Complimentary Analysis

Complimentary

A Relative Strength Clue for QQQ (Free)

The Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQ) represents the largest stocks in the Nasdaq and the Nasdaq 100 Next Gen ETF (QQQJ) covers the next 100 (101 to 200). Stocks at the top of the latter group are knocking on the door and

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Complimentary

IBB: Still a Correction within a Bigger Uptrend (Free)

I wrote about the Biotech ETF (IBB) on February 28th as it pulled back from a new high. The pullback was viewed as a correction within the bigger uptrend, but the correction extended further than expected. At the time, I drew a falling wedge on the chart and marked resistance with the red line at 163.

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Complimentary

Tech Stocks, the 10-year Yield and Questionable Narratives (Free)

Two items are dominating the news right now: the rise in interest rates and decline in tech stocks. Are rising rates really an issue for tech stocks? The charts suggest that the evidence is mixed, at best. In fact, it is not very hard to find periods when tech stocks rose along with sharp rises in the 10-year Treasury yield.

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Complimentary

A Medium-term Breadth Indicator Waves the Caution Flag (Free)

The Nasdaq 100 has been on a tear the last few months with a move to new highs, but a medium-term breadth indicator is not keeping pace here in February. This indicator is simply flashing the yellow caution sign right now and we have yet to see an actual signal that would point to a correction. Here’s what to look for.

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Complimentary

An Industrials ETF with More Juice than XLI

Not all ETFs are created equal and the name does not always tell the entire story. One would think that the Industrials SPDR (XLI) and the Industrials iShares (IYJ) are similar in make up and performance. This is not the case because one has a clear edge over the other.

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Complimentary

Seasonality Looks Weak, but Price Action is Not

The seasonal patterns over the next two months are not very strong, but price action is strong with the S&P 500 hitting a new high. Price action is more important than the seasonal pattern because profits and losses are driven by price changes, not seasonal tendencies. Seasonality becomes a force when it aligns with price action. Let’s investigate.

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Complimentary

SOXX Follows Overbought Extreme with Outsized Decline

Last weekend’s post showed the Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) with a 10 day overbought streak and several ETFs with even bigger overbought streaks. These streaks came to an end this week as SOXX fell 6.21%, its biggest weekly decline since mid March. As measured by Normalized ROC, this is an outsized decline that argues for at least a corrective period over the next few weeks.

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Complimentary

SOXX and other ETFs with Extended Overbought Conditions

The Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) and several other ETFs are on a serious roll in 2021. For the fourth time since 2009, 14-day RSI was above 70 for ten or more days. This is an exceptional streak, but SOXX is not alone and there are even longer streaks. The following list shows some ETFs and the number of days RSI has been above 70: ROBO (39), DRIV (25), ARKQ (13), EWT (13), MOO (12), XRT (11), SOXX (10), YOLO (10). Note that these numbers are based on Thursday’s close.

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Complimentary

A Top or a Mere Correction?

Visual chart analysis is prone to subjectivity and biases. While we cannot completely remove subjectivity, we can approach chart analysis in a systematic fashion and increase objectivity. This commentary will show an example using the Home Construction ETF (ITB) because the ETF has traded flat since mid October. Is this a top or merely a correction?

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Complimentary

Squeezing Apple for a Breakout as QQQ and SPY Hit New Highs

Several big tech stocks have consolidation patterns working the last few months and Bollinger Band squeezes in December. These include Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Nvidia. Today’s article will focus on the strongest of the four, and the one with a breakout working already.

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Complimentary

Performance Divergences that Make You Go Hmm…

There was a serious shift over the last five weeks as commodities surged, bonds fell and the Dollar recorded new lows. There were also some noticeable divergences as the Inflation-Indexed Bond ETF (TIP) edged higher and the 20+ Yr Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) moved lower. This divergence is only five weeks old, but it does suggest a whiff of

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Complimentary

Volatility Contraction in QQQ could Foreshadow an Expansion

The weekly high-low range for the Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQ) was the narrowest of the year this past week and the ETF is battling triangle resistance. A narrowing range shows indecision and a volatility contraction. Even though this is just one weekly bar, QQQ is at a moment of truth. Will we see a triangle breakout and continuation higher or a failure at resistance and extended correction?

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Complimentary

Two ETFs with Market Leading Charts and Fast Growing Industries

New highs and a fast growing industry group make for a powerful combination. Today’s article will focus on two ETFs that capture two fast growing industries, video gaming and esports. We will show why these two ETFs are leading, why a consolidation within an uptrend is bullish and why a 50-day SMA is better suited for mean-reversion trading.

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Complimentary

Broad Selling Pressure, but Not Enough to Tip the Scales

Breadth indicators, such as Advance-Decline Percent, measure the participation behind a move in the underlying index. Sometimes participation is so strong that it tips the scales and signals the start of an extended move. For example, 10-day EMA of SPX AD% triggered a bearish breadth thrust on February 25th and the S&P 500 extended lower.

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Complimentary

Taking Breadth Thrusts to the Sector Level

There are 11 sectors in the S&P 500, but the big six are the only ones we need to be concerned with when making a broad market assessment. The big six account for a whopping 82.5% of the S&P 500, which leaves the other 5 with just 17.5%. Consumer Staples is the seventh

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Complimentary

Mind the Gap in SPY

The S&P 500 SPDR (SPY) gapped up on Monday and broke out of a classic correction pattern. The breakout is bullish, but the coast is not entirely clear. Here’s what to watch going forward.

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Complimentary

2 Equity ETFs Holding Up Well in September

The S&P 500 SPDR is down around 6% this month and QQQ is down around 8%. These two hit new highs on September 2nd, plunged the next three trading days and then worked their way lower. Both are below their 50-day moving averages for the first time since April.

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Complimentary

The Setup to Anticipate the Breakout – XME Example

Chartists are often faced with a choice: wait for the breakout or anticipate using a mean-reversion setup. The Metals & Mining SPDR (XME) broke out of a bullish consolidation this week and the breakout signals a continuation of its long-term uptrend. Chartists keying off the mean-reversion setup could have anticipated the breakout and gotten the early jump. Let’s investigate.

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Complimentary

Silver Crosses Turn Dull

There are fewer silver crosses in the major stock indexes and this shows less participation during the last leg higher. A silver cross occurs when the 20-day EMA crosses above the 50-day EMA. DecisionPoint took this concept on step further and developed breadth indicators based on the percentage of stocks with silver crosses. This is a great way to look under the hood and aggregate medium-term trend performance for each index. The chart below shows this indicator for four key indexes: $NDX, $SPX, $MID and $SML. I set the bullish and bearish thresholds at

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