Trends

With the clock ticking down to the June 5 government default date, lawmakers have no time to lose.

With the clock ticking down to the June 5 government default date, lawmakers have no time to lose.

While we don't expect the U.S. government to default, the uncertainty may heighten market volatility in coming days. Here are answers to some questions we're hearing most often.

A simple moving average crossover system can help identify entry and exit points for traders. Learn how to calculate the moving average with this formula.

What is a MACD Indicator? This tool helps identify the strength, direction, and duration of a price trend. Learn how to read the MACD and see trading signals.

In technical analysis, many traders start with trend and momentum indicators. But don’t forget volatility indicators, which track the magnitude of price movements.

There have been a few occasional stock market bubbles since the beginning of markets. Here’s a look at a few of them, and what today’s investors can learn from these popped stock market bubbles.

Animal terms and animal references are prominent among Wall Street slang terms. Here’s a look at bulls and bears, hawks and doves, cats and dogs, sheep and pigs, and even black swans and unicorns.

The average true range (ATR) indicator could be a new arrow in your quiver of technical analysis tools. Learn how the ATR indicator helps traders set their exit strategy.

Stock market trends and seasonal patterns happen throughout the year. Here are a few potential market sectors to consider when searching for summertime sizzle.

Want to learn about commodities trading or how to invest in commodities? This overview will provide a brief introduction, including a commodity definition and a few pointers for investors.

What we refer to as a “stock market” is actually an intertwined global ecosystem. Learn the “who, what and why” of the stock market and stock exchanges.

Following trendlines, pennant patterns, and other chart patterns can help you identify potential places to enter and exit trades.

Whether bullish or bearish, the trend is your friend. Try using the average directional index (ADX) and directional movement index (DMI) to evaluate the strength of a stock trend.

If you think the stock market is overvalued or undervalued, look beyond broader indices like the S&P 500 Index. Price-to-earnings ratios of different sectors might offer value.

A case can be made for both growth stocks and value stocks. But which way should an investor’s portfolio lean as the economy emerges from COVID-19?

Venturing out after months at home could be a problem for those accustomed to loungewear. The good news is that comfort still rules in today’s fashion.

A stochastic oscillator is designed to identify overbought or oversold stock. The indicator can be used to help identify potentially overbought and oversold conditions, divergences, and trend direction.

The so-called “January effect” and other seasonal patterns like “sell in May” have long been part of market vernacular, but investors need to separate reality from myth.

Monthly economic reports can move markets, so you might want to brush up on your macroeconomics. Watch for the jobs report, GDP, and CPI.

Semiconductors are often called ‘the new oil.’ And just like oil, chips can be subject to supply-chain disruptions. Here’s an industry snapshot for 2021.

Now that the elections are settled, some new certainty can help guide investment choices. Contemplate long-term fundamentals and portfolio diversification.

Learn how to apply relative strength analysis, which compares an individual stock to the performance of a broad market index like the S&P 500.

The January Effect is based on the belief that stocks tend to rise higher, on average, in January. Will we see it happen in the new year? Although past performance is never a guarantee of the future, consider watching the last trading week of the year for possible clues.

It is said no one can pick tops and bottoms. However, heikin ashi bars could get you closer to getting the information you need to make an informed decision.

Learn to use simple moving averages (SMAs) to track stock momentum by creating scripts with thinkScript® on the thinkorswim® trading platform from TD Ameritrade.

The coronavirus pandemic forced the closure of many office buildings and shifted workers to an at-home environment. Going forward, offices will still be the norm for many businesses, but the look and feel may never be the same.

Looking for a top-down approach to analyzing the stock markets before jumping into a trade? Consider looking at market internals such as NYSE advances versus declines, the advance-decline (A/D) line, and the number of S&P 500 stocks that are moving above a specific moving average.

Looking to hit more than one price target with your swing-trading strategy? Consider using a combination order to set up trade conditions for multiple price targets.

Markets, as well as economies, run in cycles—sometimes up, sometimes down, sometimes sideways—each for an uncertain amount of time. Cycles present risks and opportunities for investors. Here are a few things investors should know about cycles, recessions, and recoveries.

Wild stock market swings? Bear market? Staying invested for the long term may keep you on course.

With so many indicators and charting tools to choose from, it's best to think about what is most important to you and then create a step-by-step approach.

When considering investments, many investors concentrate on the things that make a stock a good candidate. But what about the potential danger signs?

With so many technical indicators to choose from, it can be tough to choose the ones to use in your stock trading. Consider a top-down approach to help you decide whether to use stock momentum indicators, trend indicators, or consolidating indicators.

Socially responsible investing is maturing, growing in assets, and moving into new territory. Find out where ESG investing is heading next.

With millennials and Gen Z more comfortable with sober drinks, beverage companies are looking to cash in on the so-called sober-curious trend.

September means back-to-school time, which could mean shopping for your student and a portfolio of stock investments.

Explore trading multiple time frames to avoid chart head-fakes that might throw you off your strategy. Plus, identify trade entries and exits even as you ride out long-term trends.

In 1960, 13% of all U.S. households were made up of one person. That number has risen to 28%. Companies and industries are taking note. Is your portfolio prepared?

Learn how high-frequency trading affects today's markets, including creating liquidity for retail investors.

Check your investment account info and progress toward your financial goals directly from your smartwatch.

Trend direction and volatility are two variables an option trader relies on. Combining trend following, momentum, and trend reversal indicators on the thinkorswim platform may help you determine which direction prices may be moving and with how much momentum.

As technology becomes more and more integral to our everyday lives, it’s also becoming a more prominent feature in retirement. Learn some of the apps that are improving seniors' lives.

Short-term traders and long-term investors use technical analysis to help them determine potential entry and exit signals for their investments.

Learn how to identify stock market trends using moving averages to help add context, support decision making, and complement other forms of analysis.

Develop a better understanding of stock valuation metrics and how to locate potentially undervalued investment opportunities.

Geopolitical risks come in many forms, and can impact an investment portfolio in a number of ways. Here are a few basic points to consider.

Is your pet a member of your family? Learn how our love of animals makes for big business.

Socially responsible investing, which lets you align your portfolio with your values, has grown in popularity in recent years, bolstered by product innovation. Learn more here.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) has scaled all-time high after all-time high this year. But what about transportation index?

Learn about the risks and potential benefits of "socially responsible" fixed income investing, or what some call "green bonds."

With the earnings calendar tools available on the TD Ameritrade thinkorswim Platform, you can be in the know when it comes to the earnings season.

Learn about the VIX and other volatility indexes and how some investors use them to assess potential risk.

It’s getting easier than ever for socially conscious investors to monitor companies for their environmental, human rights, and other initiatives.

Some investors draw parallels between the Nasdaq Composite index now versus that of the late 1990s and early 2000, but there may be more to the story.

Self-driving cars could be here soon as many companies work on developing autonomous technology. Experts think some of these industries could be impacted.

Sustainable investing is more popular than ever as we celebrate Earth Day 2017. What can investors do to put more “green” into their portfolios?

Are you a long-term investor hoping to use time to your advantage? Don’t chase trends, and especially don’t try to time the market. There are other ways.

Can trading be taught? The famous “turtle experiment” says it can. And the turtles followed trends.

Does the prevailing political party, Democratic or Republican, really make a difference to the stock market?

We've all heard the adage, "buy low-sell high," but what about buying high and potentially selling higher?

Halloween spending looks to be on the rise, and that could give investors a hint about the key Christmas shopping season and how it might affect retailers’ bo

Who needs a huge house and yard to take care of in retirement? Learn about the new try-before-you-buy approach to retirement housing.

Like the changing leaves outdoors, fall signals a change in the historical patterns of the stock market. Learn what the “best six months” has in store.

The S&P 500 is in a short-term trading range, but remains in a long-term bullish trend. Here’s how some investors are trading the range.

The U.S. presidential election cycle theory of the stock market says that the market moves based on the year of the president's term. Is there any proof?

Technical analysis and drawing trendlines can keep you informed about the trends unfolding in your investments and may even support your decision making.

Feeling confused by pages of tiny numbers in a company’s earnings report? Here are three metrics investors can easily find in quarterly data.

Many have heard of “sell in May and go away.” What other seasonal factors, both well known and obscure, are out there and perhaps moving the markets?

Learn why the Fed and traders follow the personal income and spending reports, especially the Personal Consumption Expenditures Index.

For retirees, the recent dip to record low U.S. bond yields poses a challenge. Will investors be forced into more dangerous investments?

Our chief market strategist breaks down the day's top business stories and offers insight on how they might impact your trading and investing.

The U.S. dollar index (/DX) is strong. Since early May, the /DX has climbed 5.30. What might this mean for stocks?

There’s about $174.9 billion of untapped real estate in America. Are you ready to rent out a spare bedroom?

In recent years, passively managed index funds have attracted big money flows. What are the advantages and risks of investing in index funds?

Negative interest rate policy is a fact in the eurozone and Japan. How has it affected those economies, and what might investors expect if such policy ever ar

You might assume green initiatives are the core of socially responsible investing, but there’s a long list of factors that go into evaluating a company’s ethi

Immunotherapy aims to harness the body's immune system to fight disease. Biotech and pharma firms constantly bring possibilities to market—some may even work.

Are you too obsessed with stock benchmarks? You may be indirectly and directly following results that are far removed from your portfolio’s long-term aim.

When will a stock trend end? There are a few stock chart indicators that make spotting trend reversal warning signs a little easier.

Investors might rethink risk and consider picking less popular stocks for better long-run historical performance.

Economists and investors toss around the term “secular stagnation” to describe the below-trend slow-growth economy.

Study intermarket analysis for a more complete investing picture. Pull in bonds, currencies, and commodities with typical stock market research.

How companies fix skilled and unskilled labor shortages impacts the health of their bottom lines and share value. On-the-job training needs a new look.

Monitor maturing cloud technology as consolidation dominates a sector occupied by tech powerhouses and as providers look for what’s next in security and data.

Scrutinizing financial stocks? Crowdfunding and other alternative funding methods are growing fast, and are even challenging traditional banking.

Beta, a method of measuring an investment’s volatility relative to the broader market, is one way to gauge risk. It works even better when you remember to re-measure.

With benchmark U.S. interest rates poised to climb, fixed-income investors should consider the implications for muni bonds.

The Dow has long been viewed as a proxy for the U.S. market and economy, but investors should be mindful of its limitations.

Inflation signals are evident in a host of everyday household items, and investors should learn what to look for and how to seize potential opportunities.

The price-to-earnings ratio has its critics, yet it remains a metric worth watching for valuing stocks and making investment decisions.

Our chief market strategist breaks down the day's top business stories and offers insight on how they might impact your trading and investing.

The line between “good” and “bad” inflation is a thin one and tough to recognize. We grade the standard inflation measures.

The Relative Strength Index is technical analysis indicator that may hold clues for the end of a market trend.

You can’t fight the Federal Reserve, but at the rate things change today, that doesn't mean you should bury your head in the sand. Fed indicators matter, too.