The Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) broke out of a pennant formation last week and then fell sharply this week. This puts the ETF back in the pennant and near its make or break level.

The stock market started its latest run to infinity (and beyond) in mid August and the 20+ Yr Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) just happened to peak a week or so later. Note that stocks and bonds were largely on the same page from February to August as both moved higher.

Ten of the eleven sector SPDRs are positive over the last three months. The Real Estate SPDR (XLRE) is the only sector sporting a loss (~.75%), but I am not concerned with relative weakness because the price chart looks bullish overall.

2019 was quite the year with many stocks moving sharply higher from January to July or August. In particular, several Technology stocks moved higher during this period and then corrected into October. We can see this pattern reflected in the Equal-Weight Technology ETF (RYT) as it advanced over 40% and then corrected for three months.

2019 was a year with lots of distractions, and yet the S&P 500 recorded 52-week highs in six of the last nine months. The index surged 17.7% the first four months and recorded its first 52-week high in late April.

A theme is a fundamental trend that could influence a stock’s price in the coming months, or even years. As powerful as themes seem, they are still secondary to price action. There are many forces driving price movements and we cannot be expected to know them all.

The Gold SPDR (GLD) and the Gold Miners ETF (GDX) have been trending lower and lagging the broader market since September, but the breadth indicators show signs of strength within the Gold Miners ETF. Today we will examine four breadth indicators and analyze the price chart for GDX.

We are seeing breakouts and new highs galore in the stock market. Does this sound the all clear? Hardly. Investors waiting for the all clear will probably be waiting a long time. Moreover, the “all clear” could even mark the top, because that’s just the way Mr. Market operates.

Chartists looking for winning stocks should start with leading sectors and industry groups. Having a sector or industry tailwind can greatly improve the odds for a winning trade or investment. Sign up for free webinar.

The Mobile Payments ETF (IPAY) came to life in November with Square leading the chart. SQ, however, is not the chart leader. This post will identify three chart leaders and highlight three that look poised for new highs by yearend.

Black Friday weekend is here and the holiday shopping season is just getting started. While I have no clue which retailers will be the big winners or losers this season, the mobile payments industry is likely to be a big winner.

Several finance-related ETFs and stocks broke out with big moves from early October to early November. Many of these then stalled over the last two weeks and this rest could be the pause that refreshes. Today we will look at performance for the finance-related ETFs and the bull flags taking shape in three banking stocks

The S&P 500 SPDR and Nasdaq 100 ETF recorded new all time highs this past week, while the S&P MidCap 400 SPDR hit a new 52-week high in November. Sounds bullish, but the S&P SmallCap 600 SPDR and Russell 2000 ETF are still well below their 2018 highs, even though they are very close to 52-week highs. Which index ETFs tell the real story here?

The character of the stock market changed over the last six to seven weeks as the market took on a more offensive tone. Stocks were already in bull mode, but we are now seeing stocks outperforming bonds. In addition, momentum and offensive sectors are leading.

New highs expanded in the small-cap universe over the last few weeks and this indicates that the bull market is broadening. This post will first look at the high-low pairs for the S&P indexes and then apply a 20-day SMA to show the improvement in new highs over the last few weeks.