Good evening StockBandits!
The bulls ended January on a sour note, finishing last week with declines in 3 of the last 4 sessions. It began with strength, but upside follow through failed to appear and stocks reversed lower to drift toward support. There were some big earnings-related moves in individual names, but the broad market continued to wallow in indecision by again respecting the range boundaries.
For January, the S&P 500 gave up 3.1%, although that’s the smaller story. The bigger story is the move lower within the trading ranges we’ve been watching for several weeks, and the heavy volume that accompanied it. A breakdown for the averages at this stage could spark some heavy selling, as measured moves alone would be in the neighborhood of 6%. Tonight, they’re certainly not far away from that danger zone and seem to be teetering on the edge. Will the range hold yet again, or has it finally run its course?
We’re right in the thick of earnings season, so it’s imperative to keep close tabs on the reporting dates for any stocks you intend to keep overnight. I do that via Yahoo! Finance, as well as Earnings Whispers, and it’s never a bad idea to cross-reference the dates posted to various sites.
Let’s get to the charts.
Bullish Watch (click for charts)
Bearish Watch (click for charts)
Trade Like A Bandit!
Jeff
