Monday’s Stock Watch
The
broader markets for the most part closed higher Friday
even after a worse-than-expected employment report this morning. The Nasdaq Composite
closed off fractionally 3.3%. Volume for the Nasdaq was lower
by 7.93% from the prior day.
Bulls and bears were
pretty much even in the session; we saw Nasdaq advancers lagging decliners 1398 to
1672 as breadth was negative for the day. Nasdaq Down Volume led Up Volume
866,668,700 to 743,592,400.
There were 51 Nasdaq
stocks making new 52-week highs verses 93 stocks making new 52-week lows for the
session. Until we see better breadth we remain suspect on the sustainability of any rally. We
must also continue to monitor the daily and weekly action of the markets to see
which groups will lead us before we jump in head first.
Yesterday we saw American
Healthways
(
AMHC |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) break out on good volume, but today it reversed to close
below its pivot point and near its lows.
\
THQ Inc
(
THQI |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating), which
is on our watch list, gave us a “scare” a couple of days ago after
being distributed on high volume; however today’s action has THQI surging ahead
to test its trading range high. Volume was phenomenal for the stock (more
than a 110% increase above its 50-day average daily volume).
Stocks Breaking
out on High Volume with a Relative Strength of 80 or Better:
| Company Name |
Symbol | Relative Strength |
Price | Average Volume |
Today’s Volume |
| NONE |
Stocks Building
A Base With A Minimum Relative Strength of 80.
| Company Name |
Symbol | Relative Strength |
Price | Average Volume |
Today’s Volume |
| Krispy Kreme Doughnuts |
( KKD | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
93 | 35.04 | 901,800 | 293,500 |
| PEC Solutions | ( PECS | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
95 | 25.30 | 293.300 | 89,100 |
| THQI Inc. | ( THQI | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
93 | 55.57 | 1,193,000 | 2,537,000 |
Stocks forming a
Handle
| Company Name |
Symbol | Relative Strength |
Price | Average Volume |
Today’s Volume |
| Taro Pharmaceutical |
( TARO | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
98 | 42.90 | 712,100 | 288,400 |
| Independence Community Bank |
( ICBC | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
88 | 24.23 | 588,000 | 244,300 |
Sectors in the green were the Gold and
Silver Index
(
$XAU.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) gaining 2.4%.
The Semiconductor Index
(
$SOX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
moved higher 2.3%
While the Retail Index
(
$RLX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
tacked on 1.9%.
Also closing higher was the
Insurance Index
(
$IUX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) by 1.6%.
The Oil Services Index
(
$OSX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
slid 2.9% in the session.
Followed by the Oil Index
(
$XOI.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
which lost 2.3%.
The GSTI Internet Index
(
$GIN.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
closed off 1.5%.
Remember that all securities are
risky. In any trade, you should always reduce your risk by adjusting position
size and placing open protective stops where you will sell your long or
cover your short in case the market turns against you. For an introduction to
combining price stops with position sizing, see our lesson, Risky
Business.