Zero Conviction
Will the apathy and ping
pong effect continue? Good question, but it is certainly very clear
that the market has zero conviction in either direction. In the meantime, you
just need to go with what little "flow" there is and capture your
winnings quick and be even quicker cutting your losses. News is really the only
thing driving this market currently, and even that has limited shelf life once
the "facts" are properly extracted from the headline.
To quote Dave Landry, "So what do we do
now?" Not much from an HVT standpoint.
The first hour and a half is where my day has been made in recent weeks. The
remainder of the day is spent looking at charts and waiting for slightly longer-term
setups. I know this is becoming boring and repetitive, unfortunately it is the
truth, and it is the game plan that will see you through to the next phase of
the market.
Position trades (several day to weeks) have been
equally as challenging lately given the fickle nature of the market.
Nonetheless, I figured I would share a few with you that I came across over the
weekend. Ironically, a few of the names I pulled out as good solid technical
setups also corresponded with some of the selections found on March Boucher’s
filter Top
RS/EPS New Highs. When I see this type of convergence of technical and
fundamental data, I get very interested. This is not to say I will run out and
buy these issues, but they are now definitely on my radar screen.
A couple of other stocks I am keeping my eye on
are:
Long:
Short:
Halliburton
(
HAL |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
Fannie Mae
(
FNM |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
Wintrust Financial
(
WFTC |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
Luckily, there are a whole slew of economic
numbers out this week for the market to chew on. No doubt this will ratchet up
volatility, albeit for a brief moment. Unless there is a real stinker in the
numbers or something incredibly bullish, don’t overstay your welcome on trades.
There is no shame in walking away each day after the first hour and a half.
Key Technical
Numbers (futures):
S&Ps |
Nasdaq |
| 1119 | 1333-34 |
| 1111 | 1318 (key resistance) |
| 1096-1101 (confluence) | 1307 |
| 1085 | 1288-90 |
| 1070 | 1273 (confluence) |
| 1066 | 1259 |
| 1054 | 1245 |
| 1229 | |
| 1218 |
Thought For The Week:
“Man’s
greatest enemy in speculation is ‘hope’. He
refuses to face facts, and facts are stubborn things.
Hope spurs us on. It may be an
anchor to the soul, but a very slim anchor in speculation, when facts are
against us.†—Henry Watson
As always, feel free to send me your comments and
questions. See you in TradersWire.