Welcome to the Investors Trading Academy talking glossary of financial terms and events.
Our word of the day is “Stochastic” The Stochastic Oscillator is a technical indicator
that moves back and forth between 0 and 100, providing a gauge of stock momentum.
Developed by George C. Lane in the 1950s the main uses for the Stochastic Oscillator include
divergences which can foreshadow reversals, overbought/oversold readings, bull/bear trade
setups and crossovers which help pinpoint trade entries.
The indicator shows how the current price compares to the highest and lowest price over
the look back period.
Typically the look back is 14 periods; on a weekly chart that is 14 weeks, on an hourly
chart 14 hours.
When the indicator is near zero it shows the price is trading near or below the lowest
low during the look back period.
If the indicator is near 100, the price is trading near or above the highest high during
the look back period.
Above 50 and the price is trading within the upper portion of the 14 period range; below
50 and the price is trading in the lower portion of the 14 period range.
An asset is overbought when the Stochastic is above 80, and is oversold if the indicator
is below 20.
The labels are misleading though; overbought doesn’t necessarily mean the price will
drop immediately, and oversold doesn’t mean the price will rally immediately.
Overbought and oversold simply mean the price is trading near the top or bottom of the 14
day range, respectively.
These conditions can last for a long time.
Traders do use overbought and oversold levels to monitor reversals though.
If the indicator is overbought -above 80 and then falls below 50, it indicates the price
is moving lower.
If the price was oversold -below 20 and rallies above 50 it indicates the price is moving
higher.