NASDAQ set to stabilize after a little breather

NASDAQ did indeed have a little breather over the past two days, and did so without incurring any significant damage. That's a good sign, but... the danger at this stage is that buying enthusiasm may have completely dried up, so NASDAQ could be poised for a bear attack, especially after all the heavy hitters get back to their desks next week after the long Labor Day weekend and even longer summer break.

 

NASDAQ futures are up modestly, suggest a nice recovery bounce after the little breather, but the open question is whether people pile on to that rally or sell into it, and whether there is any significant enthusiasm for buying any dips during the day.

 

Today is a Friday before a long, holiday weekend, so short-term market participants will tend to lighten up or even close positions ahead of the weekend, when anything can happen (Ukraine?). That's a net lightening, but we don't know if these short-term market participants have been net long or short during the week. So we could see a little consolidation as bulls lighten up, or... a little rally if bears are lightening up by buying to cover short positions.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ set to extend its breather... or not

NASDAQ did indeed take a little breather yesterday after all its recent rallying. No big surprise there. Based on a dip in NASDAQ futures this morning, it looks like NASDAQ is poised to extend that breather and maybe even do some more serious "consolidation"... or not. It all depends on the net posture of speculators and whether they are more inclined to pile on to some dip at the open or... buy any dip.

 

The chatter about Ukraine is just noise used by traders as "cover" for their underlying sentiment which is simply that NASDAQ is due for a breather anyway. A breather simply means that buying (or selling) volume has petered out and traders are waiting for the market to reestablish some direction. Traders don't make as much money with a stagnant market, so if buying dries up, their inclination is to reverse their bias and sell.

 

The economic news was good this morning, with Q2 GDP reported higher and jobless claims falling further. But, good economic news isn't a one-way positive for the market. On the plus side it underpins stronger financial performance for companies in the months and quarters ahead, which is good for stocks. But on the minus side it increases the possibility of the Fed raising interest rates sooner and faster, which could put a bit of a damper on stock trading. To me, it's all a net positive, but perma-bears always see the glass as half empty. Any Fed action on rates is still quite a few months in the future.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ poised to take a breather... or not

This nice NASDAQ rally really is starting to look "long in tooth" and in need of a little breather and possibly some consolidation, but... that is not to say that this is what will actually happen. We simply don't know what fraction of the bulls are now tapped out versus standing by with more capital to deploy. But we do know that the bears are desperately ready to clobber the bull the moment that buying pressure dries up. But the flip side of that flip side is that any half-hearted move by the bears can quickly evaporate as well and turn into another short squeeze that kicks off another rally higher.

 

NASDAQ futures are up very modestly, so we should see a very modest pop at the open, but the big question remains whether people pile on to build on the rally or turn around and sell into the rally. Both prospects are equally likely.

 

Once again, all of this is happening in the context of the slow trading of the summer doldrums. Labor Day is next Monday, so we are just three trading sessions away from the heavy hitters getting back from their summer breaks. It may take them a week or so to get their act together, but by the middle of September we will have a much better handle on whether this "nice" rally has both staying power and "legs" for a further advance, especially for heading into October when the Fed officially ends its QE asset purchase program.

 

As long as the real economy continues to incrementally improve, which it has every prospect of doing, the stock market will continue to be well-supported, albeit with potholes, mini-corrections, and even outright corrections along the way. Call it "upwards, but bumpy."

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ set to pause as it seeks direction

This recent NASDAQ rallying is quite impressive, if not for the fact that it is occurring in the context of the slow trading of the summer doldrums. We saw a nice pop at the open yesterday, but there was a moderate amount of selling into that rally, so not all of it stuck at the close. Still, it is heartening that there wasn't more selling.

 

NASDAQ futures are up moderately, suggesting a modest pop at the open, but once again the big question is whether people pile on and pump up that rally, or sell into the pop and bet on some consolidation. At this stage, a lot of the rally over the past week has probably spent itself, so consolidation is more likely than any big surge upwards. Besides, the bears who got clobbered by recent short squeezes are just itching for some payback.

 

Once again, all of this nominal market movement during the slow trading of the summer doldrums will be subject to heavy review and revision once the heavy hitters get back to their desks from their relaxing summer breaks... in just one week from today. Get ready!

 

That said, the underlying U.S. economy continues to incrementally gather steam, putting more people back to work and continuing business investment, all of which constitutes a "rising tide" underpinning the stock market. And don't worry about the Fed "taking away the punch bowl" – interest rates will remain quite low for an extended period of time.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ set to try for a new leg higher

NASDAQ managed to preserve its breakout from its trading range last week, and now is poised to try for a new leg higher. It's doable, but whether it is sustainable is an open question.

 

NASDAQ futures are up strongly, suggesting a nice pop at the open, but the big question is whether people sell into that rally or pile on and kick off yet another significant short squeeze.

 

The real open question is how many bullish speculators still have uninvested cash and whether they are prepared to go to a more aggressive "risk on" posture from their current posture. If not, this new leg will peter out and reverse in relatively short order. But if they do take a more aggressive "risk on" posture, watch out as NASDAQ soars again.

 

Once again, I have to caution that all of this is happening in the context of the slow trading of the summer doldrums, so even if we do continue to set fresh near-term highs for NASDAQ, all bets are off with respect to how the "heavy hitters" respond after Labor Day when they get back to their desks from their summer break. And the impact, if any, of the Fed finishing their QE purchases in October is also a looming uncertainty. But, as they say, "a bull market climbs a wall of worry."

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ searching for direction, again

Well, NASDAQ survived a third test of the durability of the breakout from its trading range and passed without too much effort. That doesn't mean that we are out of the woods, but it is a positive sign. The bad news is that upwards momentum has evaporated, so now NASDAQ is a sitting duck target for the bears. The flip side is that the bulls are just waiting for the bears to just try and make a move, and then they can come in and clobber them again. But, that works both ways, so it's sort of a stalemate. So, NASDAQ has to wait them out until somebody moves with more conviction.

 

It's yet another Friday, so short-term speculators will tend to exit their positions ahead of a summer weekend when anything can happen. Whether that exit, by both bulls and bears, is a net positive or negative is of course unknown.

 

NASDAQ futures are down slightly, suggesting a little consolidation at the open. Whether that lack of upwards momentum inspires a round of selling or whether it inspires a round of dip buying remains to be seen.

 

Some consolidation is still in the cards, but not a pure slam dunk. Volatility and drifting are the default for the slow trading of the summer doldrums. But if the bears get too aggressive, the bulls will be only too willing to hit them hard and kick off yet another short squeeze rally, which will only attract even more retail investors and money managers into the market who are increasingly worried that they are missing a train that has already left the station.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ set for another test of the durability of the breakout

NASDAQ managed to survive Wednesday with only minimal damage to the breakout. It was a very slight decline, although a lot of momentum stocks (like in my portfolio!) did see some significant erosion, which is typical if the market is not advancing reasonably strongly. The big question is whether Wednesday was just a little consolidation, a one-day thing, or a sign that buying enthusiasm has peaked and is evaporating at a rapid pace. But, either way, we could see further consolidation, even if the advance does resume after a little breather.

 

NASDAQ futures are up modestly, suggesting that traders think yesterday was in fact just a needed breather, and that they are willing to give the market another shot. But... another shot does not necessarily mean that people have a lot of conviction that a sustained advance is a slam dunk at this stage. That said, this kind of half-hearted, soul-searching posturing is actually quite typical for any decent advance.

 

The big question remains whether people pile on to any rally at the open, or resume selling into any rallies, and how much buying pressure, if any, comes out of the woodwork on any dips.

 

As previously noted, we're still stuck in the summer doldrums of slow trading through Labor Day, so any moves that occur in the next couple of weeks will be subject to significant "revision" once the "heavy hitters" get back from their summer break.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ set for another test of durability of the breakout

NASDAQ managed to survive its first test yesterday, preserving the breakout from its trading range, and then some. It's still too early to call it a clean new leg of the advance, but yesterday was a good sign. Today will be another test of the durability of this breakout. We could see a little consolidation at this stage as well; markets rarely move in straight lines for very long.

 

Futures are up modestly, suggesting a modest pop at the open, but the big question remains whether people will pile on to the rally or start selling into it.

 

The bears have been held at bay for a number of days now, but sooner or later the buying pressure will dwindle and even evaporate, and that's when the more patient bears will pounce and traders will reverse their bias to "risk off." Whether that happens today, this week, next week, or next month remains to be seen, as does the response of more bullish speculators and investors who are also patiently waiting with their money on the sidelines for a more clear and convincing sign that the market is solid enough for them to take a more definitive "risk on" posture.

 

And all of this is occurring in the context of the summer doldrums of slow trading, so regardless of where we end up come Labor Day, it will be a whole new ballgame once the "serious hitters" get back from their extended summer vacations.

 

Meanwhile the underlying U.S. economy continues to incrementally improve, albeit in a somewhat sluggish and bumpy manner, which will continue to support an incrementally advancing stock market. Sure, we will need to exercise caution if the market "gets too far ahead of itself", but given the performance of the market year to date, that doesn't seem to be an imminent problem at all.

 

I will continue to incrementally take some profits to raise my cash reserves so that I can buy on any significant dips.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ set to test whether the new near-term peak holds

Okay, NASDAQ actually did manage to break out relatively cleanly from its trading range and set a new near-term high, 22 points above the old near-term peak on July 3, 2014. That doesn't mean the coast is clear for the next leg up. In fact, the next task for traders and short-term speculators is to "test" the durability of this new near-term high.

 

NASDAQ futures are up modestly, suggesting that traders are willing to bet on further gains, but the big question is whether people continue to pile on to the rally at the open, or whether they sell into any rallies and bet or at least presume that the next move is more corrective.

 

I'm sure the bears are chomping at the bit to sink their teeth into this market, but they just got burned badly, so they may decide to wait a bit longer before diving back in to get a better (higher) entry price for fresh short positions. On the flip side, more bullish speculators may be more than happy to extend themselves to take advantage of a short-term lull in the bearish "risk off" bias.

 

And the usual caveat – all of this is happening in the summer doldrums of slow trading, so expect volatility and wait until after Labor Day for the "full team" to weigh in and cast their votes as to what is the more sustainable trend.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ set to take another shot at breaking out of its trading range

NASDAQ opened with a solid run at the upper edge of its recent trading range on Friday, but fell a bit short, like less that 5 points, and then wavered a bit before throwing in the towel. People blamed news from Ukraine for the intra-day sell-off, but that was just traders using a little non-news as a cover for their underlying intentions. As it turned out (with no new news), NASDAQ bounced back and scored a modest rise for the day. It was disappointing that the breakout run failed, and that is a yellow flag here, but none of this is necessarily definitive given that here we are in the summer doldrums of late summer slow trading.

 

Friday's trading pattern is also consistent with the trader's model of "filling the gap", where traders believe that trading must eventually trade back down to "fill" any "gap" left by a big rise (or fall) at the open. Trader's managed to do exactly that, which then opened the door for the bounce and moderate gain for the day. In that sense, this was a bullish signal.

 

The main yellow flag from Friday is that people didn't pile on to the pop at the open. There was a little bit of selling into that rally. People did try a couple of more times to rally for that last 5 points to a new high above the July near-term peak of 4,485, but ran into significant resistance. Not a good sign. So, we have mixed signals.

 

NASDAQ futures are once again up moderately strongly this morning, indicating a significant pop at the open. Once again, the big question is whether people will pile on to that opening rally and kick off a significant short squeeze and push NASDAQ up the 21 points needed to set a new near-term peak, or whether people will mostly just sell into the rally. And even if a new near-term peak is reached, will it hold and extend those gains. If not, we could be setting up for a "double top", which is a more bearish sign and the prelude to trading back down towards the bottom of the trading range again.

 

As I said, none of this is really definitive during the slow summer doldrums trading. Regardless of where we end up come Labor Day, the market will "adjust" by the end of September as the bulk of traders and speculators get back to their desks after a lazy summer and start placing bigger bets on whatever trend they think is emerging. The big question is whether they will be taking more of a "risk on" or "risk off" posture, especially going into October when the Fed will officially end its QE2 buying program. That could cause some significant volatility, but I suspect that it will all be a wash come November, when people will resume placing bets on the actual underlying U.S. economy, which continues to incrementally improve.

 

Some people continue to express great anxiety that the Fed will aggressively raise interest rates in 2015, but there is no sign or even chatter of that possibility coming from the Fed itself.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ poise to test and try for a breakout from trading range

The modest gain for NASDAQ on Thursday was quite welcome, and now positions the index barely 0.75% below the upper edge of its trading range, as defined by the near-term peak in early July. NASDAQ futures are up moderately, suggesting that traders think there is a chance that bullish speculators may make a run for a breakout above that July peak. That would also be predicated on a healthy pop caused by a short squeeze.

 

Even if NASDAQ does technically break out above the trading range, the big question is whether it is sustainable, or whether it simply gives bearish speculators a more attractive entry point for another run back down in the trading range.

 

And once again the main thing to look for is whether people pile on to any pop at the open or instead sell into any rally.

 

It's another Friday before a weekend during the summer doldrums, so short-term speculators can be expected to take at least some of their money off the table in advance of the weekend when anything can happen. Whether the net difference between the bullish and bearish speculators is positive or negative remains to be seen. I would simply note that the bears may opt to let the bulls have their one day in the sunshine, and then regather in force and pounce harshly again early next week.

 

Meanwhile, the real economy here in the U.S. continues to incrementally improve, which will continue to auger well for the stock market. We still have a long way to go before we are finally back to a fully productive economic state. Maybe another two years or so. Sure, the cynics will fuss about the Fed with wild speculation, but the Fed is focused on making sure that the recovery of the economy completes. IOW, the moderates are in control of the Fed right now, not the cynical hawks.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ ponders its next move within trading range

NASDAQ had a nice gain on Wednesday, but it may have been in large part a short squeeze, so retaining all of those gains may be difficult. Speculators are likely split between those betting on a bullish move and those betting on a corrective move. How those two camps net out remains to be seen. It all depends on who has more available cash that they are ready and willing to bet on their bias right now. So the trading range continues, with NASDAQ stuck between the March and July peaks. A lot of that is due to the summer doldrums with their characteristically slow trading, but this kind of tentative, uncertain advance is not atypical in even the best of markets.

 

NASDAQ futures are up a little, suggesting a modest pop at the open, but the question remains whether people will pile on to the pop or sell into any rallying as the day progresses.

 

A little consolidation would be par for the course at this stage, but I also wouldn't be surprised if we see another round of short covering due to too many speculators taking a too skeptical position on the health of the market.

 

I sold extra positions on Amazon (AMZN) and Yelp (YELP) that I had taken recently on irrational dips since they achieved my goal of a 5% gain from the dip. I retain long-term buy and hold positions on these stocks though. The cash proceeds are now ready for the next round of irrational dips that Wall Street likes to hand me on a silver platter. Thank you, Wall Street! Really.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ set for a short squeeze

Tuesday wasn't a great day for NASDAQ, but it did prove that the current trading range trend is reasonably resilient. It would have been so easy for short-term speculators to push NASDAQ below support, but... they failed and NASDAQ recovered from a steeper intra-day loss. Now that NASDAQ has proved its staying power for the bottom of the trading range, traders are grinning because they know that the more bearish speculators are probably over-extended and that a little pressure will get them to abandon their short positions in a process known as a short squeeze. Get a few bears to jump ship and that will fuel a rise that in turn incites more short covering, and so on in a virtuous cycle, until all the weaker short sellers have been forced to cover their short positions by buying back the shares that they had shorted.  The flip side is that those disgruntled bears will sit patiently and wait for NASDAQ to become a little over-extended higher up in this trading range and then pounce again.

 

NASDAQ will likely stay in this trading range for the rest of the summer, although there is a distinct possibility of breaking out modestly to a slightly higher near-term peak.

 

I bought a little more Tableau (DATA) and Solar City (SCTY) on the dip yesterday.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ poised to take a breather after two-day advance

Stock markets rarely rise in a straight line. Even if NASDAQ is destined to hit a new near-term peak within the next couple of weeks or even the next couple of days, it would be perfectly plausible for it to pause a little, consolidate a little, or even make one more valiant bear attempt to "test" the recent near-term low before continuing to advance. More than a little volatility is to be expected.

 

NASDAQ is still stuck in a minor mini-correction – about 2% off the the recent near-term peak on July 24, 2014. It is also caught in a fairly narrow trading range – not quite 4% from the recent near-term peak to trough. A lot of this is simply the random volatility that comes with summer doldrums of slow trading, including people simply imagining that they are spotting a trend that is mere coincidental volatility.

 

Meanwhile, the real U.S. economy continues to drift along, incrementally improving, but neither booming nor busting. That means that a lot of companies will be seeing improving fortunes, but with quite a few stumbles along the way as well. As long as the economy sees a net improvement, the stock markets should as well.

 

Geopolitical events are really a side show here. If anything, they assure that the government will continue spending that will end up in the pockets of shareholders.

 

And the Fed will not really be a major issue here either. The economy and most individual companies have long since gotten past a dependence on ultra-cheap money. And, the Fed is not so likely to steeply raise interest rates over the next year anyway. Sure, quantitative easing will end in October or so, sort of (the Fed will retain a huge balance sheet for the indefinite future), but few if any companies will be significantly impacted by that prospect. Sure, interest rates will rise incrementally over the next year, which will impact the cost of capital, but the improving economy will likely more than offset that additional cost. Maybe two years from now we could see a new slowdown of sorts, but the stock markets don't look that far down the road. Maybe nine months, tops.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ poised to resume bouncing up within trading range

Although NASDAQ did technically break a bit below the lower edge of the trading range defined by the March peak, it did not do so with enough conviction to attract enough bearish sentiment to constitute a true breakdown and another leg down. Instead, we had a semi-decent recovery bounce on Friday that left NASDAQ 12 points above that March peak. So, NASDAQ continues to hover near that lower edge of the trading range. Traders don't like to hover, so if NASDAQ won't break down, then they will try to push it up.

 

NASDAQ futures are up fairly strongly this morning, suggested a big pop at the open. That could kick off a reasonably significant short squeeze. But then once again we will be faced with the question of whether people pile on to any initial pop with real enthusiasm, or whether the bearish short-term speculators sell into any rally. And futures don't tell us how trading will evolve during the day.

 

Despite all of this, we are still locked in the summer doldrums of slow trading, so volatility is the only sure thing, and otherwise all bets are off. So the market could move one way and then the other, rinse and repeat. Meanwhile, individual stocks could show some significant action. I'll be on the lookout to buy big dips and take a little money off the table on decent advances.

 

I'm not so sure how to play Priceline (PCLN) these days. It had a big run-up but is now trading in a fairly narrow range, without any significant breakout potential in the short-term. The quarterly report came out this morning and sentiment seems a little negative. I already have a significant long-term buy and hold position, but I'll be tempted to buy into any significant dip.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ in a mini-correction

After a semi-decent bounce yesterday for NASDAQ at the open, bears came out of the woodwork and sold into the rally. No surprise there. NASDAQ is now a solid half-percent below the March peak, indicating that another mini-correction may be underway. Maybe, or maybe not. With slow summer trading all bets are off, still... it didn't look good. The flip side is that the selling on Thursday may simply have been short-term speculators getting out early to get a head start of the summer weekend. Why not?!

 

NASDAQ is still close enough to that March peak that it could recover and continue back upwards within the previous trading range. Also, since short-term speculators frequently close out positions ahead of the weekend, any previous short positions could result in buying that would boost the market today. But with all the volatility, it is rather difficult to access the net bias of market participants.

 

NASDAQ futures are up modestly, indicating that traders feel that the sell-off yesterday was a bit overdone and a bit of a recovery bounce is warranted. But, once again, it remains to be seen whether people will pile on to any bounce or just sell into any rally as they did on Thursday.

 

Curious that my portfolio had a net gain yesterday. That suggests that we are seeing more of a "rotation" between stocks rather than any outright "liquidation" from stocks in general.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ poised to bounce back from oversold position

Yesterday NASDAQ went... nowhere, but by the most indirect route possible, heading both down sharply and up sharply before closing essentially flat for the day. Although there was no significant net bullish interest, the significant thing is that the bearish enthusiasm clearly evaporated, indicating that the market may be "oversold", that it has reached "selling exhaustion", where everybody that might sell has already done so. That doesn't mean that it is ready to rebound a lot higher, but does mean that bulls at least have a hint of some breathing room.

 

NASDAQ remains hovering at the bottom of its trading range – technically it is a couple of points below the March peak, but that's close enough to be statistical error (less than 0.1%.) We could drift along in this hovering posture in a very narrow trading range for a bit longer, but traders don't like very narrow ranges, so if NASDAQ won't break cleanly below that March peak, the only other palatable option is to push higher, back towards the July peak of the trading range. This is not a certainty, just a tendency.

 

NASDAQ futures are up moderately, but the same question remains as to whether people will really pile on to the opening pop, or sell into any rally. We know what the futures prices are, but we don't know the intentions of people after the market opens.

 

We could see a bit of a short squeeze, which could accelerate in this slow summer trading, but it could easily peter out as well.

 

We're getting near the end of the bulk of the Q2 reporting season, so although we will see volatile action in individual stocks, overall activity could become more muted. We could see a drift down as enthusiasm for Q2 wanes, but we could also see some less-speculative money flow into the market now that the uncertainty of Q2 is evaporating. And any "buy the rumor, sell the news" effect is likely to have mostly run its course.

 

Geopolitical events are not a major factor here. Traders and short-term speculators just use bad (or good) news as a cover for their underlying bias.

 

We have two major factors here now, the ongoing, incremental improvement of the economy on the plus side, but anxiety over whether the Fed might withdraw "accommodation" at too fast a pace on the downside. My view is that Yellen is more of a dovish pragmatist, so she will go easy on withdrawing Fed stimulus until GDP picks up more solidly and the unemployment rate drifts down closer towards 5.5%. The stock market probably has a good solid year, if not two, to go before interest rates begin to have even a remotely negative impact on the real economy. It's mostly about perceptions.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ poised to test bottom of trading range again

The NASDAQ decline on Tuesday simply erased the gain on Monday without providing any clear indication of any emerging trend. Still, it did highlight some weakness and clear evaporation of bullish interest, so now traders are greenlighted to make a serious test of whether the bottom edge of the trading range will hold or whether a full-blown mini-correction is in order.

 

NASDAQ futures are down moderately strongly, but the question is how people will respond after the open. Will they pile on and follow the market down, or will some significant dip-buying emerge? It may take an hour or so before the response becomes clear. Sure, this could turn into a rout, but it could just as easily bounce strongly after the opening dip and become a solid double bottom for this lower edge of the trading range.

 

It could take a couple more days to sort this out. Expect lots of volatility

 

And, no, none of this is about Russia or Ukraine or Gaza. Those are just noise to cover what people are actually doing behind the scene.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ set to test whether the recovery bounce will stick

Okay, check the box off, NASDAQ scored a decent recovery bounce on Monday, erasing at least Friday's loss plus a little, but... it remains to be seen whether the bounce was "real" and durable and will be the foundation for the next leg up, or whether it was simply a classic "dead-cat" bounce that will peter out and reverse and lead to a next leg down into a mini-correction. Flip a coin.

 

We are still in a slow summer trading environment, so a lot of these daily movements are simply noise until serious trading resumes after Labor Day.

 

I suspect that NASDAQ might trade around in an even narrower trading range here near the bottom of its larger trading range until we see some clarity as to whether Thursday's big decline was a harbinger of things to come or simply a one-day fluke.

 

One good sign is that the intra-day low on Monday was still well above the intraday low of Friday, and "higher lows" is always a bullish sign.

 

Traders may also want to see if they can engineer a "double bottom", which is a more bullish foundation for a continued rise. None of this has anything to do with economic and business fundamentals, which remain reasonably solid, but psychology and apparent "technical considerations" are a major part of how markets work.

 

NASDAQ futures are down moderately this morning on no particular news, so this is really simply traders saying that they want to give the nascent reversal a good solid "test" before continuing. So, the big question today is whether people pile on to the opening dip and head in the direction of a correction, or buy the dip and head back up towards the upper reaches of the trading range. Or... just bounce around chaotically within a narrower trading range until we actually do see more of a true trend.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ set for a recovery bounce or to test the bottom of the trading range

After the steep decline on Thursday and further sloughing off on Friday, NASDAQ is now poised for a recovery bounce. That will certainly feel a lot better than a selloff, but it will take a couple of days to determine whether a bounce today is a true reversal or just a "dead-cat" bounce ("even a dead cat can bounce") before further declines into another mini-correction. The key thing to watch today is whether people sell into any initial (or even subsequent) rally or whether they pile on and kick off a short squeeze.

 

NASDAQ has technically "broken" below its support at the March peak, but only by a few points and that was on a slow summer Friday, so I would personally say that it is "at" support and hasn't clearly and decisively moved well below support. That makes today and tomorrow rather critical. If NASDAQ falls another 20 points or another 1% or more, then I'd say we are sliding into a mini-correction, but for now, we are poised to reverse and head back upwards within the current trading range.

 

IOW, NASDAQ is poised to "test" the bottom of its trading range. Either we bounce and continue the trading range, or we break down and begin a mini-correction.

 

I made some more dip buys on Friday – Tableau (DATA), Yelp (YELP), 3D Systems (DDD), and Amazon (AMZN). My goal with those particular positions is a 5% pop. I have existing positions in those names that I will be holding for the longer term.

 

I have a small position in Michael Kors (KORS). I may sell a little depending on how high it pops after their quarterly report this morning.

 

-- Jack Krupansky

NASDAQ poised to test lower edge of its trading range

Wow, that was impressive – as I suggested early yesterday, the failure of NASDAQ to achieve a breakout on Wednesday left traders more inclined for consolidation within the trading range, and we got that, in spades. We even came close to testing the lower edge of the trading range as well (the March peak), but not quite. Today, traders may use the disappointment of yesterday's decline to take a shot at that lower edge again, but... since they failed yesterday when pessimism was at a climax, their odds of success are greatly diminished.

 

Again, it may also have been a combination of slow summer trading, people wanting to cut out early on Friday and dumping positions on Thursday, or even option expiration today.

 

I wouldn't read too much, if anything, into the steep decline on Thursday, other than that yes these kinds of dips can occur even in the most bullish of markets. And we're in a trading range here, so the rules of a trading range trump any underlying longer-term bullishness.

 

We may or may not see a dip at the open to "test" the lower edge of the trading range. If we do see a dip, the big question is whether people buy the dip and we reverse and start trading upwards within the trading range again. Or, if people pile on to the dip, we could see a true "breakdown" and head into another mini-correction. Given that this is a slow Friday in a slow summer, I wouldn't draw any immediate conclusion even if we do close modestly below the March peak. The action on Monday and Tuesday will be more telling, when people get back from their summer weekend.

 

As far as GDP, average the Q1 and Q2 reports to get a better view of where we are, so averaging 4.0 and minus 2.1, gives us about 1%. I expect that Q3 will probably be about 2% or so. Yes, the economy is still plodding along, neither booming nor busting. We are still in the recovery phase after the recession, and will be for at least another year if not two. So, there is no need to worry that the Fed is going to dramatically raise rates over the coming year.

 

 

I bought a little more LinkedIn (LNKD) and Tesla (TSLA) just before the close. It will be interesting to see how they play out. My goal for those two positions is simply a 5% pop. I have longer-term positions in both that I will stick with no matter what.

 

I also picked up an extra position of Amazon (AMZN). Wall Street has a hot/cold attitude toward them, but I have great confidence in their longer-term business prospects.

 

And I picked up an extra position of Yelp (YELP) as well in its post-report dip. And 3D Systems (DDD) as well. I really like these dips.

 

-- Jack Krupansky