Tuesday’s Top Stocks
How appropriate…on a day in which some folks celebrate Columbus’ find, the
markets’ own waters seemed very difficult to navigate, as points North and South
seemed impossible to reach. The ETFs spent the majority of the day in listless
trade marked by two very long, lateral consolidations. The good news in all of
this is that today’s ‘green’ technical consolidations while possibly looking
like nasty serpents in times gone past, were actually gains of .33% to .90% in
our friendly ETF market proxies. Volume was once again below-average, but
considering that all hands were not on deck in today’s trade, we’ll wait until
tomorrow morning to take an official role call.
Today’s action established higher highs for both the S&P futures and the Naz,
but that’s as good as it gets for the bulls in today’s trade. With volatility
indices testing levels that suggest that traders heed the word ‘caution’, and
possible topping patterns establishing themselves as we test daily and weekly
chart resistance zones, I personally don’t mind stressing some prudent behavior
in the form of money management. With nearly two weeks of upward wedging action,
and the news no longer providing ‘the punch’ (i.e.,
Motorola) that it’s enjoyed in day’s past, pullbacks and battening down the
hatches within the market’s ‘confirmed rally’ don’t seem like a bad way to play
the action. Although it should go without saying, the best way to play the
action is with disciplined, consistent daytrading, each and every day.
By trading with a disciplined, consistent approach each and every day,
hopefully we can continue to produce positive results in a less-than-perfect
environment. No doubt, when our index friends are stuck in a low–volatility
situation, it makes the best laid plans
more difficult to execute successfully. But, if you are going to set sail into
choppy waters, the edge continues to favor going in with the best provisions
possible. For us, that continues to be our lists of High and Low RS issues. If
you have the patience to wait it out,
who knows, on a day when Columbus jumped ship for land, maybe you can find your
own kind of ‘trade route’ to riches previously unknown.
Volatility Readings:
| Volatility Index | Close | Net Change | Signals/Direction | % Above/Below 10 Day Moving Average | Significance |
| VXO ( $VXO | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
19.33 | up .09 | CVR 3 Sell | 11% below | Â At Extreme |
| VXN ( $VXN | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
26.77 | down .85 | CVR 1 Sell | 9% below | Not At Extreme |
Hottest Sectors : Broker/Dealer (XBD) and Homebuilders (HGX)
Weakest Sectors : Telecom
(
TTH |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) and Oil Services
(
OIH |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
Tuesday’s stocks to watch:
Technical Strength Top of Range.
Stocks are scanned from TM’s Proprietary and Technology 10 Momentum lists on
the Indicators page, as well as being hand selected, based on the most recent
technical action. This may include some or all of the following: abnormal
volume, price patterns, as well as bullish action off of technical price
supports or clearance of technical resistance in that day’s session.
| Name | Symbol | Price | Technical Strength | Average Volume 000’s | Today’s Volume |
| E*trade | ( ET | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
10.84 | High volume b/o of weekly Cup and handle, closing top of range |
4,409 | 8,393 |
| Citrix | ( CTXS | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
26.45 | Volume b/o of daily consolidation, 52-week highs, closing top of range consolidation |
3,129 | 5,320 |
Technical Weakness Bottom of Range.
Stocks are scanned from TM’s Implosion and Technology Implosion Lists on the
Indicators page, as well as being hand selected, based on the most recent
technical action. This may include some or all of the following: abnormal
volume, price patterns, as well as bearish technical action at key support,
or resistance levels based on closing prices.
| Name | Symbol | Price | Technical Strength | Average Volume 000’s | Today’s Volume |
| Northrop | ( NOC | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
85.40 | bottom of range consolidation in weekly low level consolidation |
1,101 | 696 |
| United Online | ( UNTD | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
30.92 | narrow range inside day on above average volume | 1,544 | 2,086 |
Stock Reversal Setups Closing Basis.
Stocks that are setting up on a closing basis as potential long or short reversal pattern
candidates. Candidates listed may have triggered on a closing basis, or close
to triggering ( my general rule is to list the pattern setup if it is within
+/-.15 of trigger price). Patterns include basing patterns (Slim Jims, 1,2,3s,
Double bottoms) consolidations, and triangle reversals. Background technical
supports in the form of Fibonacci levels, EMAs (DEMA=daily ema), RS, and former
price action are used in the decision making process.
Long Reversals Closing Basis.
| Name | Symbol | Price | Technical Strength | Average Volume 000’s | Today’s Volume |
| Synopsys | ( SNPS | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
28.19 | top of range consolidation, testing the 200-Day EMA on above average volume |
1,143 | 3,484 |
Short Reversals Closing Basis.
| Name | Symbol | Price | Technical Strength | Average Volume 000’s | Today’s Volume |
| NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA |
Institutional Favorites and Institutional Laggards.
The following stocks are selected from the Nasdaq, S&P 500 & 600 Indices,
and HOLDRs. These are normally heavily traded, liquid issues that are exhibiting
relative strength or weakness, patterns (consolidations or Slim Jims) , or
last hour volume surges, indicative of follow through in the very near term.
Institutional Favorites
| Name | Symbol | Price | Average Volume 000’s | Today’s Volume |
| Home Depot | ( HD | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
35.50 | 9,525 | 5,635 |
| Merrill Lynch | ( MER | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
58.89 | 5,378 | 4,875 |
| Veritas | ( VRTS | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
35.82 | 6,604 | 6,806 |
Institutional Laggards.
| Name | Symbol | Price | Average Volume 000’s | Today’s Volume |
| Verizon | ( VZ | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
31.88 | 7,632 | 8,338 |
| General Electric | ( GE | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) |
28.93 | 19,344 | 27,954 |
Best of luck to everyone. Please use protective stops on all trades.
Chris Tyler