The S&P 500 celebrated its great technical accomplishment highlighted in our last note by doing exactly nothing. Maintaining a tight 32 point range from top to bottom, the S&P 500 netted just over 3 points from our previous note to the closing price last Friday, June 12. This week has changed the tune, giving up more than 34 points in just two days. Surrendering initial support in the 925-930 area designated by the May highs, the SPX is once again bearing down on the 200 day moving average, this time from above. Additional support of the 50 day moving average is also moving into the area, just 15.5 points below the 200 day as of today, and rising. The lows from May, which are also the highs from April and February, mark another major support level in the 875-880 range.
Both the MACD and the daily 13/34 exponential moving average indicator have signaled a negative divergence by not confirming the new highs in the price of the average. With the January highs holding as resistance, the head and shoulders bottom we discussed in Still overbought, but over first resistance also is still in play. As we noted, “…finishing the inverse head and shoulders bottom should happen somewhere around the end of June time wise to produce a symmetrical pattern. At this point, it looks like the January highs need to hold as resistance to keep the inverse head and shoulders pattern in play. This is also the approximate level of the 200 day moving average currently and the 200 day stopped the SPX multiple times from 2001-2002, plus twice early in 2003. The first test early in 2003 led to the formation of the right shoulder in the bottoming pattern and the second test required a test of the 50 day moving average as support before breaking out and leaving the 200 day well behind.” With the 50 and 200 day moving averages relatively close together this time, plus the support of the recent lows/previous highs around 875-880, this market has plenty of candidates for a right shoulder not far from current prices. A convincing move back below 875 would signal a deeper correction with targets as low as 741 still completely valid.
Which brings us to the market leading NASDAQ Composite. Since our last note highlighting the breakout by the COMP, a brief rally has fizzled out with the last two trading days completely erasing the gains and setting up a quick test of the breakout point as support. The rally stopped short of filling the gap opened on the way down in early October 2008, but did manage to bring the 50 and 200 day moving averages into a bullish golden cross. Plenty of support exists for this market, but it doesn’t come into play until 60-120 points below the breakout point at 1785 if the breakout fails to hold. Targets as low as 1500 do not invalidate the uptrend if the SPX makes a run toward the 2002 lows or even 741. The MACD is also showing a negative divergence here by not confirming the new high in price and the ROC shows a failure to build momentum on the breakout.
We are again returning to our short positions, including SH, after precautionary stop outs proved unnecessary and untimely. Our position in SH specifically was re-entered exactly at the stop out price (see Security Growth for details).
North Coast Investment Research 