Good evening StockBandits!

Last week’s back-and-forth action made for a few lively sessions as the pullback from the recent highs continued before a relief bounce kicked in.  Overall though, both the NAZ and S&P 500 finished the week unchanged, finishing at the exact levels on Friday as they did the previous week.

On Friday we saw the indexes recover from slightly in the red to post modest advances, none of which were meaningful on a technical basis.  The battle here seems to be more psychological than anything, as the bears have been pummeled since August.  At the same time, it’s simply a fact that eventually the bulls will tire out and need some kind of a rest, and this could be the start of that.  The big-picture trends remain in good overall health, and this pullback could eventually lead to more upside once it runs its course.  Currently, the bounce of the past couple of sessions is being weighed, but the verdict is still out as to whether or not it will stick.

We may or may not get any clarity this week, as not only will it be a holiday-shortened trading week, but the volume will most likely be about as light as it gets.  That’s typical during the week of Thanksgiving, so that’s one less technical element we will be able to rely upon when evaluating the price action.  The market will be closed on Thursday for Thanksgiving, then will only have a half session Friday with an early close of 1pm ET.  Add to the mix the fact that many traders will be long gone by Wednesday afternoon, and the stage is set for some drifty price action unless some big news surfaces.

So, with the expected light volume and the shortened trading week ahead of us, it’s a good reminder to make every trade count.  There are several setups I’ve got my eye on for Monday, in both directions and on multiple timeframes (both day & swing).  As the week progresses, I’ll become even more selective, knowing that momentum may be harder to come by.

As a reminder, for a short time longer I’ll be utilizing the written format of the Broadcast as I get the new office set up with the equipment I use for recording the nightly video. Once that’s ready, I do expect to be back to the usual video format. To those who prefer the video, thanks for your patience.

Additionally, my wife & I are expecting our 2nd child sometime in the next 4 weeks, and our first child arrived 4 weeks early. So, ideally this baby holds off a few more weeks, but if I happen to fall off the radar for a couple of days, you’ll know why. Currently there are no signs to suggest that will happen, but with babies you just never know!

For tonight, my notes are on the charts below for index levels and potential trades I’m eyeing for Monday.

Please leave your comments and/or questions below if you have any, I always enjoy the interaction.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Swing Trading Candidates:

VSH has trended higher for several months, and more recently has put in some needed, healthy rest with the formation of this large pennant or wedge pattern.  The stock is attempting to break out, but needs some stronger volume to pull it off.  I’ll be a buyer if this one can clear $14.05 to make a multi-day high, ideally on expanding volume.  As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this one are on the Hit list here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Day Trading Candidates:

These are the trades I’m eyeing for potential plays tomorrow. I will not be holding these overnight, and will wait for these levels to be crossed before entering trades.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Bullish Watch:

BGC, KMX, BMRN, CODE, DNR, RS, TSLA, IMAX, BEXP, IVN, AMCN, CVG, CY, BEAV, QCOR, CAVM, VSH, CROX, OSG, RAX, SWN, WFC, ATHR, ROSE, MDR, KND

Bearish Watch:

V, MON, CF, LNCR, OFC, PSA, CSC, ADM, MMYT, AGU

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

Trade Like A Bandit!

Jeff

Good evening StockBandits!

A big opening gap to the upside greeted traders this morning as overseas markets (and our futures markets) responded in a big way to news of a rescue package for Ireland.  The market was able to tack on some additional gains into mid-day before some mild profit-taking kicked in.  All in all, it was a solid day for the bulls though, particularly after having been absent for the past week during this pullback, as they produced a nice gain and were able to show some intraday progress beyond just the opening gap.

From a technical perspective – and that’s the one that matters most to me as a trader – we’re at an interesting spot in the short-term.  Rather than discuss what may transpire in the weeks to come or whether we’ve topped out, let’s look at the near term.

To be fair, the buyers have stayed away during this pullback from last week’s highs.  They’ve allowed a bit of a correction, and frankly it’s been a bit surprising to see them wait so long to step in and buy again after such persistent success throughout September, October, and early November.  Today they stepped in, but they still have some proving to do.  We have descending trend lines still in place, and a hint of doubt has emerged (as it typically does following a pullback) as to the resolve of the bulls.  That’s giving the bears a small psychological boost – the first in quite a while – and that could make for a pretty good battle on Friday.  If we see a solid close above all trend lines, I’d expect to see a move back up toward the highs.  If we see a failure, it would likely be an indication this pullback is set to continue.

Tonight my watch lists have been reduced considerably, which is fine.  That simply leaves me with a more focused list for Friday, and each of them will be for day trades.

As a reminder, for a short time longer I’ll be utilizing the written format of the Broadcast as I get the new office set up with the equipment I use for recording the nightly video. Once that’s ready, I do expect to be back to the usual video format. To those who prefer the video, thanks for your patience. Additionally, my wife & I are expecting our 2nd child sometime in the next 5 weeks, and our first child arrived 4 weeks early.  So, ideally this baby holds off a few more weeks, but if I happen to disappear out of the blue for a couple of days, you’ll know why.  Currently there are no signs to suggest that will happen, but with babies you just never know!

For tonight, my notes are on the charts below for index levels and potential trades I’m eyeing for Friday.

Please leave your comments and/or questions below if you have any, I always enjoy the interaction.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Swing Trading Candidates:

NONE TONIGHT

Day Trading Candidates:

These are the trades I’m eyeing for potential plays tomorrow. I will not be holding these overnight, and will wait for these levels to be crossed before entering trades.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Bullish Watch:

ONXX, VSH, MFC, QCOR, BEAV, JAZZ, AMCN, XIDE, STT, TSLA, CODE, LULU, ACOM, BCSI, KMX, IGTE, TZOO

Bearish Watch:

OFC, PSA, MMYT, BIG, VNO, GRMN

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

Trade Like A Bandit!

Jeff

Good evening StockBandits!

The market was making its best attempt at a relief rally today – which was far from impressive, I might add – but the morning bounce stalled out mid-day and we saw the sellers return in the final hour to erase the early gains.  The NAZ and RUT finished positive by a couple points, while the S&P and DJIA finished slightly in the red.

The character of the morning advance revealed something that will either inspire the bulls tonight or dampen their hopes, which was that momentum was nowhere to be found.  The buyers who did step in apparently had no company, and it was soon evident that a little selling could easily invite more selling.  This continued reluctance on the part of the dip-buyers is either a trap to suck in the bears, or it’s a warning signal that the complexion of the market could be changing after a 2 1/2 month rally.  The fact that this is the first decent pullback we’ve seen since August is reason enough to pay close attention here, although the verdict is still out on what will transpire from here.

Tonight we have inside days for each of the indexes, which is similar to Monday’s bars.  These can often be continuation bars when found in the midst of a trend, and with the short-term trend currently down, that’s worth noting.  We also have descending trend lines overhead to mark the pace of this pullback, and for the NAZ and S&P 500 those trend lines coincide with Monday’s closing levels.  If we see a turn higher on Thursday, I’d look for a rally back up to those levels.

Several setups are on my radar for tomorrow, and once again I’ll be utilizing multiple timeframes and directions for new plays.  This pullback is certainly helping to shake up the charts of many individual stocks, which is just what this market needed whether you’re a bull or a bear.  We should see more setups on the way in the days to come, and the event risk has subsided with the passing (mostly) of earnings season.  That could bring the focus once again solely to the economic data, which is something this market is certainly accustomed to.

As a reminder, for a short time longer I’ll be utilizing the written format of the Broadcast as I get the new office set up with the equipment I use for recording the nightly video. Once that’s ready, I do expect to be back to the usual video format. To those who prefer the video, thanks for your patience. To those who prefer this written format, I hope you are enjoying seeing more text! At any rate, it’s refreshing to me to be able to mix it up a bit. And of course, your input is always welcomed.

For tonight, my notes are on the charts below for index levels and potential trades I’m eyeing for Thursday.

Please leave your comments and/or questions below if you have any, I always enjoy the interaction.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Swing Trading Candidates:

MFC displayed some big momentum early in the month as it left a multi-week trading range in its rearview mirror.  Since then, the stock has pulled back only slightly and consolidated, possibly in preparation for another thrust higher.  I’m watching the trend line just overhead for a break at $15.15 to trigger an entry on the long side in case this one gets moving again.  As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this one will be on the Hit List here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Day Trading Candidates:

These are the trades I’m eyeing for potential plays tomorrow. I will not be holding these overnight, and will wait for these levels to be crossed before entering trades.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Bullish Watch:

BEAV, CY, SVVS, MOTR, BMRN, CODE, IMAX, MEE, ROST, RES, SODA, MFC, CREE, ROVI, PXP, TTM, VMED, CROX, AMTD

Bearish Watch:

LZ, OFC, LNCR, MMYT, PRGO

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

Trade Like A Bandit!

Jeff

Good evening StockBandits!

The indexes got spanked today as the pullback accelerated, leaving the dip-buyers sidelined for the first time since August.  Each of the uptrend channels have now been broken on a closing basis, which brings some unity to the indexes after seeing the NAZ take the lead while the S&P held inside its channel yesterday.  The morning gap was followed only by selling, and even though the market finished slightly off its lows, there was some technical damage done.

Monday’s inside bars proved to be continuation bars, as they sometimes are, and that was followed by decisive moves lower today on heavy volume.  We do now have gaps from this morning which could get filled on a bounce, but the swift moves lower across the board may not inspire the buyers just yet.  The intermediate-term trend is still up, and that will require a lower high and a lower low in order to change it.  The one thing this market has going for it in the short term is the fact that many stocks have pulled back adequately and may soon be ripe for a bounce.  Only time will tell how far that bounce carries, but we’ve now seen a moderate initial pullback off the highs, and that might lead to some short-term stabilization.  The buyers will have to step in soon in order to produce that, but they’ve had good success since August and aren’t likely to get their confidence deeply shaken by this first pullback.

Heading into Wednesday, there are a number of setups on my radar, and I’ll be utilizing multiple timeframes (day & swing), as well as setting up plays for both the long and short sides.  That should lead to some action, but as usual, I’ll wait for my trigger prices to be reached before making any moves.

As a reminder, for a short time longer I’ll be utilizing the written format of the Broadcast as I get the new office set up with the equipment I use for recording the nightly video. Once that’s ready, I do expect to be back to the usual video format. To those who prefer the video, thanks for your patience. To those who prefer this written format, I hope you are enjoying seeing more text! At any rate, it’s refreshing to me to be able to mix it up a bit. And of course, your input is always welcomed.

For tonight, my notes are on the charts below for index levels and potential trades I’m eyeing for Wednesday.

Please leave your comments and/or questions below if you have any, I always enjoy the interaction.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Swing Trading Candidates:

BEAV has pulled back from its highs, but in the past couple of sessions has stabilized.  A turn back up through the descending trend line will trigger a buy for me as this one regains its footing and pivots higher.  I’ll wait for the trigger, and will have a stop just beneath short-term support.  As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this trade will be on the Hit List here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Day Trading Candidates:

These are the trades I’m eyeing for potential plays tomorrow. I will not be holding these overnight, and will wait for these levels to be crossed before entering trades.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Bullish Watch:

TZOO, LULU, IMAX, LPS, CY, SODA, BEAV, QCOR, ALK

Bearish Watch:

ICE, LZ, VFC, XRAY, EAT, OFC, MCP, HSIC, MELI, PWR, CTXS, PRGO, DLR, AIZ, AGN, LAZ, CAVM

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

Trade Like A Bandit!

Jeff

Good evening StockBandits!

Another Monday morning gap to the upside was quickly sold today as stocks returned to Friday’s closing levels rather quickly.  From there, the market spent the bulk of the session churning between the morning high and the 10:10 ET low, unable to gather any momentum in either direction.  Late in the day we saw a bit more selling which took the NAZ and S&P negative, while erasing the majority of the gains on the DJIA and RUT.

While today’s action on the surface looked to be a failed bounce attempt, it really was a non-event in terms of importance on the daily chart.  It created an inside bar for each of the indexes, which means it respected Friday’s lows.  That’s encouraging to the bulls.

Currently the market is still in pullback mode, although we’re seeing volume drying up by the day.  That suggests reduced selling pressure, which could evolve into some buying interest if the bulls reappear sooner than later.  The overall trend remains up, so I don’t want to fight it, but as I noted last night we’re getting some mixed signals.  The NAZ is beneath its uptrend channel, but the S&P 500 is still respecting the low end of its channel, so I’d prefer to wait for more consistency on the technical side before doing anything aggressive.  We could still see some acceleration to the downside, so I don’t want to count out that scenario here either.

At the moment, there are some setups which look tradable for tomorrow’s session, so that’s where my focus will be, and we’ll get to those shortly.

As a reminder, for a short time longer I’ll be utilizing the written format of the Broadcast as I get the new office set up with the equipment I use for recording the nightly video. Once that’s ready, I do expect to be back to the usual video format. To those who prefer the video, thanks for your patience. To those who prefer this written format, I hope you are enjoying seeing more text! At any rate, it’s refreshing to me to be able to mix it up a bit. And of course, your input is always welcomed.

For tonight, my notes are on the charts below for index levels and potential trades I’m eyeing for Tuesday.

Please leave your comments and/or questions below if you have any, I always enjoy the interaction.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Swing Trading Candidates:

BBT has in the past few weeks established a higher low after a big correction and a subsequent test.  It also has shown some nice momentum and a quiet rest on this shallow pullback, setting it up for a secondary advance if it can get back on the move.  I’m watching for a push up through the trend line at $25.50 to trigger a buy.  As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this play will be on the Hit List here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Day Trading Candidates:

These are the trades I’m eyeing for potential plays tomorrow. I will not be holding these overnight, and will wait for these levels to be crossed before entering trades.

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Chart courtesy of StockFinder

Bullish Watch:

MEE, SOHU, TZOO, SVVS, SPRD, IMAX, BBT, PNC, CAR, JEC, AMCN, JAZZ, TROW, RES, CVG, CY, BEAV, SODA

Bearish Watch:

FLS, LZ, VFC, AUXL, ECL, CRM, OFC, JAH, MCP, ADM, CYT, CTXS, DLR, BXP

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

Trade Like A Bandit!

Jeff