tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647Sat, 13 Mar 2010 00:20:39 +0000Educating investors on how to successfully use Japanese Candlesticks for investing in stocks, commodities, futures trading, and options trading.http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/noreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)Blogger326125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-4953627795295408019Sat, 13 Mar 2010 00:19:00 +00002010-03-12T18:20:39.212-06:00In projecting how a company will perform in the coming months or even years its officers will estimate the company’s anticipated earnings. Anticipated earnings are based upon expected consumer demand, ability to price effectively, and success in controlling costs. The basics of stock market investing such as fundamental analysis include using earnings projections in helping investors in picking http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/03/anticipated-earnings.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-7376866216375261338Wed, 10 Mar 2010 00:22:00 +00002010-03-09T18:22:45.780-06:00Derivative contracts are agreements by which a trader gains leverage on investments in underlying financial instruments such as stock shares. Derivative contracts derive their value from the underlying instrument. However, they offer the opportunity for greater profit, the option to buy stock or sell stock at a given price, the possibility of hedging risk, and the possibility of trading where http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/03/derivative-contracts.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-3994112799555589007Fri, 05 Mar 2010 15:54:00 +00002010-03-05T09:54:00.305-06:00A common means of profiting from investing in the stock market is investing in the business cycle. Business cycles are fluctuations in economic activity and production that last for months or years. Business cycles occur during long term economic growth, long term decline, and times of relative economic stagnation. Investing in the business cycle takes advantage of how different market sectors http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/03/investing-in-business-cycle.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-5599101302444245735Tue, 02 Mar 2010 15:51:00 +00002010-03-02T09:51:00.846-06:00The use of the word strike to mean that a business deal has been consummated goes back to horse traders in Ireland slapping hands when a price was agreed on. In today’s world of traders the strike price is the agreed upon price of futures, commodities, or options contracts. This price differs from the current price of the underlying stock or commodity which is called the spot price. It is the http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/03/strike-price.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-1654885745911295180Fri, 26 Feb 2010 16:35:00 +00002010-02-26T10:35:00.261-06:00The spot price of a stock, stock option, or futures contracts is the current price, the price at which it can be bought or sold today. This is the price for immediate settlement, payment and delivery. In options trading the spot price is the stock price at which the stock shares sell at the time the options contract is settled. The strike price is the stock price at which the contract is settled.http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/02/spot-price.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-4944369524335750950Tue, 23 Feb 2010 16:30:00 +00002010-02-23T10:30:00.949-06:00One measure of the financial stability of a company is its ability to immediately retire current debt if necessary. The quick ration and the acid test are two similar calculations mean to determine if a company can immediately deal with debt. The difference is that the acid test typically does not include accounts receivable. Both calculations include cash and cash equivalents, marketable stocks http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/02/quick-ratio.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-6790194527532649341Fri, 19 Feb 2010 13:01:00 +00002010-02-19T07:01:00.326-06:00An initial public offering (IPO) is when a company offers shares of stock to the public for the first time. A company typically uses the services of underwriting brokerage firms or other companies experienced in picking the best offering price and timing for the offering. Initial public offerings can be a startup company looking for capital to bring products to market or it may be an established http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/02/initial-public-offering.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-6940694101009549969Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:28:00 +00002010-02-16T10:28:00.618-06:00The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is the government agency that is the first line of responsibility for the oversight of the securities industry in the United States. The Securities and Exchange Commission oversees each stock exchange and the options markets. It is the SEC that oversees online trading, the online stock market, and says how much has to be in a margin account for tradershttp://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/02/securities-and-exchange-commission.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-4178838932104432234Fri, 12 Feb 2010 16:18:00 +00002010-02-12T10:18:00.239-06:00Some stocks tend to cycle in value between a high and a low. When this cycle establishes itself the price range between the high and the low is a trading range. The top of the range is a resistance price or resistance zone. The bottom of the trading range is the support price or support zone. Many cyclical stocks have businesses very closed tied to the economy. Traders attempt to buy stocks at http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/02/trading-range.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-5815532983876325297Tue, 09 Feb 2010 16:11:00 +00002010-02-09T10:15:59.036-06:00Managing investment risk is learning to protect investment capital. Investors or traders can protect capital by diversifying an investment portfolio, placing limit orders on stocks, and to never trade or invest all capital at once in one stock market investment. No investor or trader ever is 100% successful with every investment and every trade. The ability to cut losses before they become huge http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/02/protect-investment-capital.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-3067550315198889234Fri, 05 Feb 2010 19:53:00 +00002010-02-08T12:54:42.837-06:00 Generalized profit taking temporarily depresses a stock price during an upward stock trend. Traders and investors take profits in order to lock in gains on an advancing stock. A famous old saying is that you don’t have a profit on a stock until you take a profit. The temporary drop in stock price from profit taking is different from a correction in which the market analysis of a stock changes, http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/02/profit-taking_05.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-1841093754175128810Tue, 02 Feb 2010 17:49:00 +00002010-02-08T14:17:10.354-06:00 The Standard and Poors 500 is a weighted stock market index of the largest 500 companies with common stocks in the United States. The S&P 500 is weighted by capitalization of the companies and is commonly followed, along with the Dow Jones Industrial average. These market indexes are considered bellwethers of the American economy. A number of mutual funds, pension funds, and exchange traded http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/02/standard-and-poors_4028.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-3921336712948184998Sat, 30 Jan 2010 03:18:00 +00002010-01-29T21:18:14.404-06:00 Much of stock market investing is an attempt to exploit stock market inefficiency. Market timing takes advantage of short term fluctuations in stock prices. Scalping, during periods of high trading volume and great volatility, takes advantage of market inefficiency. Trading in penny stocks and low cap stocks in general takes advantage of market inefficiency because many small cap stocks are http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/01/market-inefficiency.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-4545418266243696108Tue, 26 Jan 2010 20:37:00 +00002010-01-26T14:37:05.230-06:00 What constitutes a successful stock trade? Success in trading stock is defined by making a profit. However, one stock trade, a buy or a sell, is only half of the job. The day trader needs to buy and sell, almost always on the same day. Picking stocks with low prices that seem to be on their way up may look good until a market trend reverses and the price goes down. What started out looking likehttp://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/01/stock-trade.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-5126573898662491327Fri, 22 Jan 2010 16:56:00 +00002010-01-22T10:56:53.826-06:00 Investments come in all shapes, sizes, and types. They are the dedication of current assets for a future purpose. Money put into a business is a common form of investment as is the purchase of stocks in order to build a nest egg for retirement. Market investments can include common stocks or preferred stocks, purchased options, bonds, foreign currency, bank accounts, precious metals and IRA’s. http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/01/investments.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-183630112554262870Wed, 20 Jan 2010 01:54:00 +00002010-01-19T19:54:06.337-06:00 In searching for good investments, investors often run across stock recommendations. No one has the time to closely research the entire stock market for good stock picks, so taking advantage of someone else’s stock research can be very helpful in choosing stocks. To make the most effective use of each stock recommendation it is wise for the investor to have an investment strategy in place and http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/01/stock-recommendation.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-6422593268355011148Fri, 15 Jan 2010 20:14:00 +00002010-01-15T14:15:04.342-06:00 Investment in stocks can be very rewarding. Investment in stocks can build a nest egg for retirement or the money to start up a new business. Stock market investment starts with learning the basics of stock investing. What are stocks? What are bonds? What are mutual funds? Stock picking means finding stock worth investing in. There are growth stocks that may double or triple in value in a http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/01/investment-in-stocks.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-2208282325728468839Tue, 12 Jan 2010 16:31:00 +00002010-01-12T10:31:27.904-06:00 To learn stock investing takes study, practice, diligence, and patience. There are many books, weekly investment publications, and information on the internet that will help the potential investor learn stock investing. Stock investing starts with learning basic stock information. For example, knowing the significance of a price to earnings ratio is important. A P/E ration is the price of the http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/01/learn-stock-investing.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-8717840916462972342Fri, 08 Jan 2010 17:13:00 +00002010-01-08T11:19:11.543-06:00The best measure of smart stock investing is whether or not it is successful in the end. Successful investing strategies may be based upon value investing and successful trading strategies are often based solely upon technical analysis. In each case smart investing often includes candlestick analysis with a firm grasp of candlestick chart patterns. Successful stock investing involves knowing whenhttp://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/01/smart-stock-investing.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-8324576257395278891Tue, 05 Jan 2010 14:29:00 +00002010-01-05T08:29:24.108-06:00 As the world’s economy begins to right itself, investing in oil stock is getting attention. Investing in oil stock can be done by buying shares of the largest US based oil producers, Exxon Mobile, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips. Investing in oil stock can also mean investing in stock of companies that drill for oil, ship oil, refine oil, put out oil well fires, and repair damage to deep sea oil http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/01/investing-in-oil-stock.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-7829846868195654337Sat, 02 Jan 2010 16:43:00 +00002010-01-06T11:05:46.468-06:00Stock investing books can broaden perspective, improve trading or investing, and help the trader or investor develop and maintain a consistently successful strategy. From a group of Wall Street Journal reporters who threw darts at the stock pages to Ben Graham, Peter Lynch, and Warren Buffet to Bigalow’s book on High Profit Candlestick Patterns there is insight in the writings of those who have http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2010/01/stock-investing-books.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-855928867388397457Wed, 30 Dec 2009 17:39:00 +00002009-12-30T11:41:42.523-06:00As the year draws to an end it seems appropriate to take a look back at stock investing 2009. The year started on the tail end of a stock market meltdown and the possibility of a global recession. Stock investing 2009 was good if you got into the market in January and road a fifty percent increase in the Dow Jones Industrials. Obviously many companies did substantially better than average in http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2009/12/stock-investing-2009.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-4936953817866235774Mon, 28 Dec 2009 22:10:00 +00002009-12-28T16:10:32.121-06:00 In order to be a successful investor one needs to understand and be able to effectively use stock investing tools. Stock reports are a basic investing tool. They reflect changes in the economy and even world events with comparable changes in the stock market. The price to earnings ratio of a stock is one of the important stock investing tools. Knowing the tools of your trade will make you a http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2009/12/stock-investing-tools.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-6173867157628203902Tue, 22 Dec 2009 17:48:00 +00002009-12-22T11:49:13.161-06:00 Learning to invest wisely takes time and patience. It will pay rewards for years to come. Learning to invest requires that you start by learning the terminology and mechanisms of the stock market, of buying stocks and selling stocks. You will need to learn to evaluate companies whose stocks you want to purchase and you will need to learn about market timing. You will want to develop an http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2009/12/learning-to-invest.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13681647.post-4786502479899418883Fri, 18 Dec 2009 17:55:00 +00002009-12-18T11:57:43.805-06:00With all of the bank bailouts last year bank stock investing did not seem like a very good idea. However, a strong portfolio often has a bank stock. There are pros and cons to bank stock investing. A well managed bank is a money making machine and a bank with a portfolio of bad loans is a disaster waiting to happen. If you want to get into stock investing in banks you will want to know how banks http://www.candlestickforum.com/blogs/2009/12/bank-stock-investing.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Stephen W. Bigalow)0