GMI: 3; GMI-R: 7; 9th day of QQQQ short term up-trend; QLD; URBN

The GMI declined one, to 3 (of 6) and the GMI-R to 7 (of 10).  I am not worried by this minor decline which was caused  by my Successful 10 Day New High indicator’s turning negative.  This indicator is very unstable when only a few stocks hit new highs 10 days ago. The QQQQ is now in its 9th day of a short term up-trend.  I am making money again!  The QQQQ is well above its 10 week average, which in turn is beginning to turn up.  When the QQQQ is above its rising 10 week average I have the best chance of profiting from buying IBD 100 type growth stocks hitting new highs. 

During the QQQQ’s recent 55 day down-trend, that index (Nasdaq 100) declined about 11% and  72% of its component stocks declined; 31% declined more than 15%.  During that same period, 65% of the S&P 500 stocks declined, along with 70% of the Dow 30 stocks.  Again, we see that when the QQQQ is in a down-trend, the odds are 2 to 1 that an individual stock will decline, not good odds for going long or holding stocks.  On the other hand, going short would have worked very well.  During this period of decline, QLD, the Ultra long QQQ ETF,  declined about 24% while QID, the Ultra short ETF rose 22%. You can see that if one can identify market trends early, all that one has to do is to trade these two ultra QQQ ETF’s to earn a nice return. So, since the beginning of the new QQQQ up-trend, QQQQ has advanced 2.3% and QLD, 4.4%.  By the way, one can buy these ETF’s and even write covered calls on them……

Some of my students are resisting the current up-trend because of all of the bad news about the economy.  I reminded them that if one is crossing the street and sees a truck bearing down on them, one does not argue about whether the truck should/will stop or shouldn’t be acting that way. One must get out of the way or hop on board if it is going in the right direction.  To wait for the economic news to turn good is to miss much of the move and to increase the odds of buying at a top.  The news is usually worst after the market has already turned.  As long as I have rules for getting out of my positions if the market returns to a down- trend, then I am content to go long now.  The great speculator, Bernard Baruch, bought and sold his positions repeatedly in 1929 until he finally caught the major trend down.  With commissions so low and having no tax consequences or wash sale rules while trading within my IRA, I can afford to go in and out of stocks until I catch the primary wave….

So I scanned the market for promising stocks and noticed that URBN, after rising 12x from 2003-2005, fell from grace in 2005 and went into a 3+ year consolidation.  Well, URBN appears to be coming back to life.  It is back on the IBD 100 list and has broken out to all-time highs on the highest volume since 1994.  I’ll tell you a secret. Urbn
One can often identify major break-outs by looking at a stock’s monthly chart.  On February 25, I wrote "I also like FDG, which this monthly chart indicates has
had a high volume break-out to a new all-time high, breaking its peak
from September 2005."   I said then that FDG looked like a long term cup-with-handle bullish pattern.  When I wrote that post, FDG had closed at $49.06.  It closed on Friday at $57.75.  URBN looks to me like it has a similar bullish pattern, as long as it can get above $34.  (Click on this monthly chart to enlarge.)  I have no idea whether this stock will perform as well as FDG.  But now that  it is  on the IBD 100 list in an up-trending market, I might be tempted to buy it and maybe even sell  covered calls on it…..

GMI: 4; GMI-R: 8; 8th day of QQQQ short term up-trend; Nine IBD100 stocks at new highs

The GMI remains at 4 (of 6) and the GMI-R at 8 (of 10).  The QQQQ short term up-trend is in its 8th day.  The QQQQ has now closed above its 10 week average for 2 weeks.  I have found that buying the type of strong growth stocks that I like is most often profitable when the QQQQ stays above its 10 week average.  I am accumulating QLD and writing high premium April covered calls on strong IBD 100 stocks.  Over the past 40 years I have learned that the pundits label a market as bull or bear about six months after the turn.  I am therefore not surprised to be somewhat alone in pursuing the current up-trend.  No one can accurately predict how long this up-trend will last.  Nevertheless, it is important to jump on board until it shows signs of ending…

Meanwhile most of the stocks I have written about and own continue to be strong, including CPST, FDG and ITRI.   RICK is growing backwards. Nine of the stocks on the IBD 100 lists I have tracked over the past year hit new highs on Thursday:  NEU, IIVI, POT, TNE, GGB, WFT, X, RRC, CCH.  These stocks have come through a tough market to go to new highs.  These stocks may include some of the new market leaders if this up-trend continues.

GMI: 4; GMI-R: 8; CPST rocks; ITRI-another Judy’s pick; RSS feeds

The GMI is at 4 (of 6) and the GMI-R is 8 (of 10).  There were 63 new highs and 31 new lows in my universe of 4,000 stocks on Wednesday.  Wednesday was the 7th day of the new QQQQ up-trend.  With my general market indicators in positive territory it is time for me to accumulate stocks again.  I am buying QLD and selling covered calls on IBD100 growth stocks again.  I am getting 4-5% premiums for calls that have only 12 days to expiration….

Meanwhile, CPST, one of Judy’s picks, keeps hitting new highs on heavy volume and is up almost 14% since I wrote about it on March 28, at $2.09. CPST makes microturbines and appears to be  pulling in contracts from around the world.  As a rule, I do not buy cheap stocks, but I made an exception for CPST, based on its great chart and Judy’s advice. Judy had bought it around $1 per share.  Another Judy’s pick that showed some life on Wednesday is ITRI, which makes smart meters.  I automatically purchased some ITRI today when my buy stop was triggered around $97. By placing a good-til-cancelled buy stop at the level I think is indicative of a break-out, I can buy promising stocks without having to watch the market.  One does not need to be glued to a monitor to catch stocks breaking out of bases…

To my honors students taking part in the virtual trading competition–it is time to close out your shorts and go long. Pyramid up on margin as long as the QQQQ up-trend remains intact.

    

Notes from Mr. Wish (Dr. Wish’s  IT Guru son):
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