Technical Analysis
Charts Skew Bearish for 2007
By Guy Lerner
Street.com Contributor
12/27/2006 3:38 PM EST
I don't base my investment or trading strategy on a crystal ball. But I wanted to share what the technical tea leaves indicate could be in store for 2007, particularly because my take on it cuts against the prevailing positive sentiment: I see a more bearish outlook for 2007 than I've seen reflected in the popular financial media.
As 2006 winds down, market strategists (including my
RealMoney colleagues) are looking ahead to 2007. And if
Business Week's "Fearless Forecasts from the Pros" is any indication, the expectations are rather rosy. Of the 80 analysts polled for that article, almost 90% expect the
S&P 500 to end 2007 higher than its current level of 1425.
Two-thirds of these strategists prognosticate that the S&P 500 will be above 1500 by the end of 2007.
Often in trading and investing, it's not the destination that's important but how we get there that makes the difference in our results. For example, the markets can have a down year, but traders (as opposed to buy-and-holders) can capture profits from those market swings.
Keep that in mind when you recall that, of the 73 analysts (from the same
Business Week article) who had an opinion about where the markets would be mid-2007, 80% believed the S&P 500 would be higher than 1400.
So with strategists expecting very little downside and somewhat bullish on the S&P's possible upside, the contrarian in me says, "Hold on -- we all know the market will do its best to frustrate the prevailing opinion."
Better Odds
With so many people lined up on one side of the prognosticating ledger, I'm reminded of racehorse Smarty Jones. After winning the first two legs of the Triple Crown in 2004, Smarty Jones was the odds-on favorite to win the Belmont Stakes. He was such a sure bet, it probably wasn't worth showing up at the track that day to bet on him. In other words, why risk money on Smarty Jones at all when the payoff was so low?
But Smarty Jones came in second that day to Birdstone, a 36-to-1 odds runner. That made for a handsome payoff to those who were willing to step outside the expectations of the masses and bet on a long shot.
And as I look out to 2007, the bullishness of the herd and the story of Smarty Jones have me thinking, "Go the other way." There's more to my balking than contrariness for its own sake; my interpretation of the broader indices' current charts is somewhat bearish, too.
S&P 500
Let's start with a monthly chart of the
S&P 500. There is a significant resistance zone between 1439 and 1478 that I believe will cap any upside move for 2007.
With the S&P 500 near 1400, this leaves upside of only about 6%.
S&P 500 Facing an upside cap |
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| Source: The TechnicalTake.com |
Another reason to believe this resistance level will be tough to break through is the fact that price projections from the inverted head-and-shoulders bottoming pattern end right in that resistance zone.
Because markets tend to retrace prior price moves,
I believe that during 2007, the S&P 500 will retrace at least 38% of the bull-market move off the October 2002 lows. This would carry the S&P 500 down to the 1230 level. A 50% pullback would bring it to the 1150 level.
It should also be noted that the S&P 500 has not had a pullback of more than 10% in more than four years, which is one of the longest periods in its history it has gone without doing so.
A retracement of 38% from the projected resistance would represent about a 15% drop in the S&P 500.
To recap: For the S&P 500, I see possible upside of 6% and possible downside of 15%.
Dow Jones Industrial Average
Next, look at this monthly chart of the
Dow Jones Industrial Average. From the October 2002 lows to the February 2004 highs, the Dow traveled about 2,800 points. The index then consolidated during the next 21 months (yellow rectangle).
DJIA Could test supports |
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| Source: The TechnicalTake.com |
The breakout from this consolidation should lead to a measured move in which the current gains after the breakout should be equal to gains seen off the October 2002 bottom. Using this methodology, the current move on the Dow should begin to encounter resistance around 12,900. With the Dow currently at 12,500, that's only 3% of upside for this index.
If the broader market sells off, I expect the support levels to be tested. On the Dow, the next support level is around 11,250; a secondary level of support would be 10,600, which was where the index broke out from the 21-month consolidation period.
If the Dow were to reach the level predicted by the measured move and then sell off to support levels at 11,250, that would represent a loss of about 13% from the highs, which would be within the confines of the ranges seen on the S&P 500.
To recap: For the Dow, I see possible upside of 3% and possible downside of 13%.
Nasdaq
The
Nasdaq is my real wild card and the toughest chart for me to interpret because it is lagging the other major indices so much. Check out this monthly chart:
Nasdaq Upside unlikely |
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| Source: The TechnicalTake.com |
Using the methodologies described above, the Nasdaq could make it to the 2900 level. With the Nasdaq currently at 2400, this is more than 20% away. The issue is still the significant resistance at the 2500 level, which should prove difficult to overcome while the index is overbought and bullishness abounds.
Support for the Nasdaq is between 2067 and 2150.
To recap: For the Nasdaq, I see possible upside of 2% and possible downside of 15%. There is the possibility that the Nasdaq could trade to 2900; that would really be a bullish surprise, and certainly would portend well for the overall market.
However, when I look at some of the sectors associated with the Nasdaq, such as Internet stocks, semiconductors and biotech, I see more trouble ahead for the markets. I'll have more on exactly what trouble signs I see and what they portend in my next column.
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