TheStockBandit.com

Good evening StockBandits!

The major indexes battled back from negative territory today to finish flat, shaking off poor news in tech stocks CSCO and AKAM.  The dip-buyers are still present, and whether it’s bulls who are putting cash to work on minor pullbacks or shorts who are anxious to cover doesn’t matter – there’s still a persistent bid beneath this market and the trend is up.

At this point, the market is respecting the short-term highs as it consolidates just beneath those levels.  At the same time, we’re holding above former resistance zones, which offers a first layer of short-term support for the time being.  We could see volatility pick up anytime, but for now the indexes continue to cling near highs without any shake-ups.

Heading into Friday, there are some setups on my radar for new plays, but I’ll be looking to keep my timeframe short for the most part.  The Hit List has one swing which hasn’t yet triggered (along with a few which I’m currently holding), so aside from those I’m eyeing a few day trades ahead of the weekend.

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: ADSK, EL, PXP, HSC, BYI

Swing Trading Candidates:

NONE TONIGHT

Bullish Watch:

ETFC, ADSK, GTI, ADTN, LNG, PAY, KKR, KSU, LRCX, XXIA, JAZZ, MOS, LXK, URI, CELL, MON, SGY, JKS, RDC, STEC, SWK, ARBA, SWKS, BMC, EL, TA, PXP, CSX, FSLR, HSC, GRMN, SU

Bearish Watch:

HMIN, SLAB, DLB, F, BYI

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!

Today’s session saw narrow ranges and some back-and-forth action as the indexes failed to gather lasting momentum in either direction.  Each finished with single-digit net changes, with the DJIA coming in a few points positive while the others finished slightly red.

All in all, it was a day of digestion.  The market has made a nice recent move higher from the lows of last week, so to see the buyers take a bit of a break isn’t unhealthy.  We’re still just a short distance from the highs and still above recently-cleared resistance zones, so today’s minor pullback isn’t anything for the bulls to be concerned about.  We saw a bit of a lift into the closing bell, reminding us that the dip-buyers are still present (as if we’ve forgotten).

The tough thing about this market right now is that it’s not easy to be long or short in.  We’ve crept higher for quite some time now, making it easy to worry about a pullback – and one of these days we’ll see one.  At the same time, shorts haven’t really paid well, as every dip in this market has been bought and that makes it difficult to get downside traction – even in weak stocks.  So it’s the kind of environment where we just have to continue to seek out the best setups and manage our risk accordingly while we wait for higher volatility 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: KSU, KKR, MON, PAAS, CSX, SLAB

Swing Trading Candidates:

CSX is sitting in a high base within its uptrend, and could get back on the move any day.  I’ll be a buyer if the upper trend line gets cleared at $71.25. As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this trade are found on the Hit List here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of TeleChart

SLAB rolled over decisively a few weeks ago and has since only managed a partial bounce on poor volume.  This has created a rising wedge pattern, which is bearish, so I’m watching for a break of the lower trend line to trigger a short entry at $45.30. As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this trade are found on the Hit List here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of TeleChart

Bullish Watch:

NXPI, RCII, GTI, KKR, KSU, LRCX, XXIA, JAZZ, ROC, IPXL, NANO, MON, SGY, TEX, SWK, CXO, OAS, BEXP, FLIR, NWS, EL, SOHU, SFD, PXP, CSX

Bearish Watch:

ANR, APA, SLAB, TRGL, PAAS, F, QLIK, WHR, CTXS, BYI, WLT, PCAR, SSRI, AG

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 slow-motion breakout continued today with the major averages adding similar gains to what we saw on Monday.  The buyers stayed in control throughout the session, although stocks never really took off and ran.  Nonetheless, we’re once again sitting at new 52-week highs, and the uptrends remain intact.

Rather than sprinting higher after clearing resistance, this market continues to simply grind its way higher.  Momentum isn’t really present, despite the fact that every dip continues to get bought.  That’s keeping things a bit tricky at the moment, because often times within uptrends when we see technical hurdles get cleared it allows for quick bursts higher followed by rest and dips.  This time however, the market is showing very low volatility, as the down days have largely been very shallow declines and the advances have been equally tame.

The one good thing about this type of movement is that it can persist for a while, as the lack of upside acceleration helps prevent overbought conditions.  No telling whether or not this run will continue, but at the moment the bulls have more room to run if they want to produce 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: MOS, NWS, SGY, CTXS, SWK, CXO

Swing Trading Candidates:

SWK has been resting just beneath short-term resistance, and a breakout could put this one back on the move higher.  I’ll be a buyer if the $73.85 level is cleared to the upside. As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this trade are found on the Hit List here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of TeleChart

CXO remains in an uptrend and has put in some healthy rest in recent days.  I’m watching the trend line just overhead for a break at $97.50 to trigger a buy, as that could free up this stock to start another leg up. As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this trade are found on the Hit List here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of TeleChart

Bullish Watch:

NWS, WDC, APC, NXPI, MCK, AET, DFS, VFC, MCP, REE, SHZ, JAZZ, LEN, TCK, ROC, SFY, MOS, GRT, BG, XEC, SOL, CELL, SGY, AA, TEX, IPI, STEC, SWK, HUN, BMC, CXO, WLL, NG, OAS, ERTS, FLIR

Bearish Watch:

JRCC, VMW, WHR, CTXS

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!

Friday’s quiet breakout produced a little follow through today as the indexes worked their way higher throughout the morning.  The highs of the day were set before lunch, however, and from there the market gave back a little ground from its best levels into the afternoon.

So, new highs were made again today across the board, including the RUT, which is encouraging since small-caps have lagged of late.  However, volume failed to pick up with today’s market strength, which is the second straight session for stocks to climb on lower participation.  That’s not typically encouraging from a technical standpoint, and toss into the mix the fact that today we saw a little afternoon weakness.  That combination might lead to some profit-taking, so despite the strength here it’s still a good spot to exercise some caution.

Tonight I’m seeing a handful of setups which look good for short-term moves, but I’m still unwilling to get too exposed in either direction.  The market is drifting higher here, but sending some mixed signals with the weak volume, so I’ll continue to stay selective until more consistency is seen in the technicals.

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: MOS, SODA, DOV, WFR, SNDK, PAAS

Swing Trading Candidates:

PAAS recently failed after making new highs and has since changed directions to enter a new downtrend.  Currently the stock is bouncing on poor upside volume, and a break of the rising trend line of support would pave the way for another leg lower to begin.  I’ll be going short upon a breach of the $33.95 level.  Earnings are due out on 2/15, so I’ll be out of this trade ahead of that announcement. As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this trade are found on the Hit List here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of TeleChart

Bullish Watch:

LBTYA, MCP, LNG, IVN, SFY, MOS, GRT, AFL, SODA, SOL, GSM, SGY, AA, DV, STEC, AVL, SWK, HOG, MOLX, HUN, WTI, DOV, JEC, WFR, HES

Bearish Watch:

MCD, MSB, PAAS, SNDK, QLIK, VMW

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 major averages posted solid gains last week, setting a positive tone as February got underway.  As is so often the case, the first day of the month offered ample strength, which the remainder of the week built upon.  Two Fridays ago, the market had rolled over hard with no relent, and it appeared that a deeper pullback may finally be getting underway.  But alas, the dip buyers prevailed once again, and now we have the 3 major indexes sitting at new 52-week highs (the RUT has yet to join them).

To see breakouts taking place is nothing new, as we’ve seen a number of them just in the past couple of months.  What will be interesting to see is whether this one can gather more strength than previous new highs which were followed by quiet digestion.  Regardless, it’s yet another reminder that the trends remain up and the bulls are still running things.

Friday’s breakout still has some proving to do, however.  Although price is most important and new highs are being made, the way in which it occurred left something to be desired.  The major averages only made new incremental highs, which is to say the market didn’t quite blast through short-term resistance zones.  We also saw volume fail to confirm the new highs, as it remained below-average in each case.  That’s something to keep an eye on in the days ahead, so perhaps the bulls will show a bit more resolve this time around.

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: BG, LULU, WTI, QLIK, LBTYA, PAAS

Swing Trading Candidates:

LBTYA is in an uptrend here and has just put in some rest following the most recent advance.  A push higher through the trend line at $41.40 could put this one back on the move, so I’ll be going long if and when that occurs. As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this trade are found on the Hit List here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of TeleChart

PAAS recently failed after making new highs and has since changed directions to enter a new downtrend.  Currently the stock is bouncing on poor upside volume, and a break of the rising trend line of support would pave the way for another leg lower to begin.  I’ll be going short upon a breach of the $33.65 level. As with all swing trades, my stop and target levels for this trade are found on the Hit List here inside the Hideout.

Chart courtesy of TeleChart

Bullish Watch:

LBTYA, LEAP, DIS, FTK, MCK, ATPG, RCII, IDCC, ATW, IVN, MOS, BG, IPXL, PXD, SLB, AA, ATI, IPI, NWL, LULU, ARBA, VSEA, SM, HOG, MOLX, WTI, DOV, DNR

Bearish Watch:

APA, ANR, PAAS, MHP, QLIK

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