Thursday, September 23, 2010
Stock Market Commentary:

Stocks ended lower and the S&P 500 closed below support (formerly resistance) after weaker than expected economic news in Europe spooked investors. Volume totals were reported lower on the NYSE and on the Nasdaq exchange compared to the prior session which signaled large institutions were not aggressively selling stocks. Decliners trumped advancers by over a 2-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and on the Nasdaq exchange. New 52-week highs easily outnumbered new 52-week lows on the NYSE and on the Nasdaq exchange. There were 36 high-ranked companies from the CANSLIM.net Leaders List made a new 52-week high and appeared on the CANSLIM.net BreakOuts Page, lower than the 41 issues that appeared on the prior session, and down from triple digits on Monday.

Weak Economic Data Drags Stocks Lower:

Overnight, stock futures were lower after European PMI slid to the worst level in 7-months which bodes poorly for the economic recovery.  In the US, weekly jobless claims rose by 12,000 to +465,000 as the total number of people receiving unemployment insurance fell. After the open, existing home sales and leading economic indicators rose which helped stocks briefly turn positive before a late-day sell-off sent stocks lower into the close.

Market Action- Confirmed Rally:

The action since this rally was confirmed on the September 1, 2010 follow-through day (FTD) has been strong. Looking forward, the window is open for disciplined investors to carefully buy high-ranked stocks, while many pundits are expecting that markets may consolidate following recent gains. Since the major averages negatively reversed (opened higher and closed lower) on Tuesday (after the Fed meeting) stocks have steadily declined and have now closed below support (formerly resistance) which corresponds with their summer highs. Looking forward, the next level of support for the major averages is their respective 200-day moving average (DMA) lines while the next level of resistance is their respective April highs. Trade accordingly.