The momentum traits, explained one at a time
Every chip on a Breakaway card measures one thing. Breakaway checks all of them for you, every 15 seconds, so you never have to work any of this out yourself. These pages are here if you want to know what a chip means, why traders watch it, and how the scanner scores it.
Trend
- MA FANStacked moving averages (MA FAN)
What it means when the 8, 21, 50 and 200-day moving averages line up in order, and how Breakaway scores it.
- 21 EMAAbove a rising 21-day EMA
Why swing traders watch the 21-day exponential moving average, and how Breakaway uses it as a trait and as a stop level.
- W.EMAWeekly trend (W.EMA)
How the weekly chart backs up a daily setup, and why Breakaway scores a weekly close above the 10-week and 30-week EMAs.
- HH/HLHigher high and higher low (HH/HL)
The oldest definition of an uptrend, a higher high and a higher low bar over bar, and how Breakaway scores it.
- 52W HINear the 52-week high
Why stocks near their 52-week high tend to keep going, and how Breakaway scores that in the traits and the Quality Score.
Participation
- VOLRelative volume (RVOL)
What relative volume is, why a move on heavy volume matters more than one on light volume, and how Breakaway scores it.
- VDUVolume dry-up (VDU)
Why quiet volume inside a base is a good sign, and how Breakaway scores volume dry-up as a momentum trait.
- U/D VOLUp-day volume versus down-day volume (U/D VOL)
A fifty-day count of shares traded on up days against down days, and why it separates real buying from a bounce.
Compression
- ATR SQZATR squeeze (low volatility)
What average true range measures, and why a stock trading in the tightest ranges of its own history tends to break out.
- SQUEEZEBollinger Band and Keltner Channel squeeze
The setup where the Bollinger Bands close inside the Keltner Channels, and how Breakaway flags it on every card.
- NR7Narrowest range in seven days (NR7)
The NR7 pattern, a day with the smallest high-to-low range of the last seven, and why a bigger move often follows.
Accumulation
- OBV+On-balance volume (OBV)
How on-balance volume tracks steady buying, and why Breakaway treats a 20-day OBV high as a predictive trait.
- CLOSE HIClose near the high of the day
Why the spot where a stock closes inside its daily range tells you who won the day, and how Breakaway scores it.
- SPRINGSpring: undercut and recover
The spring pattern, where a stock dips below a recent low and closes back above it, and how Breakaway detects it.
Concepts
- Trending, transition or choppy: the regime label
How Breakaway decides whether a stock is trending up, trending down, in transition or choppy, from ADX and its moving averages.
- The quality score: why large, profitable companies rank first
How the Quality Score adds long-term trend, company size, profit and outside signals to the momentum traits, so the strongest companies rank first.
- Score history and persistence
How Breakaway records a Quality Score once per day, what the sixty-day history strip shows, and how persistence scores it.
- Setup odds: what happened the last time
How Breakaway computes setup odds from each stock's own five-year history, and how to use them without fooling yourself.
- The trade plan: entry, stop, targets and size
How Breakaway turns a setup into a plan with an entry, a stop, two ATR targets and a share count for your risk.
- Predictive traits: the coil before the move
Why Breakaway calls four of its traits predictive, and how to use them to find setups before they break out.
- Short squeeze setups: short interest, days to cover and a strong chart
What short interest and days to cover measure, and how Breakaway flags heavily shorted stocks with strong charts.
- Anchored VWAP
What anchored volume-weighted average price shows, how to pick an anchor, and how to use the AVWAP overlay on Breakaway's charts.