Wednesday’s Stock Watch
Monday’s accumulation is a
sign of confidence in this market, though the outcomes of the
mid-term election and Fed meeting tomorrow could easily turn this recent trend
around. This could be a pivotal week for us, though regardless of what happens,
we’re not seeing the signs to get us long. Continue to watch  Mark Boucher‘s
Top
RS and ER List and
Bottom RS and ER List for bullish signs, and watch the new 52-week highs for leadership. This market is still void of stocks meeting our top fundamental and
technical criteria, and our recent breakout list has been less than impressive
lately. Patience can take a portfolio a long way in uncertain markets.
From Tuesday’s action:
Market breadth was mixed, with NYSE
advancing issues over declining issues by a ratio of 1.11, and up volume over
down volume by a 1.33 ratio. Nasdaq declining issues over advancing issues came in
at 1.02, and down volume beat up volume by a 1.24 ratio.
Dow Jones Industrial Average
(
$INDU.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
closed +1.24%
at 8544.42. The S&P 500
(
$SPX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
closed +0.77% at
915.40.
The Nasdaq
(
$COMPQ |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) closed +0.33% at
1,401.20.
Â
1,582
1,607
Declining Issues
1,449
1,657
719,975,000
818,178,000
545,804,000
863,009,000
Total
Volume
1,290,134,000
1,697,072,000
Highs
11
24
6
2
Top sectors:
Short-term: Internet, Telecoms, Broker/Dealers,
Computer Hardware.
Long-term: Gold, Defense, Consumer.
Watch List Action:
From our “handles” list, Ross Stores
(
ROST |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) continues to chop along as it
exhibits less than desirable price action. This stock has been trading on lower
volume lately, which is a good sign, but the jerky price action takes away from
the chances of a clean breakout. Please refer to our
lesson on handles for ideal characteristics of a handle.
Our oldest selection on the “recent breakout” list, Apollo Group
(
APOL |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating),
has now dropped 5% below its pivot point. We’ll watch the stock until it
hits the 8% mark, though Monday’s heavy distribution is a major red flag.
The stock has also broken below a head-and-shoulders pattern.
Recent Breakouts
size=2>We monitor the action of Recent Breakouts as an indicator of
the market health for IT traders. When breakouts are acting well, this is a good
sign for the likelihood of further sustainable breakouts. When breakouts are
failing, IT traders should be even more cautious.
| color=#ffffff size=2>Company Name | color=#ffffff size=2>Symbol | color=#ffffff size=2>12 Month RS | color=#ffffff size=2>Price | color=#ffffff size=2>Price Change | color=#ffffff size=2>Average Volume | Pivot | 52-Week High |
Apollo Group | ( APOL | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) | 84 | 40.82 | +2.71 | 2,611,000 | 39.60 | 46.15 |
Coach Inc. | ( COH | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) | 96 | 30.48 | -0.27 | 1,002,800 | 29.80 | 33.09 |
Hovnanian Enterprises | ( HOV | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) | 98 | 37.93 | -0.87 | 826,600 | 32.90 | 40.56 |
International Game Technology | ( IGT | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) | 92 | 75.40 | -1.06 | 1,035,600 | 75.47 | 78.40 |
Wellpoint Health Network | ( WLP | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) | 80 | 74.39 | -2.70 | 1,540,400 | 79.05 | 85.63 |
WLP traded to 7% below pivot, we’ll keep it on
the list as long as it stays above 8%.
Stocks Forming a Handle
| color=#ffffff size=2>Company Name | color=#ffffff size=2>Symbol | color=#ffffff size=2>12 Month RS | color=#ffffff size=2>Price | color=#ffffff size=2>Price Change | color=#ffffff size=2>Average Volume | Pivot |
Commerce Bancorp. | ( CBH | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) | 84 | 46.01 | -1.19 | 728,300 | 47.80 |
Chicos FAS | ( CHS | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) | 95 | 19.96 | +0.61 | 1,291,200 | 21.19 |
Ross Stores Inc. | ( ROST | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) | 92 | 43.99 | +0.71 | 1,081,400 | 45.59 |
Stocks Building A Base
color=#ffffff size=2>Company Name | color=#ffffff size=2>Symbol | color=#ffffff size=2>12 Month RS | color=#ffffff size=2>Price | color=#ffffff size=2>Price Change | color=#ffffff size=2>Average Volume | Pivot |
None | Â | Â | Â | Â | Â | Â |
href=”mailto:danielb@tradingmarkets.com”>danielb@tradingmarkets.com
If you are new to the “IT” strategy, be sure to
take a look at our
intermediate-term online trading course.
Intermediate-Term Traders
Report is posted on
Tuesdays and Fridays. For other intermediate-term commentary, be sure to read
Mark Boucher (Fridays),
Tim Truebenbach (Tuesdays and Thursdays), and
Gary Kaltbaum (Mondays and Thursdays).