Glossary

How a stock has performed compared to a benchmark (usually the S&P 500) over the same period. Positive RS means it's outperforming the broader market.

Today's trading volume divided by its own recent average volume. Above 1 means more shares are trading hands than usual — a sign of unusual interest.

A price level where a stock has repeatedly stopped falling and bounced, because buyers tend to step in there.

A price level where a stock has repeatedly stopped rising and pulled back, because sellers tend to show up there.

When price moves above a resistance level (or below a support level) with enough volume to suggest the move is real, not just noise.

When price trades above a breakout level but closes back below it before confirming. Shown on the intraday chart as a muted marker — informational only, never counted as a breakout signal.

The general direction a stock's price is moving over time — up, down, or sideways.

Each peak and each pullback low is higher than the one before — the pattern that defines an uptrend.

Each peak and each bounce is lower than the one before — the pattern that defines a downtrend.

A broad grouping of companies in similar businesses (e.g. Technology, Healthcare, Energy) — often tracked using a representative ETF like XLK or XLE.

The tendency of money to flow from one sector to another as the economic cycle or market mood shifts, rather than moving uniformly across the whole market.

A moving average that weights recent prices more heavily than older ones, so it reacts faster to new price action than a simple average.

A measure of how much a stock typically moves in a day, accounting for gaps. Higher ATR means bigger typical price swings.

The average size of a stock's daily high-to-low range, as a percentage of its price — a way to gauge how volatile a stock is day to day.

A chart element showing a stock's open, high, low, and close for a given period. The "body" shows open vs. close; the "wicks" show the high/low extremes.

A candlestick with a small body and a long lower wick, often appearing after a decline — suggests buyers stepped in and pushed price back up before the close.

A candlestick where open and close are nearly equal, signaling indecision between buyers and sellers.

A candlestick with a small body and a long upper wick, often appearing after a rally — suggests sellers pushed price back down before the close.

Price-to-Earnings ratio — a stock's price divided by its earnings per share. A common (if rough) way to gauge whether a stock is expensive relative to its profits.

P/E ratio divided by expected earnings growth rate. Adjusts for growth, so a high P/E can still look reasonable if the company is growing fast enough.

Total value of a company's shares (share price × shares outstanding) — a way to gauge company size.

Net income as a percentage of revenue — how much of each dollar in sales actually becomes profit.

A predetermined price at which a trader exits a losing position, to cap the loss before it grows.

A way of measuring a trade's result relative to its risk. If you risked $1 to make $2, that's a "2R" winner.

The percentage of trades that were profitable, out of all trades taken for a given setup.

The decline from a peak to a trough in account value (or cumulative trade performance) — a measure of the worst stretch a strategy went through.

The highest and lowest price a stock has traded at over the past year.

A trade held over several days to weeks, aiming to capture a broader price move rather than an intraday one.

A position opened and closed within the same trading day.

Low of Day / High of Day — the lowest and highest price a stock has traded at so far in the current session.

Trading that happens before the regular market opens, or after it closes.

Fear Of Missing Out — the emotional urge to chase a trade because it's already moving, often leading to poor entries.