SwingVWAP trade: $BYND

Here’s another trade I just closed out as I’m unwinding for my August shutdown. I went long $BYND on a close above the upper SwingVWAP on July 16 at the yellow line. My stop was the low of that breakout candle at the red long-dashed line. Two days of sideways and then it took off. On July 23 (the date this chart was made), the breakout to new highs followed by a big collapse that went back below the open got me to cash out. Good trade, right?

On the next day, $BYND held there, and then, of course, today happened:

As I keep preaching, things like this ruined me in the past, and ruin newer traders. Yes, I missed a big chunk of the move. If I were blinded by greed, I’d be upset that I didn’t get all of the move. If I were driven by fear, I’d be afraid of missing out on more if it keeps running. I’d chase here, and probably get blown up. Going into August, I’d give back all I made on this trade and then some I imagine as I would press and chase and look for things that aren’t there as revenge for missing out on all of a good move.

There’s so much opportunity in the markets when things are moving. Taking parts out of moves in spots that make sense is the way to consistent profits over time. Manage your risk and take some off the table. Go ahead and leave some, and be content with that.

Update on Swing VWAP $AAPL Trade

I decided to close my Swing VWAP trade in $AAPL. It’s been unable to close above the upper VWAP, so it looks weak here:

I’ll watch for a retrace and another setup.

Example Swing VWAP / RSI Divergence Trade: $AAPL

Here’s a trade I entered in Apple about 2 weeks ago where I used the Swing VWAP and the RSI MultiDivergence indicators.

Back in January, the market had gone through a good decline. I was watching the RSI divergence on AAPL. Around that time, a big divergence showed up. This was about the largest in the last two years, and is circled on the chart below. Because of that context, I wanted to look for a long entry. After the swing low on January 3, AAPL kept above the Swing VWAP. It pulled back close to the Swing VWAP, and then on January 15 it had a bullish reversal candle (white arrow). That means the bears are losing, since it couldn’t penetrate the lower VWAP. I entered at the end of the day (yellow line) with a stop at the prior day’s low Swing VWAP (red line), and a target at $185 based on prior resistance.

So far, the trade is going according to plan. My stop is at $160 now, and I just have to manage when I take profits–at the predetermined target or in a discretionary manner. I’m really liking the Swing VWAP for how it tracks what side is winning and what side is losing. As a trader, your money comes from the losers. Markets move because they have to, and that happens because people are blown out of their incorrect positions.

Example Divergence Trade: Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX)

Here’s a divergence trade I took last week in $NFLX, using the Multi-Divergence indicator in my trade plan. 

The setup: NFLX announced earnings on Oct 16.  Price made an all-time high.  I looked at the chart and saw a big divergence on the volume-weighted MACD.  The last big divergence in June led to a big drop. So I was looking to get in a bearish position. 

The candle on Oct 17 is the most recent bar on this chart. I saw that the bar had made the all time high and then fallen down below the prior day’s close, which I took as my bearish entry signal with NFLX at $200. 

The plan: $190 looked like a possible support, and a return to $204 would tell me my timing was wrong. I thought this move should happen in the next few days, so I bought the Nov 3 weekly options 197.5/195 put spread for $0.97.  I chose the 197.5 strike instead of the at-the-money 200 strike because it had higher gamma—it would have a larger change in delta with movement if I was right.  If the move didn’t come in the next day or so, I would get out and move on. 

I didn’t have to wait long:

The day ended red and had a good follow through day next. When the 190 support was nearly hit, I went to take profits. I sold for $1.57, which is a return of about 62%.  I love it when a plan comes together (extra Hannibal).

Note that the divergence indicator wasn’t the entry signal—it just provided context to give me an edge.  Divergences can often resolve with a continuation in the trend instead of a reversal. The context combined with the actual reversal behavior in the daily candles was what led me to take a trade. Always have a plan before you trade, and always follow your plan. My failures have come when I don’t do one or both of those things. 



New Trade: Long YELP

I bought a starter position in YELP today. I like the business, and I also like the technicals. I started considering it after @ragincajun and @the_real_fly
were taking about it.

Here’s the daily chart:

I like the consolidation here under $24. I also like that price is still above the initial IPO trade price. I also like that it has been creeping up slowly lately, a few percent at a time. I bought at $23.20, and placed my stop at $20.20, underneath the recent swing low. I decided to enter at the price I did from the 5 min chart, as we retraced to the day’s VWAP:

I intend to hold this for at least a few weeks as a position trade as long as I don’t get stopped out. I would consider taking partial profits at a retest of the $26 high, and I will also consider adding more shares later if the stock acts right by making new highs.