Facebook dropped sharply on Thursday after quarterly results raised questions about its longer-term growth story. Sure, the backward looking numbers weren't bad. But looking forward, newer offerings like Instagram don't seem to be catching fire. The "big blue app," with its slow-growing and ageing user base, isn't really thrilling investors. This stands in...
We've earlier cited downside in S&P Oil & Gas Exploration Fund and Halliburton . Now we're taking a step back to look at the bigger picture on the SPDR Energy ETF . It isn't pretty for the bulls. As many traders know, XLE is the market's worst-performing major sector by a wide margin. A global crude-oil glut and mediocre economic growth are hurting crude...
Traders in search of potentially bullish patterns don't have to look hard on the Ethereum chart. The No. 2 cryptocurrency has key basing patterns, candlestick patterns, levels and moving averages -- all seeming to point higher. First, the basing pattern: ETHUSD made a low around $132 on November 25 and another low of $116 on December 18. But then the next...
Skyworks Solutions has been flying on strong demand for smart phones and hopes of a big 5G buildout. Now it's pulled back to a level where traders might want to take a look. SWKS broke out to new record highs in December, above the $115 zone where it peaked in November 2017 and March 2018. As often happens, it was a case of "buy the rumor and sell the news."...
Bitcoin is known for volatility, but its trading range has narrowed considerably in recent months. That can indicate a change in character as buyers and sellers reach an equilibrium. It also fits into the apparently bullish structure of BTC since December, as cited in earlier ideas. The interesting thing about today's behavior is that BTC's Average True...
Zynga is a classic growth stock with a textbook cup and handle pattern. The social and mobile videogame stock doubled between late 2018 and the summer of 2019. It then paused and consolidated. Its August low of $5.51 was the cup. The following low of $5.63 in October represented the handle. ZNGA soon entered a tight channel and moved sideways, followed by a...
Fintech and payment stocks like PayPal and Mastercard have broken out lately, but one of the highest-beta names is stuck at a resistance line: Square . SQ has chopped around for more than a year, consolidating after a huge run (up 1,000 percent between September 2016 and September 2018). Pauses like this are common on the monthly chart for big growth stocks...
Energy has resumed its bearish ways lately as geopolitical risk goes out of the market, but plenty of supply keeps coming in! Just yesterday, International Energy Agency Head Fatih Birol predicted an oil surplus of 1 million barrels in the first half. Halliburton is one of the biggest names in the sector, and one of the most active underliers in terms of...
Netflix has drifted in a frustrating way for months. But now it could be setting up for a gap fill with earnings due this afternoon. NFLX began the year by finding support at its 200-day simple moving average (SMA). This represents a potentially significant change in character from July, when the same line was resistance. Traders may now be able to use the old...
The major indexes have been rallying to new highs, but one of the most important companies in the market hasn't participated: Amazon.com . The e-commerce giant spiked the day after Christmas thanks to news of a " record-breaking " holiday season. That ended a three-month imprisonment below its 200-day simple moving average (SMA). It also established AMZN back...
The stock market's been undeniably strong, but energy has been the weakest link. Of the 11 major sectors, energy remains at or near the bottom of the rankings. (It's also the only one under its 200-day SMA) The S&P Oil & Gas Exploration ETF is a heavily traded name within the broader energy space. It averages almost 2x more options on a daily basis than...
Gold miners have been consolidating for the last six months and now the Market Vectors Gold Miner ETF is bouncing at a potentially key level. GDX peaked around $28 between late October and mid-December. It then broke out and has now pulled back to find support at the old resistance. There's also some confluence with the 50- and 100-day simple moving averages...
By TradeStation Crypto Bitcoin is hitting a two-month high today as it breaks out of a tight bullish triangle that formed in the last week. But now that it's moving and MACD is ramping, how far can it go? Let's go to the triangle on the weekly chart: The drop between late June and mid-November brought BTCUSD from $13,880 to $7,146. A basic technique of...
Video-game maker Take-Two Interactive traded in a very tight range since October. But now it's broken above that channel and is potentially finding support at its old resistance around $125. TTWO, owner of titles like NBA2K, is a classic growth stock -- the same kind of company that's come back into favor recently as the Federal Reserve keeps interest rates...
Tesla's been riding one of the most powerful short squeezes in recent history, more than doubling in short order. Its last earnings report in October was the spark because the electric-car maker finally overcame big manufacturing problems. While its popular vehicles were never an issue, logistics and manufacturing were an Achilles heel. Now that they're fixed,...
Tractor maker Deere might be setting up for a breakout as the U.S. and China move toward a trade deal. DE has been consolidating in an extremely tight range for the last four weeks. It's pressed against near-term resistance around $177. Meanwhile the 50-day simple moving average (SMA) has squeezed up from below as support. The company's backward-looking...
Banks ended 2019 on a strong note as gloom toward the economy lifted and investors started to appreciate their low valuations. Now a key exchange-traded fund has pulled back to a potentially important level: The SPDR Regional Bank ETF . KRE is holding the same $57 area where it peaked in February and November. The 50-day simple moving average (SMA) has also...
Biotechnology stocks surged in the fourth quarter thanks to some takeovers and buyers returning to the health-care sector. Amgen is the biggest of all the biotechs with $144 billion of market cap. It's also one of the few big names that's broken out to new highs. (Along with Vertex .) AMGN's been climbing a wall of worry about competition since the summer....