AAPL's 7-for-1 split may have broadened investor interest in the stock, but a paradoxical result is that it has killed the wild spasms that Wall Street's thieves, psychopaths, thimble-riggers, bunco men and child molesters use to make indecent money in the market. Still worse is that the split seems to have saddled the stock with the weight of skepticism that is alien to the institutional mind. Subdued though it be, however, AAPL looks almost certain to fall to the 88.60 target, and to take a tradable bounce from that Hidden Pivot that should be precise within a few cents. Do what you will with that forecast, but if your objective is merely to be entertained you should jot my target down and set an alert. _______ UPDATE (June 26, 9:12 p.m. EDT): It would take a print at 92.78 to invalidate the 88.60 target given above, but as a practical matter, a mere 91.75 would rob the target of its trading value.
Thursday, June 26, 2014
What’s Wrong with This Picture
– Posted in: Free Rick's Picks'Deranged' is perhaps the best way to describe yesterday's rally on Wall Street, since it flew in the face of the worst economic news America has had since The Great Financial Crash. GDP growth for the first quarter was revised downward to negative 2.9%, the most dramatic decline in a non-recessionary quarter since the Guvmint began tracking this statistic in 1949. No less perverse is the steep rise in consumer confidence, even as the retail sector sinks into a funk that has cast a pall on the earnings outlook of Walmart, Target, Kohl's et al. For our part, we'll continue to do what we've been doing all along: riding the rallies to Hidden Pivot targets, then going short with tight stops when those targets are reached.
GOOGL – Google (Last:585.73)
– Posted in: Current Touts Rick's PicksWe saw a possible shorting opportunity during yesterday morning's tutorial session, but GOOGL quickly disabused us of this bold idea with an upward burst that altogether ignored the sluggish behavior of the broad averages. Will GOOGL now drag every Tom-Dick-and-Harry stock higher for at least another day or two? Quite possibly, since the market itself, while eking out but a modest gain, showed perverse buoyancy in shrugging off a downward revision of Q1 GDP data that could only be described as catastrophic. If this forecast proves correct, look for the stock to hit the 592.04 target shown, a Hidden Pivot resistance of minor degree. Accordingly, traders should position from the long side for now, but with the goal of getting short with a generous stop-loss (i.e., 20 cents) when the target is reached. I would suggest doing so via the purchase of July 3 puts at the first strike price where the puts are offered for 1.00 or less. _______ UPDATE (9:18 p.m. EDT): Yesterday's feeble head-fake to 589.60 on the opening diminished the value of the target 592.04 target, but I would encourage you to use the same chart to attempt bottom-fishing at the midpoint pivot or 'd' target of any follow-through leg to the downside Thursday night or Friday morning.
