Stock Trading

A collection of our best articles and lessons on stock trading. Here you will learn the skills strategies and techniques of the day trader, swing trader, and position trader.

Donchian Channels Indicator Explained & Profitability Tested

The Donchian Channels indicator in technical analysis helps traders understand market trends and potential price breakouts. It consists of three lines formed by taking the highest and lowest low of a predetermined number of periods, typically 20.

VWAP Indicator Best Settings & Strategy Based on 13,681 Trades

Using VWAP with a 14 setting on a daily Heikin Ashi chart is vastly superior to conventional OHLC charts. Using an OHLC chart, the strategy barely breaks even with a low-profit expectancy of 0.15. In contrast with a Heikin Ashi chart, the strategy is incredibly profitable, with a profit expectance of 0.83 and a reward-to-risk ratio of 3.03.

Is the Supertrend Indicator Super? 4,052 Test Trades Show How to...

Based on our extensive testing, it has been determined that when used as a standalone indicator, Supertrend does not demonstrate reliability or profitability. With an average profit expectancy of 0.24, it is recommended to combine Supertrend with other indicators.

23 Best Stock Chart Patterns Proven Reliable By Data Testing

Published research shows the most reliable and profitable stock chart patterns are the inverse head and shoulders, double bottom, triple bottom, and descending triangle. Each has a proven success rate of over 85%, with an average gain of 43%.

The Best Month to Buy Stocks: 53 Years of Analysis

According to our research, using 53 years of stock exchange data, the best time to buy stocks is in October, and the best time to sell stocks is in July.

A Financial Analyst’s Guide to Trading the Volume Indicator

Stock volume, or trading volume, is the total number of shares traded during a specific period. Volume indicates buying and selling pressure and potential changes in a stock's trend direction and quality.

Top 10 Reliable Candle Patterns: 56,680 Trades Tested

Our 56,680 test trades show the most reliable candlestick formations are the Inverted Hammer (60% success rate), Bearish Marubozu (56.1%), Gravestone Doji (57%), and Bearish Engulfing (57%).

How to Read Stock Charts Like a Boss: Beginners Guide +pdf

To read stock charts you need to use stock charting software, select your chart type, configure your timeframe, determine price direction using trendlines and use indicators to estimate future prices.

10 Best Day Trading Indicators Proven with Data!

Our research on 10,400 years of exchange data shows the best day trading indicators are the Price Rate of Change, VWAP, Weighted Moving Average, Hull Moving Average, Simple Moving Average, and RSI.

12 Accurate Chart Patterns Proven Profitable & Reliable

Research shows that the most reliable chart patterns are the Head and Shoulders, with an 89% success rate, the Double Bottom (88%), and the Triple Bottom and Descending Triangle (87%). The Rectangle Top is the most profitable, with an average win of 51%.

10 Best Free TradingView Indicators & How to Trade Them!

Our testing shows the best TradingView indicators for advanced analysis are Volume Profile HD, VWAP, Supertrend, ATR, Relative Volatility, and RSI. TradingView's candlestick and chart pattern recognition also improve trading outcomes. 

5 Best Candlestick & Chart Pattern Recognition Software 2024

Our 20-point test reveals the best stock chart candlestick pattern recognition software are TrendSpider, TradingView, and Finviz.

How to Day Trade and Is It Worth It? Tools &...

Ultimately, for 95% of speculators, day trading is not worth it. Although day traders can make significant money quickly, statistics show that most day traders lose money. Over a six-month period excessive commissions, poor trading decisions, weak strategies, and bad market timing cause losses.

Are Keltner Channels Worth Trading? Best Settings Tested

A Keltner Channel is a volatility-based trading indicator combining a simple moving average, exponential moving average, and average true range to plot a channel on a chart. It identifies trading signals using overbought and oversold conditions.

12 Ways to Master Stock Chart Indicators by a Certified Analyst

Professional market analysts build trading strategies using chart indicator techniques like divergences, multi-time frame analysis, indicator combinations, and rigorous backtesting.

Advance/Decline (A/D) Line Explained by a Certified Analyst

The advance/decline (A/D) line indicator measures market breadth by identifying how many stocks participate in a market advance or decline. It is calculated by taking the number of advancing stocks minus the declining stocks.

5 Moving Average Indicators Tested on 43,770 Trades

The best moving average settings are SMA or EMA 20 on a daily chart, which achieves a 23% win rate. At settings 50, 100, and 200, it is better to use the Hull moving average, which has win rates of 27%, 10%, and 17%, respectively.

MACD Strategy & Reliability Tested by LiberatedStockTrader

MACD is a trend-following momentum indicator used to identify price trends. We conducted 606,422 test trades to find the best settings and trading strategies.

Is the S&P 500 200-Day Moving Average Profitable? I Test It!

Our testing of the 200-day MA on the S&P500 over 16 years revealed that using this indicator is a losing proposition. A buy-and-hold strategy made a profit of 192% vs. the 200-day MA, which made only 152%.

Best Commodity Channel Index (CCI) Settings Tested on 43,297 Trades

Our test data shows that using the CCI indicator with a 50 setting on the S&P 500 index stocks over 20 years was incredibly profitable, returning a 1,108% profit compared to the market, which returned 555%.

Our Best Training & Strategies

Liberated Stock Trader Pro: Learn Stock Market Investing

Learn stock market investing with the complete online stock trading course by Barry D. Moore, a certified financial analyst from the International Federation of Technical Analysts (IFTA).

ETF Investing Strategy: MOSES Improves Performance & Lowers Risk

The MOSES ETF investing strategy is a powerful suite of indicators meticulously backtested over 100 years. Designed to empower you to outperform the market, it equips you with the tools to navigate major stock market crashes and unlock greater investing performance.

LiberatedStockTrader’s Strategy Beat the Market By 102%

Decades of research and testing unveiled the Liberated Stock Trader Beat the Market System. Our 9-year, backtested, and proven strategy targets 35 financially healthy high-growth stocks, producing a track record of beating the S&P 500 by 102%.

TradingView Review 2024: Tested by LiberatedStockTrader

LiberatedStockTrader's review testing awards TradingView 4.8 stars due to excellent stock chart analysis, pattern recognition, screening, and backtesting. TradingView is our top recommendation for US and international traders.

Stock Rover Review 2024: Tested by LiberatedStockTrader

LiberatedStockTrader's review testing awards Stock Rover 4.7 stars. Its advanced screening, research, and portfolio tools are ideal for US value, income, and growth investors. With 650 financial metrics on 10,000 stocks and 44,000 ETFs, we rate Stock Rover the number one stock screener.

Trade Ideas Review 2024: AI Tested by LiberatedStockTrader

Our in-depth testing shows Trade Ideas is the ultimate black box AI-powered day trading signal platform with built-in automated bot trading. Three automated Holly AI systems pinpoint trading signals for day traders.

TrendSpider Review: Big 2024 Updates! Is It Now The Best?

Our TrendSpider testing finds it is ideal for US traders wanting AI-automated charting, pattern recognition, and backtesting of stocks, indices, futures, and currencies.

Benzinga Pro Real-time News Tested by LiberatedStockTrader

Our testing shows Benzinga Pro is best for US traders who want a high-speed, actionable, real-time news feed at 1/10th of the price of a Bloomberg terminal. I recommended Benzinga Pro for active day traders and investors who trade news events.

MetaStock Review 2024: Tested by LiberatedStockTrader

Our MetaStock review and test reveal an excellent platform for traders, with 300+ charts and indicators for stocks, ETFs, bonds & forex globally. Metastock has solid backtesting and forecasting, and Refinitiv/Xenith provides powerful real-time news and screening.