MailBag December 30, 2011 at 11:21 AM
StockCharts.com tracks chart requests with the Ticker Cloud and Ticker Rain tools. The first example below shows the Ticker Cloud with the 200 most popular tickers. Each ticker is a hyperlink that can be clicked to see the chart. A simple left click opens the chart in the same window, while a click of the mouse wheel opens the chart in a new tab. Tickers with the biggest letters are the most popular. This snapshot was taken at 7:29 AM ET, which tells us the hot stocks before the open. Apple (AAPL), Seagate Technology (STX), Societe Generale SA (GLE.EU) and Renault (RNO.EU) are currently Read More
MailBag December 23, 2011 at 10:13 AM
The StockCharts Technical Rank (SCTR) pages can be sorted by column, of which there are seven. Chartists can sort by “name” to quickly find a stock. Sort can be by “sector” or “industry” to group stocks. Chartists can find the strongest or weakest stocks by sorting with the “SCTR” column. Those interested in the closing price of a stock can sort by “price”. The final column, “change”, is perhaps the most powerful. A sort by this column shows the stocks with the biggest changes, both up and down, in the SCTR. These are the movers and shakers on the day. The image below shows part of the Read More
MailBag December 16, 2011 at 09:30 AM
The MACD-Histogram measures the difference between MACD and the 9-day EMA of MACD. This makes it an indicator of an indicator. MACD is a basic momentum indicator that measures the difference between two moving averages. Typically, MACD equals the 12-day EMA less the 26-day EMA. MACD turns positive when the 12-day EMA crosses above the 26-day EMA and turns negative when the 12-day crosses below the 26-day EMA. A 9-day EMA is applied to MACD to act as the signal line for upturns and downturns. MACD is moving higher when it breaks above its 9-day EMA and moving lower when it breaks below its Read More
MailBag December 09, 2011 at 09:54 AM
An island reversal forms with a gap, consolidation and then a gap in the opposite direction. The opposing gaps form an area without any price data that isolates the consolidation. In this regard, the consolidation becomes an island that is separated form the rest of the price action. There is some debate on the length of the consolidation and the form its should take. It can be a little as one day or as long as two weeks. The important thing is that both gaps create an island. The first chart shows the XLK with a bearish island reversal in late October and a bullish island reversal in Read More
MailBag December 02, 2011 at 08:37 AM
European interest rates can be tracked the Italian Treasury Bond Futures ETN (ITLY) and the German Bund Futures ETN (BUNL). Note that interest rates and bond prices move in opposite directions. Interest rates rise when bond prices fall and interest rates fall when bond prices rise. With this inverse correlation, we can determine the direction for interest rates in Italy and Germany. The first chart shows the Italian Treasury Bond Futures ETN (ITLY) with the Italian Milan Index ($MIB) in the indicator window. ITLY fell sharply from mid August to late November. This infers a sharp rise in Read More
