The low risk trade didn't pay off as the stock dipped intraday to undercut the prior 4-day low. Also triggered was a 'sell' in slow stochastics. A minor break, enough to stop my Collective2 position, but not enough to suggest the trend is broken (a break of $21 would be needed for that). The 400 share lot closed for a -$156 loss. Collective2 GSTL

On paper at least, it doesn't look like markets have made much of a change on yesterday. But the Trade Ideas scan was showing a noticeable slowing in the buying; the 8 pick list would have covered a time span of 8 minutes . Also slowed down was the number of appearances stocks made on the scan; top of the pile, Hyperion Solutions, ( HYSL ) only managed 20 appearances over the course of the day. Because of a tick error in the candlechart for HYSL I have opted instead for a line chart. There is a clear upward channel (and smaller handle) which can be traded based on the closing price (ignore intraday swings). Buy break of $35.70, sell loss of $34.70. Hyperion Solutions Corporation provides business performance management (BPM) software solutions. Its solutions enable customers to collect, organize, and analyze data from various transaction systems, such as accounting, billings, bookings, supply chain, sales force automation, and call centers. The company offers Hyperion System 9 Ap

Brookdale Senior Living ( BKD ) breached moving average support on a 'sell' trigger in slow stochastics. The trade closed at breakeven ( +$18 ) on a 200 share lot. Disappointing. Collective2 BKD BKD Collective2

Markets edged a little higher as the Trade Ideas buying picked up on yesterday's; 8 picks covered a time span of 2 minutes . Top of the pile was the very imaginatively named, Enhanced Equity Yield and Premium Fund ( ECV ). Its 11% yield says a lot about where the money action is in this market. This featured 34 times on the scan. Timken Co. ( TKR ) also managed 34 appearances , but its yield of 1.90% is not so tasty. Enhanced Equity Yield & Premium Fund, Inc. operates as a diversified, closed-end management investment company. The fund intends to invest in equity securities, primarily in dividend-paying common stocks of the U.S. issuers. It also intends to invest in securities of foreign issuers, including depositary receipts, emerging market securities, and securities that are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. If you would like to try a full version of the Trade-Ideas software, follow this link for a free 7-day trial. Trade Ideas ECV

Large caps finally broke to new 52-week highs, giving the bulls something to cheer after a dogged summer of declines. The joy didn't spread much beyond these indices as the Trade Ideas scan took a disappointly long 10 minutes to generate 8 different picks. Top of the pile was Alliant Techsystems ( ATK ). It mananged 47 appearances on the Trade Ideas scan and was well clear of second placed Ryder Systems ( R ) on 31 appearances . Alliant Techsystems enjoyed solid gains throughout the day, continuing a strong advance from early 2004 when it traded at lows of $47. The point-n-figure chart target of $105 looks well within its range, part of a September 13th Bullish Triangle Breakout. Tuesday's gains were enough to clear $82 resistance, with larger resistance lurking at $84.74. The projected target from the 5-month base is around $94. Alliant Techsystems, Inc. engages in the supply of aerospace and defense products to the U.S. government, U.S. allies, and contractors in the United

It has been all too easy to knock Dell of late. The stock trades well off its 2005 highs of $41.99 in 2005 (it closed Monday at $22.16) as stiff competition from PC manufacturers and a revitalized Apple chew into its bottom line. In addition, repeated concerns about its customer service [1] , [2] , [3] , [4] were further undermining its foundations. However, I did have a positive Customer Service experience, after a somewhat non-plussed experience buying a laptop. I was somewhat unfortunate to order a computer at a time when Dell wasn't offering its free-shipping offer (the free-shipping offer is of course back again). But, I liked what was on offer at the time and decided I would pay for the shipping myself. When I went to checkout I was somewhat horrified to find ther was only one shipping option available - Overnight ($70). Now, overnight shipping is all well and good if living on the mainland, but there is no such thing for Hawaii. I decided to order the system and took the s

An amusing interlude - follow the image to his site. 100 Jobs

It was a good week all round for the different stock pick methods, including my criminally underperfoming newsletter picks). Top of the pile was Jim Cramer with his top 8 Lighting Round picks bringing a respectable +2.12% average return per trade on the week. My Trade Ideas scan and Newsletter picks had similar returns for the week; +1.57% and +1.41% respectively. The market ETFs recorded their 8th straight positive weekly return (for the studied time periods), returning +0.61% . The best pick was Jim's BEA Systems ( BEAS ) at +7.85% . Worst was American Financial Realty Trust ( AFR ), it closed down -3.33% . If you would like to try a full version of the Trade-Ideas software, follow this link for a free 7-day trial. If you would like to subscribe to my newsletter you can do so by ordering monthly, 6-month, or annual membership from the 'Quantity' box in the right-hand-margin. If you would like to see Jim's picks you can tune into his TV show, or get them from

A solid day for the market on higher volume. The June/July rally ticks along with the S&P a few ticks shy of a breakout to new closing highs. The Trade Ideas scan ticked along at a decent base; my 8 stock read covered a timespan of 2 minutes . The most recent stock to feature was Bemis Co. BMS . The stock has shaped a lovely handle off a 5-month base. Clear support at $31.50 (run stops on a loss of this support) with an ideal pivot buy $0.10 above $32.60 resistance. The measured move target for the cup-and-handle is $36.50, but the point-n-figure chart target of $54 would appeal to those who would like to hold for a little longer. A 2.4% yield is handy candy while you wait. Bemis Company, Inc. engages in the manufacture and sale of flexible packaging products and pressure sensitive materials primarily in the United States, Canada, South America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Mexico. It operates through two segments, Flexible Packaging and Pressure Sensitive Materials. Flexible Packagin

Lower volume will have disguised the bearish tone for the day. The tech averages [ NASDAQ and NASDAQ 100 ] struggled at their 200-day MAs. The large caps [ Dow and S&P ] gave up ground while challenging 52-week high resistance. The Russell 2000 closed along combined channel support and the 200-day MA while the semiconductor index sought respite at the 20-day MA. There was a shift in relative strength as Large caps jumped above Small caps to align markets in a more bearish stance { Tech Indices > Large caps > Small caps }. The Dow and S&P are each treading fine lines as their MACD trigger lines crossed to trigger 'sell' signals while price held support of 4-month bearish wedges. Price support was marked by similar support in the MACD trigger line. Interesting times for these indices - technicals suggest the bearish wedges will break (Monday?). However, when support is tested long positions are favored - so confirmation of a break will be needed (1

Large caps reverse off 52-week highs while Tech struggles at thier 200-day MAs. What did the Stockcharters have to say about it? Dr. Joe leads out with a sector review; he has a nice chart of the Amex Pharmaceutical index which is close to a 5-year breakout. He also has is eye on the Dow Jones Industrial Average using a less volatile monthly chart. But he tucked has away his best Dow chart on page 2: Note the bearish divergence in slow stochastics; new high in index, lower high in stochastics. I have marked the 'sell' trigger in the MACD, but if the bullish divergence is breached it would end 4-month support and complete the bearish wedge: Mitchell Meana highlights another stochastic bearish divergence in the Dow: But its his bullish/bearish QQQQ chart which shows a potentially interesting development with the head-and-shoulder pattern: Micheal Winfree points to bearish divergences in the Qs, CCI and MACD histogram: Robert New always has an excellent leading commentary

Quite a tight start to the competition. First few days tend to favor the Europeans, so we will need to get the points on the board before the US favored singles competition. At least the weather improved ;) Ryder Cup

Markets took another wobble into the close, reversing the weak bullish action which followed yesterday's Fed decision. Volume declined from the previous day, in itself bullish - but declines are never good to see if you are bull. The Trade Ideas scan was more adversely hit; 8 different stocks covered a time period of 60 minutes , a sharp increase to yesterday's 1 minute ! There is very little love to be found. Most frequent pick on the list was Interstate hotels ( IHR ) at a miserable 14 times . The remaining picks made 10 appearances, or less . There was no recent cross (< 2 months) between the 20-day and 50-day MAs, with Plains Exploration ( PXP ) the only stock to manage a bearish cross of these averages. Unfortunately, the 1-year charts for the 8 picks didn't really appeal. Although Interstate hotels ( IHR ) was the most frequent appearer on the scan, it's 1 year chart has the makings of a bearish head-and-shoulder pattern; a break of $9.50 would confirm. If yo

The market likes it more when the Fed does less - if only life could be so easy! Unfortunately, it is a bit of a tired rally and things could retreat relatively easily on any snuff of bad news. Large caps look to be the big winners which fits with a late stage cyclical bull market. The Trade Ideas scan was not so inhibited. My base scan produced 8 stocks in a typically bullish 1 minute . American Commercial lines ( ACLI ) was the most frequent stock to appear at 32 times , but it was relatively even on the appearance front for the remaining picks. Bullish crosses in the 20-day and 50-day MAs (within the last 2 months) occurred in First Midwest Bancorp ( FMBI ), PPG Industries ( PPG ), Amercian Commerical Lines ( ACLI ), and Liz Claiborne ( LIZ ). As for potential buys. Bullish cup-and-handle action can be seen in TMX ; stops go on a loss of $24, projected target of $30. A double bottom has emerged in PPG ; run a stop on a break of $65.50, target of $74. ACLI is working through a lengt

The coup in Thailand injected a degree of uncertainty in what could have (should have) been a quiet day. Although the market was down on yesterday the Trade Ideas scan was quicker in suggesting 8 picks; 6 minutes versus 17 minutes yesterday. Most frequent stock to appear was Votorantim (VCP) at 28 appearances , followed by CBL and Associates (CBL) at 21 appearances . Only two of the picks had triggered bullish crosses of the 20-day and 50-day MAs over the last two months: Citigroup ( C ) and Global Signal ( GSL ). Capital Source ( CSE ) is close to completing a 6-month base. Stops can go on a loss of 20-day MA with a short term target of $28. Cedar Income ( CDR ) has shaped a deeper base, with a projected target of $18, but it hasn't got the sideways 'handle' pattern typical of a base breakout. Citigroup ( C ) is well positioned for a challenge of $50 resistance. Look for short term move to $54 with a reasonable chance for upside follow through to $56. If you would li

The series of dojis was too much for the breakout to hold support intraday. Although the stock was able to close above its stop (and support) level, it could not prevent the position exit during the intraday swing. The 200 share position closed for a -$274 loss. Depending on what the Fed does tomorrow will dictate what I will do to bring the equity exposure back to 60% (from the current 40% based on a $100K allotment). Collective2 FISV

I came across this handy representation of the Economic Cycle via the Big Picture , who sourced this from Matt Blackman of EquiTrend Weekly Market Watch. The key question asked was: Where are we in the cycle? The best way to answer this is to check on leading and lagging industry sectors as published by Investors Business Daily , or listed at Barchart.com . Four of the top 10 performing sectors are in the food inustry ( Consumer staples ). There are also two Service sectors in the top 10 too. In the bottom 10, four sectors belong to Building/Housing ( Industrial Goods ). Which should approximate to a situation as follows: How you use this depends on your strategy. If you like to buy unloved stocks, then you are going to find Industrials , Technology , and Transportation 'cheap'. Dollar-cost-averaging works best to accumulate shares in these sectors as you are getting more shares for less as panic and fear are at a peak. Value players would look to Utilities and Financials .

I had raised the stop once a fresh 'buy' signal was given in slow stochastics. Ironically, the 'sell' trigger in this indicator was countered by Monday's bullish piercing pattern (although it is a weak pattern, because stochastics are not oversold). Unfortunately, the stop was taken out; the 300 share lot closed for a +$540 gain. Collective2 VVI

The markets are loitering in to the run up of the Fed decision. This was reflected in a relatively lacklustre day for the Trade Ideas scan; the 8 picks for Monday covered a time span of 17 minutes , moving beyond the 4 minute range of last week. The two most frequent stocks to appear were JC Penny ( JCP ) and Veolida ( VE ) at 29 times each. Interestingly, JCP was the only pick to generate a bearish cross between the 20-day and 50-day MAs. Bullish crosses of these averages occurred in CSR , CMO , and VE , over the past 2-months. For those who like to buy base breakouts, Credit Suisse ( CSR ) looks the best deal, stops go on loss of 50-day MA. Look for move to $75. Cup-and-handle buyers can look to Zweig Fund ( ZF ). Stops in this can go on a loss of the 20-day MA. Look for a move to $6. Measured move traders can look to Veolia ( VE ); going from $40 to $60, then back to $47, should see it advance to $67. Investors interested in dollar-cost-averaging can stick to JC Penny ( JCP ). To

Options expiration skewed the volume picture, but the small gains across the board were more bearish than bullish. The small black candlesticks in the NASDAQ and NASDAQ 100 , reflected failed bullish optimism; the higher gap open in each index, gave way to a lower close - but, a close which was above the previous day's close. Large caps [ Dow and S&P ] didn't escape either, each index closed Friday with a bearish inverse hammer. The semiconductor index did something similar to large cap indices, but closed on a bearish ' gravestone doji '. The Russell 2000 finished on a more neutral stance, but there is a lingering bearish tone to this index too. As noted earlier in the week, the Russell 2000 is the index to watch if you are a bullish the markets; small caps lead out from bottoms - and we have yet to really see that (on a consistent basis), since the index gave up its roll of leadership in early August. I have published a short piece available for download her

With large caps challenging all time highs, and tech averages trading around the 200-day MAs, what did the Public listers on Stockcharts.com have to say about the market. We open the review with this bearish mammoth from J.P. Russo . Certainly little room for the optimists here (although he is suggesting seom 1,800 points worth of rally is left in the NYSE Composite index). Joe Reed shows a comparison chart for all the indices. The AMEX performance is of particular intrest - it must be all those ETFs! His interest in the AMEX continues here; the index sits at an important junction: Once again, Joe highlights another nice chart - but did he promote this to his front page when the bottom was made in July (I don't know the answer!)? Mitchell Meana has stuck to his guns this week and remains bearish. He leads with this: Robert New closed the week with a nice summary: Strong week in the market led by the Transports, Financials/Brokers, and the Techs. We continue to see many stocks f