Make Sure To Use These 2 Screens To Improve Your Stock Selection

NYSE volume expanded to 1.69 billion shares and range narrowed for the second day. The volume ratio was 67 and breadth positive again at +1197. The 4 MA of the volume ratio is 63 and breadth +909. The SPX ($SPX.X | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) closed up again for the third day to 1205.70, +0.2%, and like the other major indices, above all the rising EMAs. The Dow ($INDU | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating), 10,691, gained 15 points, while technology lagged in a bit of a divergence with the Nasdaq ($COMPQ | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) up just 2 points and the (QQQQ | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) -0.4% to 40.33.

In the sectors, the (OIH | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) led at +1.5% and is +4.8% the past three days. The CYC also advanced for the third day at +1.0%, as did the PPH, +1.1%. The housing stocks had a big day as the (TLT | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) was +0.9% on a gap. The energy stocks provided traders with some profitable trade-through entries in focus list stocks like (DO | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating), (NBR | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) and (SLB | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) just to name a few. Trading in the major indices was choppy, but the energy stocks have very often been a good offset so traders have something defined to trade. There were other focus list stocks that were also trader friendly, like (VRSN | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating), +3.3% from entry, and (DE | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating), +1.9% from a narrow-range Slim Jim to new intraday highs and at the same time, above the previous day's highs. (ROK | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) came out of a nine-day Slim Jim to new rally highs, which was also on the "3-day Wake Up Call" screen.

The price and volume thread for the "S&P 500" screen (commentary page) was in the homebuilders and brokers and, of course, any merger-involved stocks. Also, semis like (NVLS | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating), (NSM | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) and (XLNX | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) traded less than 70% of their average volume. The "3-day Wake Up Call" screen is where you can identify something going on. It gives you stocks that have closed above the previous two days' highs, have the largest daily range for three days, and the most volume in three days. Look at the daily charts of (BRCD | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating), (ROK | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating), (SAFC | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) and (NTAP | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) to see what I mean.

Today's Action

The (DIA | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating)s closed at 106.85, so any initial retracement of interest (five-minute chart) is the 106.30 - 106.40 level, and for the (SPY | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) -- it closed at 120.88 -- it is 120.20 - 120.40.

Have a good trading day,

Kevin Haggerty