Encyclopedia of Chart Patterns

by Thomas N. Bulkowski

Technical chart analysis has never been easy. It has, however, been historically successful-and well worth the added effort-for dedicated investors who want to presage what a stock will do next and regularly beat the markets.

Encyclopedia of Chart Patterns represents the next step in technical analysis. This definitive text details over 50 chart patterns that signal whether a stock is in bullish, bearish, or neutral mode. It identifies each chart pattern, explains how and why each chart was formed, and where it will go next. You simply filter the information through your own trading style and strategy, watch for the optimal entry and exit points, and trade the markets with skill and confidence.

The step-by-step chapters in Encyclopedia of Chart Patterns reveal for each

Results Snapshot - At-a-glance data on chart appearance, average rise or decline, failure rate, and price prediction accuracy

Tour - Broad introduction to the pattern

Identification Guidelines - Characteristics to look for and why

Focus on Failures - What failed patterns look like, why they failed, and what to do

Statistics - The numbers, and what they tell you

Trading Tactics - Implementation strategies for maximizing profit while minimizing risk

Sample Trade - The chart pattern in action, with hypothetical trades using real data

With the proper knowledge and understanding, chart pattern analysis can be one of today's easiest to use "investing tools". Encyclopedia of Chart Patterns presents the technical analysis tools, then reveals the secrets-such as average failure rates, most likely gain or loss, volume trends, and surprise findings-as you use the tools to build a portfolio of wealth. The result is today's most valuable technical analysis reference, one that will save you critical time in identifying chart patterns and increase your likelihood of buying near the price bottom and selling near the top.

Genres: Finance, Reference, Business, Nonfiction, Money, Economics, Personal Finance

688 pages, Hardcover

First published January 21, 2000

Reviews

[erjan avid reader · Rating 2 out of 5]

a very fundamental but useless book! It's huge and very detailed, describing every pattern out there.

I long awaited to read it, to get my hands on it, and when i skimmed thru the book - i realized its' mostly useless!
Why?
Cuz: it's old and the % of every pattern completing as expected has changed. The market is fluid and flowing thing.

I give it 2 stars only cuz the author spent lots of time classifying each pattern, it's truly titanic amount of work. But its only good as an example of human's perseverance..

Better spent time and direct my energy at studying markets , instead of some old patterns.

[Jairo Fraga · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful read for those who loves statistics. Full of hard work from the author, that catalogued over 500 patterns for each different pattern presented on this book. Even if it's directed to stocks, it's still very useful for futures, commodities and forex.

One small concern is the methodology for the ultimate high/low, which doesn't translate into real trades, as they are "perfect trades", instead of having a more real world use case, like a maximum rise before a stop is reached.

Other than that, awesome work.

[Sangam Agarwal · Rating 2 out of 5]

Use as visual guide. don't waste your time reading it. Reading material in it doesn't worth time

[Polaris · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is an encyclopaedia and should be referred to as such. Avoid using this book to learn technical analysis. May use it to refer or confirm a chart pattern that you see on a stock of interest.
Poor explanation of supply and demand phenomenon behind the chart patterns and no information of where stop loss should be placed for these patterns is why I took away 1 star.

[Nurullah Öztürk]

Chart pattern'ler üzerine gittiyseniz ve bunların piyasalarda nasıl bir ölçeklendirme ile çalıştığı, ne zaman patladıkları, ne kadar efektif oldukları, hacimle nasıl bağdaştırıldıkları gibi konuları detaylıca incelemek için.

[George Monson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Book for details on Chart Patterns and their profitability.

[مروان الرميح · Rating 4 out of 5]

من افضل الكتب في شرح النماذج السعرية بشكل مفصل ودقيق

مفيد جداً

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Each trader has an opinion as to if chart pattern exists I saw several that I would never trade on for the simple reason that it more imagination than a pattern. I saw several that I would say were clearly labeled incorrectly, and I am a CMT, so not a novice. As the book was written from the viewpoint of a certain time in the market, it is quite obvious that in another market these patterns would not hold up nearly as well, or might be much better.....Good work, but gads, don't bet a lot of money on this analysis. Do you own homework. Find your own trading methods. This book, as most investment books, a nugget or two exists within the pages....if one is lucky, they see it. I've read around 200 plus investment books, and hold that about 1-3% of what is written is worth putting into the memory bank.

[Tadas Talaikis · Rating 1 out of 5]

I would only provide one informed quote:

"It is clear (...) that for the stock market, the odds of a gain in any timeframe (...) are in favor of charlatan analysts.

We are not talking only about charlatans who pose as technical analysts in front of a crowd of uninformed individuals that never take the time to do simple statistical analysis of this sort.

We are also talking about highly paid professional analysts that every quarter, or year, claim that the market will go up when they know the odds are overwhelmingly in their favor." Michael Harris

[Aleksey Zhdanov]

"This is a must-have reference on every trader’s desk. It goes in-depth into every chart pattern, with statistical data and details like when they are most effective and under which conditions. This edition is great because Bulkowski added a section on special event patterns that occur after volatility-causing events like upgrades and earnings announcements. I always keep this book handy even after years of trading."