Archives for April 2012

Good evening StockBandits!

The major averages retreated in minor fashion today, backing off slightly from Friday’s strong closes.  That creates some short-term pivots to watch in last week’s highs to keep an eye on in the days ahead.  A little rest here wouldn’t be a bad thing, but the bulls wouldn’t want to see the entire rally from last week evaporate.  Today’s selling was mild on the surface, so no indication is present at this time to suggest that the dip-buyers will stay away.  After all, the bulls still see that we aren’t far from 52-week highs.

With the indexes sitting within the trading ranges of the past couple months, there’s little to get overly excited about here.  The range game can still offer some nice opportunities, so selectivity is the key alongside being patient for new setups and entries to come along.  It’s easy to churn an account when inside a range like this and momentum is absent.

I had a commitment this afternoon which prevented me from doing tonight’s work at the usual time, so since I’m getting this out later than usual I’ll cut right to the charts.

Given that the same index levels apply from last night, I’ll post those levels here rather than charts this evening.  For a visual, simply refer back to last night’s Broadcast as they charts themselves essentially look the same.

NAZ – 3045 held today on a test, but the bulls don’t want to see last week’s low tested just yet at 2946. 3076 followed by 3134 are upside resistance zones.

S&P 500 – 1388 held today on a minor dip, so we’ll watch Friday’s high at 1406, 1414, and 1422.

RUT – 815 was tested today and held, although the big support to watch is at 784. Resistance zones are 833 and 847.

DJIA – 13300 remains the big level to watch for this index, and we’re within 87 points of it tonight after a small retreat today.  Below here would be 13055 as next support.

Below are the trades I’m looking to take as we head into tomorrow. Please leave your comments and/or questions below if you have any, I always enjoy the interaction.

Day Trade Setups:

These are the stocks on my radar for day trades in tomorrow’s session. For those of you who are new here, please see the Day Trading Strategy for more details on how I manage the day trades.

Why I Use TC2000

Why I Use TC2000

Why I Use TC2000

Why I Use TC2000

Why I Use TC2000

 

Swing Trade Setups:

NONE TONIGHT

 

[table “271” not found /]

The Hit List contains stop and target levels for my swing trades.

Trade Like A Bandit!

Jeff

Good evening StockBandits!

Last week we saw a headfake to the downside as a gap lower to start the week was eventually met with aggressive buying.  The multi-week low ultimately resulted in an island gap reversal to the upside, which no doubt trapped many bears in the process.  This maintains the current trading range, and opens the door for some continuation back toward the recent highs.

It remains earnings season but things will be winding down over the next couple of weeks, shifting the focus back to the economy, politics, geopolitical events, and of course the charts.  It’s still important to check the earnings calendar before holding anything overnight, but it’s fair to say that many of the biggies are out of the way and therefore we may start to see the headlines play a slightly smaller role.

Overall, the indexes are still in good technical health.  Quite a few market participants had become suddenly bearish in recent weeks, but so far we’ve not yet seen a truly bearish change of character.  Last week’s would-be breakdown had potential to be just that, but the strength which followed quickly negated that.

At this point, we’re simply resting in some wide ranges, which means the bulls still have the edge in the bigger picture.  In the short term, we’ve got some levels of overhead to contend with, so it may not be smooth sailing.  With that said, it’s a reminder to stay selective here and consider plays on both sides.

I’m going with a written version for tonight’s Broadcast with screenshots of the charts and my notes on the charts themselves. I appreciate the feedback regarding Thursday night’s question about the video format, and will keep you posted in the days ahead on all of that.  For this evening, I’m mixing it up with text & charts.

I’ll run through some notes on the indexes here and then share some setups I’m eyeing for tomorrow’s session.

NAZ – 3000 was reclaimed last week after a Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday island gap reversal to the upside.  That move no doubt trapped many bears who aggressively shorted the breakdown from the previous 2-week trading range, and as a result we spiked higher through Friday’s session.  That pushed this index past 3060, opening the door now for a move back up to challenge the highs at 3134.  Advantage: bulls.

Why I Use TC2000

S&P 500 – 1357 held as support last week and as a result we saw some aggressive buying back up to propel this index through 1388 and 1400.  It now sits less than 1% from 1414, then has a shot at challenging the highs at 1422.  A little rest between now and then would be healthy, but the bulls have momentum again here so it will be interesting to see if they are willing to pause.

Why I Use TC2000

RUT – Small caps held the 784 level and rebounded sharply from Tuesday through Friday last week, pushing back through 815.  Up next is the 833 level, followed by 847.

Why I Use TC2000

DJIA – A test of last year’s high at 12876 on Monday last week was met with aggressive buying, leaving this senior index within 80 points of a new 52-week high.  The 13300 area has posed as resistance a few times this spring, but may finally get broken if the bulls stay in gear.  This 600-point range (12700 – 13300) would suggest an initial measured move up to the 13900 area, so there’s some good potential here for the bulls if they want it.

Why I Use TC2000

Below are the trades I’m looking to take as we head into tomorrow.  Please leave your comments and/or questions below if you have any, I always enjoy the interaction.

Day Trade Setups:

These are the stocks on my radar for day trades in tomorrow’s session. For those of you who are new here, please see the Day Trading Strategy for more details on how I manage the day trades.

Why I Use TC2000

Why I Use TC2000

Why I Use TC2000

 

Swing Trade Setups:

These are the stocks I’m setting up for new multi-day plays.  I will wait for my trigger price before entering, and all stop and target levels are provided on the Hit List post here inside the Hideout. For those of you who are new here, please see the Swing Trading Strategy for more details on how I manage the day trades.

Why I Use TC2000

Why I Use TC2000

Why I Use TC2000

 

[table “270” not found /]

The Hit List contains stop and target levels for my swing trades.

Trade Like A Bandit!

Jeff

Good evening StockBandits!

The market saw a steady afternoon lift today after a choppy but positive morning, pushing the S&P, RUT, and DJIA each to new multi-week highs.  The NAZ, meanwhile, respected the 3060 zone but has a great shot at clearing the hurdle in the coming days.

Many seem overly bearish on the market after seeing a mild change of character over the past month, but the fact is that we’ve hardly corrected in price. The bulk of the dip has been spent moving sideways, and it remains possible that this 2-month range ends up serving as a base for higher prices.  After all, we’re just a short distance from highs, relatively speaking, and for now this dip has found support.

Also of note I think is the island low from earlier this week.  After gapping lower Monday and respecting that range Tuesday, we gapped higher Wednesday to reclaim the previous range (NAZ 3000 – 3060).  Anyone who shorted the breakdown in an overly aggressive bet is now trapped – hence the phrase “bear trap.”  That may add fuel to the fire in the short term if we see the NAZ clear the 3060 level.

Overall, many charts are still resting but remain within longer term uptrends.  This is a time where waiting for better setups is the wise move, and perhaps we’ll need to see a few more earnings reports get behind us (even though many of the big names have already reported). I’m back to cash tonight and staying patient with adding new swings, as we’re caught in a range and follow through has therefore been difficult to come by.  Until that changes, I’m interested primarily in single-day cash-flow types of trades.

QUESTION: Please respond beneath this post, there is a comment link.  I’d like to know how many of you use the chapter links within the nightly videos (to skip to different sections)?  I’m considering another type of video file which is playable on other devices than just PC, but with the newer video format the chapters would not be possible.  If this is not a loss then please let me know!

I’ll cover my game plan for tomorrow in the video, and as always, feel free to share your own thoughts, trade ideas, and questions down below in the comments section.

Here is tonight’s video:

The Bandit Broadcast Video – Click to Watch!

Video Stocks Discussed: SHLD, UBNT, X, CHK

 

Swing Trading Candidates:

NONE TONIGHT

 

[table “269” not found /]

The Hit List is a separate post which contains discussion on open positions and swing trade stops and targets, so be sure to check it for further details on swing trades.

Trade Like A Bandit!

Jeff

Good evening StockBandits!

The market gapped higher this morning on the heels of upbeat news from AAPL last night, as discussed here last night.  Not surprisingly, the NAZ led the way higher on the day, but in each case the highs of the session were put in within the opening half hour.  From there, we traded in the opening range for the remainder of the day.

On one hand, that’s not such a bad thing, as we did see the morning gap held (rather than sold into like other recent rallies have prompted).  However, the bulls didn’t build on that strength much, and as a result we saw a choppy session without much momentum between the bells.

The FOMC seemed to drag on again, and ultimately didn’t spark any real reactions from traders today.  Perhaps tonight all that news will be digested and lead to some better intraday action tomorrow, but suffice it to say today we saw no knee-jerk reaction to anything which was said.

The biggest thing to focus on tomorrow will be whether recent resistance levels will hold.  Specifically, we have some highs from last week which we’ve gotten closer to, and those may produce some upside momentum if cleared.  Conversely, we could see them hold as resistance and prompt some selling to keep the range intact.  It’s possible we clear it to the upside, so keep an eye on those levels (provided in tonight’s video) during tomorrow’s session.

I’ll cover my game plan for tomorrow in the video, and as always, feel free to share your own thoughts, trade ideas, and questions down below in the comments section.

Here is tonight’s video:

The Bandit Broadcast Video – Click to Watch!

Video Stocks Discussed: SHLD, GMCR, MNST, VRSN, SWK, MRO

 

Swing Trading Candidates:

NONE TONIGHT

 

[table “268” not found /]

The Hit List is a separate post which contains discussion on open positions and swing trade stops and targets, so be sure to check it for further details on swing trades.

Trade Like A Bandit!

Jeff