This section of the site will help both active traders as well as longer term investor find stocks and ETF’s that are set up for either upside (long candidates) or downside (short candidates) moves. Although I always list clearly defined profit target(s) and often suggest objective stop-loss areas on these potential trades, every trader or investor has their own unique style, time-horizon and risk parameters and as such, must determine where, when and why to enter and exit any trade they decide to take.
The Trade Setups category allows you to view any potential trade ideas that may be poised for a technical pattern breakout, or may provide an objective enter for some other reason (e.g.- Buying a stock in bullish uptrend pattern on a pullback to a well-defined support level or trendline).
The Active Trades category lists trades that have already triggered an entry from based on the criteria outlined when they were originally posted as a Trade Setup. These trades may still be objective entries, depending on how the chart looks at the time. I will often update the Active Trades up to the point they are moved to the Completed Trades Category.
The Completed Trades category lists all trades that have hit one or more of the targets identified before or shortly after the trade became Active. Reviewing the completed trades and comparing with the original charts and notes from the trade back to when it was first posted as a Setup, is the best way to measure the performance of this site. Every trader has a different trading styles, time horizons, risk tolerance and objectives. Therefore, most of the trades and investment ideas posted here will likely have different results depending on when one entered and exited that trade. Did they enter the trade early as an aggressive trader anticipating a breakout of a pattern before it happened? … or did an investor managing their long-term portfolio wait until a confirmed entry on the trade? Did they take the quick 10%, one day gain at the first target did they enter this trade based on the fact that the technicals confirmed an objective entry point on a long-term trade with good fundamentals?
Long-term Trades are trade or investment ideas that have the potential for significant returns over a longer-term period, typically several months or more. This category of trade ideas might be useful for the longer-term swing trader or investor looking for investment ideas to supplement their existing portfolio and prefers a less active, more hands-off approach to investing.
Keep in mind that these categories are not mutually exclusive. For example, an active trade that has already hit the first profit target but still offers an objective entry for an expected move to one or more additional targets would be categorized in all three categories.
Again, there are many ways to trade the setups posted here and therefore, reviewing the completed trades are the best way to measure performance based on how you might have entered and exited any of the trade ideas shared here. In the near future I plan to do monthly summaries of all trade ideas, both successful (those that hit one or more targets) and unsuccessful (stopped out). Of course, any trade setups that never triggered the conditional buy or short signal would not be included.