Market Insights
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Options Alert: Large Upside Trade in Quantum Stock
by David Russell | Sep 12, 2025
Rigetti Computing just broke out, and options traders adjusted a large bullish position.
S&P 500 Crosses 5,600 as Pre-April Bullishness Returns: Market Trends
by David Russell | Jul 11, 2024
Downloads are available here. TradeStation’s ideas on TradingView are available here. Sizing Up the S&P 500 S&P 500 crosses 5,600 for first time Index up 6 straight sessions, longest since 11/6 Patterns similar to pre-April: Relative Strength...
Chart of the Day: Make or Break Time for the Russell?
by David Russell | Jul 10, 2024
The Russell 2000 has gone nowhere since December, but some traders may think the small cap index is poised for a move. The main pattern on today’s chart is the pair of converging lines along the lows since April and the highs since May. Will there be a breakout from...
Bulls in the China Shop? Options Surge Before Big Events
by David Russell | Jul 10, 2024
Options traders are getting active in Chinese technology companies like Baidu before two potentially important events. The first catalyst is at 8:30 a.m. ET tomorrow, when the U.S. Labor Department releases the consumer price index (CPI). It's the first reading of...
Stocks Keep Climbing as Lower Rates Push Growth Names Higher
by David Russell | Jul 8, 2024
Large growth stocks are leading the market to new highs again as investors anticipate lower interest rates. The S&P 500 rose almost 2 percent in the holiday-shortened week between Friday, June 28, and Friday, July 5. The index closed above 5,500 for the first time...
Key Points About Selling Credit Spreads
by David Russell | Jul 7, 2024
A previous post covered debit spreads, when you pay a debit looking for a stock or ETF to move in a certain direction. Credit spreads are just the opposite, with traders collecting premium up front in hope that the stock won’t move a certain way. What a...
Measuring the Summer Calm With TradeStation’s Custom Functionality
by David Russell | Jul 4, 2024
Stocks have enjoyed a calm drift higher since the beginning of May. But just how smooth has the ride been? Today we'll answer that question using TradeStation's award-winning platform. One approach is to measure the amount of time since the S&P 500 last had a...
Top Stocks for Options Trading
Technology & Communication
Chart of the Day: Is Nvidia’s Next Leg Coming?
by David Russell | Dec 4, 2024
Nvidia has been mostly quiet since the summer, but some traders may think another move to the upside is coming. The first pattern on today’s chart is the August high of $131.26. NVDA broke above this level in the first of October and then pulled back to test it in...
Options Traders Are Looking for This Satellite Radio Stock to Blast Off
by David Russell | Jun 8, 2021
Sirius XM has gone nowhere for years, but now bullish options trades are building as the satellite-radio company partners with TikTok. Call volume has climbed steadily in the last week, according to TradeStation data. Today's top contract is the September 8 call,...
Apple Could Be Squeezing Toward a Breakout With New Features Unveiled at WWDC
by David Russell | Jun 8, 2021
Apple has been a frustrating stock for most of the year, but now it may be squeezing toward another rally. The first pattern on today's chart is its super-tight Bollinger bandwidth, which yesterday was the narrowest since December 2019. That could suggest price is...
Technical Alert: Death Cross in Netflix
by David Russell | Jun 3, 2021
The economy is reopening. People are going back to work. It's great news for a lot of stocks, but Netflix isn't one of them. Today, the streaming-video giant's 50-day simple moving average (SMA) closed at $513.97, or $0.53 below its 200-day SMA. That "death cross" may...
Junior Nasdaq Beating QQQ Again as Low Volatility Draws Risk Takers Away From Apple
by David Russell | May 28, 2021
Big-cap technology stocks like Apple are lagging again, even as investors start buying smaller companies on the Nasdaq. The chart below compares the Invesco Nasdaq Next Gen ETF (QQQJ) with the Invesco QQQ (QQQ). It shows percentage change, with hourly bars, since the...





