15/9/2016

The5MostPowerfulCandlestickPatterns(NUAN,GMCR)|Investopedia

The 5 Most Powerful Candlestick Patterns (NUAN,

GMCR)
By Alan Farley | September 23, 2015 12:49 AM EDT

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Candlestick charts are a technical tool that pack data for multiple timeframes into single price bars.
bars.
This makes them more useful than traditional open-high, low-close bars (OHLC
(OHLC)) or simple lines that
connect the dots of closing prices.
prices. Candlesticks build patterns that predict price direction once
completed. Proper color coding adds depth to this colorful technical tool, which dates back to 18th
century Japanese rice traders
traders..
Steve Nison brought candlestick patterns to the Western world in his popular 1991 book, "Japanese
Candlestick Charting Techniques." Many traders can now identify dozens of these formations, which
have colorful names like bearish dark cloud cover,
cover, evening star and three black crows.
crows. In addition,
single bar patterns including the doji and hammer have been incorporated into dozens of long- and
short-side trading strategies.
strategies.

Candlestick Pattern Reliability

Not all candlestick patterns work equally well. Their huge popularity has lowered reliability because
theyve been deconstructed by hedge funds and their algorithms
algorithms.. These well-funded players rely on
lightning speed execution to trade against retail and traditional fund managers who execute
technical analysis strategies found in popular texts. In other words, they use software to trap
participants looking for the high odds bullish or bearish outcomes. However, reliable patterns
continue to appear, allowing short- and long-term profit opportunities.
Here are five candlestick patterns that perform exceptionally well as precursors of price direction
and momentum
momentum.. Each works within the context of surrounding price bars in predicting higher or
lower prices. They are also time sensitive in two ways. First, they only work within the limitations of
the chart being reviewed, whether intraday, daily, weekly or monthly. Second, their potency
decreases rapidly 3-to-5 bars after the pattern has completed.

Top 5 Candlestick Patterns

This analysis relies on the work of Thomas Bulkowski, who built performance rankings for
candlestick patterns in his 2008 book, "Encyclopedia of Candlestick Charts." He offers statistics for
two kinds of expected pattern outcomes: reversal and continuation
continuation.. Candlestick reversal patterns
predict a change in price direction while continuation patterns predict an extension in the current
price direction.
In the following examples, the hollow white candlestick denotes a closing print higher than the
opening print while the black candlestick denotes a closing print lower than the opening print.

Three Line Strike

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YA DISPONIBLES
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COMPANIES IN THIS ARTICLE

Symbol

Last

NUAN

14.35

GMCR

Change

0.11 (0.76%)

TPLM

0.27

+0.02 (+6.44%)

TASR

25.27

+0.10 (+0.40%)

UEPS

9.13

0.03 (0.33%)
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The bullish three line strike reversal pattern carves out three black candles within a downtrend
downtrend..
Each bar posts a lower low and closes near the intrabar low. The fourth bar opens even lower but
reverses in a wide-range outside bar that closes above the high of the first candle in the series. The
opening print also marks the low of the fourth bar. According to Bulkowski, this reversal predicts
higher prices with an 84% accuracy rate.

Two Black Gapping

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The bearish two black gapping continuation pattern appears after a notable top in an uptrend, with
a gap down that yields two black bars posting lower lows. This pattern predicts the decline will
continue to even lower lows, perhaps triggering a broader scale downtrend. According to Bulkowski,
this pattern predicts lower prices with a 68% accuracy rate.

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Three Black Crows

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The bearish three black crows reversal pattern starts at or near the high of an uptrend, with three
black bars posting lower lows that close near intrabar lows. This pattern predicts the decline will
continue to even lower lows, perhaps triggering a broader scale downtrend. The most bearish
version starts at a new high (A) because it traps buyers entering momentum plays. According to
Bulkowski, this pattern predicts lower prices with a 78% accuracy rate.
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Evening Star

The bearish evening star reversal pattern starts with a tall white bar that carries an uptrend to a new
high. The market gaps higher on the next bar but fresh buyers fail to appear, yielding a narrow range
candlestick. A gap down on the third bar completes the pattern, which predicts the decline will

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continue to even lower lows, perhaps triggering a broader scale downtrend. According to Bulkowski,
this pattern predicts lower prices with a 72% accuracy rate.

Abandoned Baby

The bullish abandoned baby reversal pattern appears at the low of a downtrend, after a series of
black candles print lower lows. The market gaps lower on the next bar but fresh sellers fail to appear,
yielding a narrow range doji candlestick with opening and closing prints at the same price. A bullish
gap on the third bar completes the pattern, which predicts the recovery will continue to even higher
highs, perhaps triggering a broader scale uptrend. According to Bulkowski, this pattern predicts
higher prices with a 70% accuracy rate.
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Candlestick patterns capture the attention of market players but many reversal and continuation
signals emitted by these patterns dont work reliably on the modern electronic environment.
Fortunately, statistics by Thomas Bulkowski show unusual accuracy for a narrow selection of these
patterns, offering traders actionable buy and sell signals.
signals.

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