Friday, August 30, 2013

Weekend thread


Nice shot from amateur Joshua Zhang


Friday afternoon



Friday morning


Thursday, August 29, 2013

Thursday evening


Thusday afternoon



I see 1654 as resistance.  (Bottom white line)

Thursday morning


Hey, it's the cat blog, get over it ;-)

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Wednesday evening


Wednesday afternoon

SP-500 Daily Chart (11:05 EDT)
Most (maybe all) of the blog regulars are familiar with Fitz' "3 Day Rule of Thumb" and I just want to point out that today is day 3 of the sell off.  It should not surprise that the lower open has found support and is now working on an open green candle. Don't get crazy as there is resistance not far above and the stochastic is in no way flashing a buy signal.

Wednesday morning

I'm not into "iced" but it does make sense.

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Tuesday evening SPY


SPY 60min

The technical term for this picture is "fugly".  It didn't even make a good attempt to recapture 168 - 169 area.  There's a little gap support at 163, better support around 160.  They may try to hold it up for month end, but I think it's unlikely to go zooming back up .

Tuesday afternoon


Tuesday morning

Squeeze play - ACT
Here is one that looks like it's getting ready to pop to the upside.  (Of course it could come out the bottom instead but I'm a glass half full kind of guy.)  The Bollinger Band width is only 3.2% of the 20 day simple moving average.  (SMM alumni should remember 6% or less qualifies as a volatility squeeze.)  Volume has also been below average so that's due to change as well.  The fast stochastic is crossing the slow one now (daily chart) and at least 3 firms, including UBS, have targets of 150 or higher. Earnings were announced on July 25th and that resulted in the move above 130.

The Trade
If you want to nibble right here right now (assuming a flat to up open) that could work just fine.  If you start small you can keep a stop under the 50 day and have less 5% downside risk.  If the 155 target is reasonable (I think it is.) then the pay off is about 15% for a 3-to-1 reward vs risk ratio.  Once the position is started I would look to add on higher prices and above average volume.  As the position grows I would tighten the stop a bit to maintain that 5% (or less) risk profile.  If the price moves above the upper Bollinger Band this becomes a breakout from a volatility squeeze and y'all have seen that trade before but we can revisit it if we have lurkers who are unfamiliar with the technique.

Monday, August 26, 2013

Monday evening


Monday afternoon

Think he's surprised.  Shoulda seen Paige. She didn't know him.
FB Daily Chart (10:50 EDT)
The IPO opened @ 42.05 (the top white line) while the first bounce high was 33.45 (lower white line.)  This looks like it could develop into a trading range or the stock may break higher and the upper line becomes support.  Either way there are multiple trade opportunities depending on your time frame.  I nibbled some Sep6 weekly calls this morning @ the 42 strike for .97.  I am looking for the upper line to become support.  If I am wrong I will exit and look for a trade in the 35-42 range.

Monday morning

2nd Chance ... SLV Daily Chart
After planning and missing the trade in the lower box I am now stalking a trade in the upper box.  Others may prefer to trade gold (or the miners) but I think the bigger, faster moves will be in silver.

Friday, August 23, 2013

Weekend thread


More by this photographer here

Friday afternoon

We heard Paige put in a hot tub ...

Friday morning


Thursday, August 22, 2013

Thursday evening


At the Nasdaq today

Thursday afternoon

Rumor is Meg is betting HPQ's future on this new product.
The market seems to be waiting on something today.  (I thought that was yesterday's game.)  Consolidation is a good thing long term but if you are an active trader it makes you dig to find something that's moving.

Thursday morning

NTAP Daily Chart
Trefis has a write up of this stock and they raised their price target from 38 to 45.  If you can catch this somewhere near the 50 day or even the lower Bollinger Band it could be a nice swing trade.  Here is the article (it's short) so you can make an informed choice.

http://tinyurl.com/k3r94kl

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Wednesday evening


Wednesday afternoon ... while waiting on the Fed

BV Daily Chart (11:25 EDT)

While we wait on the Fed minutes take a look at this chart.  The stock has been consolidating gains for nearly 3 weeks now and yesterday it bounced as it neared the 50 day simple moving average.  If it just grinds sideways the "smoothing mechanism" that Carter Worth spouts about (150 day sma) will cross through the 200 day sma and that will put the stock into the bullish configuration of 20 above 50 above 150 above 200 day moving average.

The price is still near the bottom Bollinger Band and this looks like a good place to start a position.  (Start small but be ready to add if price clears the middle Bollinger Band (20 day sma.)  You might watch the stochastic for the buy signal.  When the fast line crosses the slow line make your entry and put a stop just under the 50 day.

The company reports earnings after market on 9/4.

Bazaarvoice, Inc. provides various social commerce solutions. The company offers its solutions through Bazaarvoice conversations platform, a software as a service platform that enable clients to capture, display, and analyze online word of mouth, including ratings and reviews, questions and answers, stories, recommendations, photos, videos, long-format narratives, and other forms of consumer-generated content. It also provides Bazaarvoice connections solutions, such as BrandVoice, which enables brands to enter into distribution relationships allowing them to display review content on retail Websites within the network; and BrandAnswers that allows brands to interact directly with consumers on retail Websites within the network to answer questions and provide suggestions on alternative products. In addition, the company offers Bazaarvoice analytics solutions, including Intelligence solution that allows clients to derive market, consumer, and product insights from the underlying data collected on their behalf of Bazaarvoice conversations platform; and Workbench Analytics solution, which allows to generate reports highlighting simple ratings trends, text analysis, and product and service issue identification, as well as perform self-service administration. Further, it provides Bazaarvoice media solution that sells advertising on behalf of retailers, brands, and agencies; and provides capabilities that incorporate consumers' authentic opinions in advertising campaigns. Bazaarvoice, Inc. serves clients in the retail, consumer products, travel and leisure, technology, telecommunications, financial services, healthcare, and automotive industries. The company sells its solutions through a direct sales team primarily in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Germany, and Sweden. Bazaarvoice, Inc. was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas. --- Finviz

Wednesday morning


Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Tuesday evening


Tuesday afternoon

Engagement ring from a galaxy far, far away.

SPY Daily Chart (11:50)
Markets don't go straight up nor straight down.  Is today a short term bottom or just a pause for the Bollinger Bands to catch up?  Inquiring minds want to know.

Tuesday morning


Monday, August 19, 2013

Monday evening


Monday afternoon


Monday morning


Friday, August 16, 2013

Weekend thread


Kirkjufell Sunset by Iurie Belegurschi
More of his work here

Friday afternoon

How about a BLT?

Friday morning


Thursday, August 15, 2013

Thursday evening


The markets took a pretty good whacking, but there are some positive things, including possible nearby support.  Tomorrow is options expiration too.  That always provides extra flavor.  What to do ?  Wish I knew ;-)

  • Honor your stops
  • Reduce size
  • Don't play if you don't like the game
  • Wait for high quality setups
  • Don't be a hero
  • Unless you can be Batman.  Always be Batman.


Thursday afternoon



Thursday morning


Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Wednesday evening SPY


SPY 60min

I normally just draw horizontal lines for support and resistance, but that one is pretty obvious.  It sure looks like a top.  There are several gaps below that might want filling.

Wednesday afternoon


The May 22nd intra-day high for the SP-500 was 1687. 18.  So far that level is holding today.  If it fails we could see 1651 by the end of the week.  JMO

Click on chart for a better view.

Wednesday morning



Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Tuesday evening


Tuesday afternoon


The Bollinger Bands are getting very tight on the SPY.  As I write this they are 1.77% of the 20 day simple moving average. They have not been this tight since April. Back then SPY bounced from the lower band and made a week long move higher. Could happen again.

Tuesday morning


Monday, August 12, 2013

Monday evening


Monday afternoon

It will be slow this afternoon. Several floor traders are taking long lunches at the Kitty Kat Klub. 

Monday morning