Archive for February, 2012
Week 6 Trades Review (Video)
February 13, 2012 at 9:23 am
The market continued its recent run last week as the NAZ made multi-year highs yet again before a Friday pullback erased the week’s gains. All in all, it was a healthy week of rest for the indexes.
Despite the lack of overall market movement last week, we were able to capture some nice very gains in our trades inside the Bandit Hideout and I wanted to offer a video recap of each of them. It was a blend of success from day trades and swing trades, as well as longs and shorts which made the difference. Diversifying trading directions, timeframes and strategies has some big advantages.
I wanted to give you a show-and-tell look at the trades I took this week. It should give you a feel for not only how I managed my trades, but also the kinds of setups which have been working well of late. And for those curious about our trading style in the member area, this should give you a good indication of what a typical week looks like. Check out the trial if you’re interested in adding our ideas to your own.
(Direct video link is here for those interested in embedding it elsewhere to share).
Be sure to view in HD (720P) and full-screen mode for best quality in the video.
Trade Like a Bandit!
Jeff White
Producer of The Bandit Broadcast
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Video Review of the Indexes 2-12-2012
February 12, 2012 at 3:53 pm
The market lost ground last week thanks to Friday’s pullback, but that only resulted in a 2-point S&P decline for the week. That translated into some healthy basing action which also allowed the NAZ to move back to the middle of its 8-week uptrend channel.
The NAZ tagged 11-year highs yet again, reminding us that buy-and-hold remains broken anytime people who bought in 2001 have to wait 11 years to get their money back. It’s a trader’s market right now, and it’s highly important to continue managing risk in what remains a stretched market. Selectivity is the key for new plays, which I’ve been noting within the member area.
In preparation for the trading week ahead, let’s examine some important levels to keep an eye on for the indexes. That will have the greatest influence on how individual stocks are going to move, so it’s part of our Sunday process.
(Direct video link is here for those interested in embedding it elsewhere to share).
Be sure to view in HD (720P) and full-screen mode for best quality in the video.
Trade Like a Bandit!
Jeff White
Producer of The Bandit Broadcast
Get our free newsletter to keep up!
Follow @TheStockBandit
Houston & South Texas Traders…
February 8, 2012 at 10:01 am
If you’re a Houston trader or are located around the South Texas area, make plans this Friday to see me present live in conjunction with Worden!
On both Friday & Saturday (Feb. 10 & 11) at the Worden TC2000 workshop, I’ll be teaching live. It’s at The Woodlands Waterway Marriott (1601 Lake Robbins Drive, The Woodlands, TX 77380). The workshop starts at 10am and ends at 4pm, and I’d love to see you there either day.
Specifically, I’ll be discussing Formulating Your Trading Plan (Friday 1:30 – 2:45) and Locating Trades & Evaluating Risk (Saturday 11:15 – 12:30). I have a lot of good stuff planned, plus you’ll see the new version 12 of TC2000. I’m in the rotation with Michael Thompson and Peter Worden, so I’m excited about being there and giving you some insights for better trading.
Make plans to be there by pre-registering or just show up (it’s free) – but get there early, it’ll be a full house!
Trade Like a Bandit!
Jeff White
Producer of The Bandit Broadcast
Get our free newsletter to keep up!
Follow @TheStockBandit
Video Review of the Indexes 2-5-2012
February 5, 2012 at 3:21 pm
Following some healthy basing action in the previous week, we saw stocks head higher once again last week, continuing the 7-week uptrends.
The NAZ tagged 11-year highs, while the other indexes approached key levels from 2011. All news is good news these days, and it seems stocks may never decline again. Careful though – be sure to manage risk accordingly on new positions after a run of this magnitude. Could be that the first pullback is a good one with so many looking to lock in profits at some point.
In preparation for the trading week ahead, let’s examine some important levels to keep an eye on for the indexes. That will have the greatest influence on how individual stocks are going to move, so it’s part of our Sunday process.
(Direct video link is here for those interested in embedding it elsewhere to share).
Be sure to view in HD (720P) and full-screen mode for best quality in the video.
Trade Like a Bandit!
Jeff White
Producer of The Bandit Broadcast
Get our free newsletter to keep up!
Follow @TheStockBandit
Week 5 Trades Review (Video)
February 5, 2012 at 3:20 pm
The market continued its recent run last week as the NAZ made multi-year highs while the other averages pushed toward major levels from last year. The stretched conditions for individual stocks left fewer names ready to trade, and combined with gap conditions which prevented some intended trades from firing for me, I was left with fewer trades on the week – each of them being day trades.
I wanted to give you a show-and-tell look at the trades I took this week. It should give you a feel for not only how I managed my trades, but also the kinds of setups which have been working well of late. And for those curious about our trading style in the member area, this should give you a good indication of what a typical week looks like.
Be sure to watch for the weekend index review video as well.
(Direct video link is here for those interested in embedding it elsewhere to share).
Be sure to view in HD (720P) and full-screen mode for best quality in the video.
Trade Like a Bandit!
Jeff White
Producer of The Bandit Broadcast
Get our free newsletter to keep up!
Follow @TheStockBandit
Why Anticipatory Trading is so Tricky
February 3, 2012 at 9:25 am
Charts give us the opportunity to wait for confirmation or enter ahead of time – to anticipate. And while the latter may give us more of a feeling of being right, it’s not an easy way to trade.
Here’s an example from this week…
AGP is sitting in a bullish consolidation pattern here within an existing uptrend. This is a quality pattern – but it has yet to confirm. A breakout would happen beyond the upper channel trend line, currently at $70. Check out the setup, then down below let’s discuss trading it.
This is a setup which would have delivered some frustration for those anticipating a breakout – at least for those who entered early. Wednesday saw a move back up toward the upper channel line, suggesting a breakout was perhaps coming soon, only to have a decisive turn lower on Thursday bring it right back into the center of the channel. The stock is again lower this morning.
There’s a huge difference between how pro’s and amateurs make anticipatory trades, let’s see what they are and what those choices lead to.
How Amateur Traders Anticipate
Many amateur traders make anticipatory trades. They receive a tip, or they have a hunch, or they just want to see their predictions proven, and they get in before any bit of a move has started. They load up, then wait to get paid. A failure of the stock to deliver the move results in the max loss possible under this circumstance, all because of how the amateur entered the trade.
How Professional Traders Anticipate
Many professional traders make anticipatory trades as well. Their experience provides them with market feel, and when watching the tape and eyeing the charts, they’ll run across trades they like too – maybe even the exact same setups as the amateur finds. However, their execution methods are worlds apart.
Rather than piling into the trade and sitting back and hoping the market proves them correct, the professional enters a feeler position – a starter. A trade small enough to watch but not big enough to hurt them or really help them. It’s a marker. As the trade begins to prove itself and the pattern starts to confirm, they add to the trade. They build a position as it works, allowing them to get paid nicely when their hunch proves correct. A failure of the stock to deliver the expected move results initially simply leaves them stopping out of their starter position for the bare minimum loss.
See the difference between the two?
There’s a big argument to be made for just waiting for confirmation in a pattern to take place before entering a trade, but anticipatory trading can still produce profits, so long as you’re doing it carefully.
For those of you anticipatory traders, the example above is a great example of how to finesse your entry. Scale in, make the setup confirm before adding, and know you’re covered either way – whether a tiny loss you can easily survive or a winning trade you can build on.
(For more on anticipatory trading, read When to Make Anticipatory Trades.)
Trade Like a Bandit!
Jeff White
Producer of The Bandit Broadcast
Follow TheStockBandit on Twitter or get our free newsletter to keep up!
