S&P 500 remains stuck in a 5-day sideways trading range

While the S&P 500 (SPX) can’t get out of this 5-day range it has been stuck in, the Nasdaq is still rocking higher. There is very little reason to not be riding the stocks in this index as your primary focus. The majority of the stocks that I have owned over the last 3 weeks have been tech stocks too.

And you’d be right to assume that the stocks that have provided me with solid returns have been tech stocks. Right now, that is what matters. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, outside of a few days where it popped has been inconsequential. 

On the volatility side, the VIX is trading at insanely low levels – closing yesterday down 6.6% to 10.11. A lot of people will say it is the calm before the storm. I wouldn’t go that far, though the last time we closed this low was early 2007, right before the big recession unfolded in 2008. But saying that a low VIX reading likely means we are going to sell off big, is going out on a limb. Yes, volatility is low, and we’ll likely see a spike there in the not so distant future, but whether that affects price action negatively or not remains to be seen. 

While oil is looking at a flat open, it still continues to struggle mightily. But watch the rising trend-line off of the August lows – it may finally be ready to bounce around here as it is testing it as we speak. 

S&P 500 Chart

Current Stock Trading Portfolio Balance: 

• 5  Long positions

Recent Stock Trade Notables:

• Apple (AAPL): Long at 143.82, closed at 147.11 for a 2.3% profit.
• Teradyne (TER): Long at 31.16, closed at 33.03 for a 6.0% profit.
• UPRO: Long at 92.75, closed at 94.78 for a 2.2% profit. 
• Murphy Oil (MUR): Long at 28.69, closed at 27.89 for a 2.7% loss.
• Las Vegas Sands (LVS): Long at 57.24, closed at 56.53 for a 1.2% loss.  
• UPRO: Long at 91.94, closed at 96.54 for a 5.0% profit.
• Alibaba Group (BABA): Long at 105.736, closed at 108.22 for a 2.4% profit. 
• Facebook (FB): Long at 134.27, Closed at 139.23 for a 3.7% profit. 
• CDW Corp (CDW): Long at 58.65, closed at 58.91 for a 2.7% loss. 
• Redhat (RHT): Long at 82.41, Closed at 83.53 for a 1.4% profit. 
• Ambarella (AMBA): Long at 57.15, Closed at 55.52 for a 2.8% loss. 
• Alibaba Group (BABA): Long at 104.73, closed at 106.05 for a 1.3% profit. 
• Broadcom (AVGO): Long at 218.63, Closed at 222.71 for a 1.9% profit. 
• American Airlines (AAL): Short at 44.76, Closed at 44.03 for a 1.6% profit.
• UPRO  (Day-Tade): Long at 95.35, closed at 96.50 for a 1.2% profit.
• OZRK: Long at $56.12, closed at $54.69 for a 2.5% loss. 
• FNSR: Long at $34.25, closed at 34.70 for a 1.3% profit. 
• UPRO  (Day-Tade): Long at 96.92, closed at 98.03 for a 1.2% profit. 
• JP Morgan Chase (JPM): Long at 87.21, closed at 89.67 for a 2.8% profit. 
• Chevron (CVX): Short at 110.03, covered at 111.85 for a 1.6% loss. 
• Flex Technologies (FLEX): Long at $15.62, closed at $16.57 for a 6.1% profit. 
• Baidu (BIDU): Long at $174.70, closed at $187.00 for a 7.0% profit. 
• Ollie’s Bargain Outlet: Long at 33.20, closed at $32.50 for a 2.1% loss. 
• Corning (GLW): Long at $26.98, closed at $27.45 for a 1.7% profit. 
• Illinois Tool Works (ITW): Long at $127.74, closed at $129.86 for a 1.7% profit. 
• Marriott Int’l (MAR): Long at $86.16, closed at $87.51 for a 1.6% profit.