The Hit List is a look at our current swing trading positions. Stocks we are already in have “triggered”, while those we are considering for plays have not triggered. Click post title to view print-friendly link.

ZMH added

Open Position Notes:

LLL attempted to bounce in recent days, but it was doing so in a weak fashion with limited upside and poor volume to accompany it.  That’s just what I wanted to see, as it helped the stock consolidate for another move down without stopping me out on my remaining shares (1/2 position).  Today it turned lower with steady selling and increasing volume, and I’m now watching for follow through once again toward Target 2.  So far, so good.  I’ll look to make another stop adjustment soon if it continues lower from here.

INTU pulled back today within its consolidation area with the market weakness.  Two things are encouraging here, which are the fact that today’s dip came on incredibly light downside volume, and the fact that short-term support is still holding.  I’m doing my best to stay patient with this one, as if the market stabilizes, I do expect this stock to regain momentum quickly.  If not, my stop is defined and I’ll abide by it.

Closed Positions:

No closed positions.

The Hit List is a look at our current swing trading positions. Stocks we are already in have “triggered”, while those we are considering for plays have not triggered. Click post title to view print-friendly link.

No changes

Open Position Notes:

LLL bounced today with the market, and this one probably needs a bit of relief.  I’ve already taken 1/2 profits at Target 1, and have adjusted my stop for remaining shares to breakeven, so I’ll sit tight for now and let it consolidate to see if a secondary decline will arrive.  This one is a bit of a slower mover, so I’m doing my best to stay patient.

INTU turned back up today after some hesitation yesterday, finishing the week back above the descending trend line.  That’s encouraging – for now – but I’d really like to see some follow through in the days ahead.  This one exhibited some nice momentum just recently, so if after the mild pullback it can regain some strength, I like the setup for a favorable move.

Closed Positions:

No closed positions.

The Hit List is a look at our current swing trading positions. Stocks we are already in have “triggered”, while those we are considering for plays have not triggered. Click post title to view print-friendly link.

INTU triggered

Open Position Notes:

LLL bounced today but held beneath my tightened stop loss, and ultimately finished negative on the day once again.  That’s encouraging price action for a stock that’s already proven to be weak, and even on an attempt at a bounce it’s struggling to gather any upside momentum.  I’m sticking with my existing trade parameters for now while waiting to see if this one can make a move toward Target 2.

INTU triggered a buy this morning as it cleared the steep trend line shown in last night’s Broadcast, but with the market reversing lower, it wasn’t able to hold the breakout.  It slipped back beneath the trend line by the closing bell, and now sits slightly underwater from my entry.  I’m going to keep my stop as-is for now, and may look to make an adjustment after the weekend if Friday’s price action is encouraging.  So not the best start, but I’m going to give it some room to fluctuate for the time being while waiting to see if it can make another attempt at a move higher.

Closed Positions:

No closed positions.

The Hit List is a look at our current swing trading positions. Stocks we are already in have “triggered”, while those we are considering for plays have not triggered. Click post title to view print-friendly link.

LLL Target 1 hit & stop tightened, PLCM stopped, INTU added

Open Position Notes:

LLL fell further this morning to hit Target 1 at $68.80, allowing me to close out 1/2 my position for a fair gain of 3.7%.  The stock has come under persistent pressure for the past several sessions, so to see today’s rebound kick in is not surprising.  It was rewarding to see Target 1 hit right on the nose today, as that did mark the low for the session, and I also liked the fact that this one didn’t rally much beyond the flat line.  Volume was light as well.  That points to a continued presence of some sellers, and a lack of buyers, plus this stock is still technically broken.  I’m going to stick with remaining shares with an adjusted stop loss of breakeven.  If it can move further in my direction, I’ll continue to adjust my stop.

Closed Positions:

PLCM was a setup I really liked the looks of a couple nights ago, as it had broken support and bounced back up to test that zone without reclaiming it.  There was also a well-defined wedge pattern, and I had intended to initiate a short sale upon a break of the lower wedge trend line.  The difficulty in setting up a swing trade in a gap-prone market like this is that sometimes an intended entry and an actual entry can greatly differ.  That can be offset by reducing position size, which I did by 1/2, but it still results in inferior entry prices and a change in the risk/reward profile of the trade.  So when PLCM triggered an entry on Tuesday by way of gapping through my intended trigger price, that was a known risk.  I aggressively tightened my stop last night as another way to offset the initial risk (in addition to the reduced position size), and with today’s market reversal back up I was stopped out of this position for a manageable 2.3% loss.  The reduced position size and limited loss definitely minimized the pain, but the fact remains that a true trigger through an intended entry will still offer the best scenario for swing trading.  I’ll stand aside from this one for now, as it doesn’t seem ready to roll over for a secondary move just yet.

The Hit List is a look at our current swing trading positions. Stocks we are already in have “triggered”, while those we are considering for plays have not triggered. Click post title to view print-friendly link.

PLCM triggered & stop tightened

Open Position Notes:

LLL declined further today on increased volume once again, working toward Target 1.  This one has been a bit slow, but it has been steady, so I’m sticking with it for now.  I’d like to see Target 1 get reached before looking to adjust my stop, so we’ll see if that happens on Wednesday.  I’m comfortable giving this one some room to fluctuate, and will leave my trade parameters as-is for now.

PLCM gapped through my intended trigger price this morning at the open, so in accordance with my Swing Trading Strategy, I still took the trade but with a reduced position size of 1/2 (because it gapped 1-2%).  This one did work its way off the lows of the session by the closing bell, finishing just slightly negative on the day.  While that’s not the kind of price action I like to see, this is still a technical breakdown for the stock.  I’ve tightened my stop tonight in case today’s break proves to be simply a headfake, but otherwise will wait to see if additional weakness sets in.

Closed Positions:

No closed positions.

The Hit List is a look at our current swing trading positions. Stocks we are already in have “triggered”, while those we are considering for plays have not triggered. Click post title to view print-friendly link.

PLCM added

Open Position Notes:

LLL worked its way to new lows today on increased volume as it moved further beneath broken support.  This one has yet to accelerate downward, but the stage is set for some momentum to kick in.  For now, I’m staying patient with it while waiting to see if it can move toward the targets in the days ahead.  I like that it’s showing some initial continuation here since breaking down, and now just want to see the pace pick up a bit.

Closed Positions:

No closed positions.

The Hit List is a look at our current swing trading positions. Stocks we are already in have “triggered”, while those we are considering for plays have not triggered. Click post title to view print-friendly link.

LLL triggered, VMW removed (no trigger, pattern negated)

Open Position Notes:

LLL triggered a short entry Friday as it undercut support at $69.40.  Although the stock was able to finish off its worst levels of the session, I was still encouraged by the overall price action with the stock finishing beneath the breakdown zone.  I’ll be watching for follow through in the days ahead, at which time I may make an adjustment to my stop loss.  For Monday, I’m sticking with my existing trade parameters.

Closed Positions:

No closed positions.

The Hit List is a look at our current swing trading positions. Stocks we are already in have “triggered”, while those we are considering for plays have not triggered. Click post title to view print-friendly link.

VMW & LLL added, BAX stopped

Open Position Notes:

No open positions.

Closed Positions:

BAX was a stock which I expected to be a slow mover, but I have been surprised in recent days just how slow it could be.  After breaking out and showing nice relative strength to the overall market during last week’s pullback, this week the stock has done nothing but stagnate.  I had tightened my stop twice in order to reduce risk in the trade, just in case the lack of upside follow through was an indication of a lack of strength.  It’s a fine line to walk between being patient with a trade vs. recognizing that it simply isn’t going anywhere.  Ultimately, this one proved it wasn’t ready to run, and I was taken out this morning on weakness for a very modest 1% loss.  I’ll give it more time before looking for another entry, as right now the stock simply looks range-bound in the near term.

The Hit List is a look at our current swing trading positions. Stocks we are already in have “triggered”, while those we are considering for plays have not triggered. Click post title to view print-friendly link.

No changes

Open Position Notes:

BAX rested today as it gave back a few cents to stay within the consolidation area of the past few sessions.  Overall, this stock has held up well since breaking out, it simply hasn’t given much follow through.  To offset that, I’ve adjusted my stop twice, and for now I’m doing my best to stay patient with it while waiting for a secondary advance to come along.

Closed Positions:

No closed positions.

The Hit List is a look at our current swing trading positions. Stocks we are already in have “triggered”, while those we are considering for plays have not triggered. Click post title to view print-friendly link.

No changes

Open Position Notes:

BAX turned higher today to mark a multi-day high, which is encouraging to see after several quiet days.  Last week’s high is still overhead, but technically this stock is still acting well.  It’s a very slow mover, which I knew from the outset of the trade, so I’m doing my best to stay patient while waiting for some stronger momentum to appear.  My stop has already been adjusted twice, so I have reduced my risk while I wait.

Closed Positions:

No closed positions.