to buy into any dip that is triggered by obvious bad news for a quick ride to test the recent highs. Active broad-based exchange-traded funds to consider buying would include DIA, SPY, QQQ, SSO. The NYSE Summation Index shows that the market should be strong for several more weeks. But for most investors, this time period represents a period in which to lightened up on existing long positions.
Projected Final High: Tuesday July 23
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The indicators for Apple (AAPL) read as follows:
- Current price: 430.20
- Relative Strength Indicator = 56 neutral
- Ultimate Indicator = 60 and heading higher
- Money Flow Indicator = 61
- 50-Day Bear Market Moving Average = 427
The stock of Apple is finally above its 50-Day Bear Market Moving Average. It is also right in the middle of its price pivot points. But given its Money Flow Indicator pattern of cyclical lows, I’d bet that new lows for the stock are some 3 months away. That also means that it probably has at least one more good month of advance in it. This stock may continue to move independently of the general market.
MARKET OBSERVATIONS FOR July 10, 2013: The stock market continues to climb the proverbial “wall of worry” on the hope of reassuring news from the Fed. This current rally is in the position to challenge the market’s previous highs and may even surpass those May readings. But overall, this appears to be a time to wait for a pullback before it embarks on its challenge of the old highs.
Key market indicators show the following:
For now, my advice is to buy into any dip that is triggered by obvious bad news. Active broad-based exchange-traded funds to consider buying would include DIA, SPY, QQQ, SSO. The NYSE Summation Index shows that the market should be strong for several more weeks.
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The indicators for Apple (AAPL) read as follows:
- Relative Strength Indicator = 50 neutral
- Ultimate Indicator = 58 and heading higher
- Money Flow Indicator = 29 with lots of room to move to the upside
- 50-Day Bear Market Moving Average = 427
The stock of Apple is in a position to go in either direction but seems to have an upwards bias. I was hoping for a retest of the old lows but got surprised by a Wall Street analyst’s “strong buy” recommendation that moved the stock up sharply for several days. It has since retraced some of those gains, but may be ready to rally again shortly.
MARKET OBSERVATIONS FOR May 29, 2013: The stock market reached new highs on Monday in a possible “key reversal day.” This could end up being the “internal high” for the market. With that in mind, a smart trader or investor can expect a new closing Dow high in the next one to three weeks. If that new Dow high comes without corresponding strength in other major indexes or if the market becomes overbought on its march up to a new high, then the odds are good that the final top is in. Then you could expect the long-awaited correction to begin at that time with a minimum of one month in duration & a possible 50% retracement of the previous advance.
Key market indicators show the following:
For now, my advice is to remain on the sidelines and let the market set itself up for its next big move. The short-term indicators are near “buy” readings so any further declines should be contained.
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The indicators for Apple (AAPL) read as follows:
- Relative Strength Indicator = 54
- Ultimate Indicator = 52
- Money Flow Indicator = 46
This means that the stock of Apple is mid-ranged and can go in either direction. There isn’t any pressure on the stock to go in one direction verses the other. I’d personally stay away from this issue since it could just as easily go down 80 points as up.
MARKET OBSERVATIONS FOR May 13, 2013: The stock market reached new highs during this past week which were largely confirmed by other major indicators. But it wasn’t necessarily overwhelming strength across the board. This could be setting up the “head” of a potential “head and shoulders” top. That said, it implies that the topping process has much more time to chew up before getting anywhere near a full-blown declining phase. I’d look instead for the market to correct into another buying opportunity for a ride up into an overbought condition as it forms its right shoulder.
Key market indicators show the following:
For now, my advice is to remain on the sidelines and let the market set itself up for its next big move. It could be an oversold condition on the next decline which would set up a short but profitable ride up into its next overbought condition. If we get a few more closing highs that is not confirmed by strength, we could reach a point of exhaustion to the upside.
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As for Apple (AAPL), it’s the same advice as last week. The stock has finally broken above its Bear Market Optimized 50-Day Moving Average. After hitting its price pivot points in the 417-392 range, the stock of Apple rallied enough to end its Bear Market. But it doesn’t automatically mean that the stock will go into an instant bull market. Instead, the stock of Apple could remain in a neutral position while it “backs and fills” in order to form a stronger base for a more sustainable rally. I’d be looking to gradually accumulate the stock on a retracement into the 423-400 price range.
MARKET OBSERVATIONS FOR May 6, 2013: The stock market reached a new closing high on Friday. This blog anticipated this new high to be full of non-confirmations across the board. But this did not materialize. Instead, this new high was indeed confirmed by strength in the NASDAQ and neutral sentiment readings. Expect the rally to extend another 2-5 weeks at a minimum until a new high is reached in the Dow that is not confirmed by corresponding strength in other key areas.
Key market indicators show the following:
For now, my advice is to remain on the sidelines and let the market set itself up for its next big move. A short term top could materialize in the next or so. The resulting decline could present us with a buying opportunity in the tech sector. But in the meantime, the stock market continues to “climb a wall of worry.”
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As for Apple (AAPL), the stock has finally broken above its Bear Market Optimized 50-Day Moving Average. After hitting its price pivot points in the 417-392 range, the stock of Apple rallied enough to end its Bear Market. But it doesn’t automatically mean that the stock will go into an instant bull market. Instead, the stock of Apple could remain in a neutral position while it “backs and fills” a stronger base for a more sustained rally. I’d be looking to accumulate the stock on a 50% retracement into the 424-403 price range.