TheStockBandit.com

Good evening StockBandits!

After becoming short-term oversold from the 3-day slide which began Friday morning, stocks bounced today.  The gains weren’t overly impressive, but the market did a nice job of holding onto its gains throughout the session.  That means we could see some follow through going forward, but there’s still plenty of congestion at higher levels which could serve as resistance.

While the bulls may be encouraged by today’s return to the trading range, they still have much to prove.  Today’s advance came on lighter volume, which is to say there was narrower participation in the buying.  We’re also still a considerable distance from the upper end of the range, so if the bulls intend to create new highs soon, they’ll need to bring their best.

The back-and-forth nature of the current environment reminds us that follow through is harder to come by in a trendless market.  That also means greater selectivity is likely to be rewarded when it comes to multi-day plays.  We’ve caught some nice day trades of late though, so there are still opportunities for those willing to adjust to current conditions.  I do expect to see more swings coming available in the days ahead, but for now high levels of cash are warranted by this price action.

By the way, I posted a Trade Review of BIDU today over on the blog, and I know quite a few of you were involved in that trade.  Go check it out for a recap, as well as some lessons to take away from it.

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!

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Video Stocks Discussed: AZPN, KCI, WBC, CAM, NUVA

Swing Trading Candidates:

NUVA has pulled back for a little more than a week from its highs, but hasn’t given up a lot of ground relative to the recent advance.  A push north of the trend line at $31.60 will trigger a buy for me as this one gets back on the move.  Initially I’ll look for a test of the recent high, followed by a move into the unfilled gap from last fall. As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this stock are on the Hit List here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of TeleChart

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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 broad market weakness we saw on Friday carried over through Monday and into this morning, sending the indexes to new pullback lows from their May peaks.  We saw the April 20th gaps begin to get filled, but stocks stabilized and partially lifted in the afternoon to erase a fair portion of the early deficit in each of the averages.

Whether this afternoon’s rebound was due to meaningful buying or simply a bit of an oversold bounce remains to be seen.  What is still worth noting here, though, is the fact that we remain beneath recent support zones.  Those areas are 2802 for the NAZ, 1332 for the S&P, and 825 for the RUT.  So long as prices are under those levels, they’re more likely to serve as resistance on bounce attempts.

Over the past 2 1/2 weeks, we’ve seen both a lower high and a lower low emerge on the daily charts of the indexes.  That obviously points to at least a short-term correction, but the jury’s still out when it comes to this being a major turning point or not.  Rather than predict the next move (which isn’t necessary), my plan here is to continue approaching this market with caution until it gives some technical reasons not to.

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!

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Video Stocks Discussed: PPO, REG, VNO, SREV, HP, SLB

Swing Trading Candidates:

NONE TONIGHT

[table “46” 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 indexes gapped lower to start the week, and the buyers emerged once again as support zones were tested and held.  That provided a decent lift from the opening lows, and each of the averages moved into positive territory except for the NAZ.  The bounce was unable to persist, however, and by late morning the market started working its way lower.  We trended down in the afternoon in an orderly but steady fashion, leaving the S&P 500 and NAZ beneath key support zones.

To see those zones get defended multiple times in the past couple of weeks, only to fail today, gives today’s break some validity.  Time will tell, but for the time being we have a downside resolution to the recent indecision, and that’s not a technical event we want to take lightly.  This appears to be the market’s way of following the leaders we’ve recently seen break down (AAPL, BIDU, SOHU, NTES, UA, OPEN, to name a few), so the big question at this point becomes “where do we stop next?”

There’s no easy answer to that, but we do have some levels to keep an eye on if/when we approach them, which I’ll cover in tonight’s video.  Suffice it to say though, cash is a good thing to have on hand right here as the market threatens to correct further, and it’s important to remember the role which good defense plays for us as traders.  Capital must be protected first and foremost, with profits being a secondary objective.  We’ve caught some good moves on the short side since last week, but if the pullback continues, we should see plenty more opportunities in the days and weeks ahead.

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!

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Video Stocks Discussed: VNO, XOP, XLE, APC, HP, XEC

Swing Trading Candidates:

NONE TONIGHT

[table “45” 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!

Short-term trading ranges persisted last week with plenty of back-and-forth price action yet no follow through.  The DJIA saw only a 43-point net change on the week, while the NAZ was up less than 1pt and the S&P shed less than 3.  Clearly, the indexes marked time while waiting for a notable catalyst to come along.

While caught in these ranges, we’ve seen more tests of support than challenges of the highs.  That doesn’t necessarily mean we’re headed for a downside resolution, but it does mean prices are knocking on the door.  Nonetheless, the dip-buyers are still defending support zones and that means the chance of this pullback resulting in another higher low is still alive.

As is to be expected, while the market shows indecision, many charts of individual stocks are too.  We’ve seen some sectors weaken (ex: commodities, Chinese internet, agricultural stocks), while others have held up well and are building bases (ex: semiconductors, real estate).  That means it’s a market of stocks right now, making it more important to select timeframes carefully rather than expecting broad market momentum to bail out trades initiated via poor timing.

At this point, I’m working my watch lists regularly, adding and removing stocks which belong there, but not eager to aggressively add much exposure in either direction until this market gets to moving better.  Capital preservation is important right now, as these ranges can really chop you up.  So, stick with clean patterns where momentum is present, and otherwise sit patiently while we wait for better conditions to arrive.

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!

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Video Stocks Discussed: HS, MCHP, BHI, VNO, ALTR, RNR, NOG, SM, PXD

Swing Trading Candidates:

NONE TONIGHT

[table “44” 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 indexes gapped down this morning and saw some early downside follow through, but the first bounce proved to be an upside reversal.  By late morning, the gap had been filled and the market was able to trend higher into the afternoon.

Today’s dip was yet another test of the lower ends of the trading ranges we’ve been eyeing for the past week, and to see a rebound from there shows that the buyers are still defending (and thus validating) those areas.

The daily charts are starting to look more bullish after another successful test of support, but so far we’re still range-bound.  It’s important at this point to continue respecting short-term support & resistance zones, knowing that until we see a solid close beyond one of them we could see continued back-and-forth price action.  Just as Wednesday’s weakness was convincing, so was today’s strength.  Such is the case when caught in a range of indecision.

Each of the indexes still have a very good shot at this dip resulting in a higher low, and many individual charts are taking on a similar look.  While we await a decision from this market range, my focus will be on either setups which look good for quick one-day moves, while staying selective when it comes to multi-day plays.  In time, we should see plenty more action, but at the moment lasting follow through has yet to emerge.

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: IACI, ALTR, REDF, CTRP, NOG, X

Swing Trading Candidates:

NONE TONIGHT

[table “43” 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