ChartSmarter Tuesday Game Plan 3/25/14

Markets began the week Monday on a weak note, and the Nasdaq once again took the brunt of the selling. We have been highlighting the concerns surrounding the leading Nasdaq’s frailty for some time now. Around 11am the index was close to going flat on a YTD basis, as it finished last week up 2.4% YTD. It was down 2% at its lows and seemed to find support at both the 50 day SMA and the round 4200 handle. The fragility came even with 2 of the top 3 components in the tech heavy benchmark rising 1%. AAPL and MSFT were beacons of strength and the popular names on the Nasdaq. Other names that sliced beneath their 50 day SMAs today were GOOG PCLN NFLX. Accumulation days on the Nasdaq have been a rare occurrence with the last one coming on 3/4 when the benchmark advanced 1.75%. Software and biotech groups continued their sloppy habits, as weak groups usually get weaker. Stocks like DATA SPLK PANW FEYE were all down at least 4%. The comfort of the utility sector once again came into play Monday. Curiously however some names in the group are acting off. Take for example ED which is on a 3 week losing streak down 6% over that time span and almost in its own personal bear market, lower by 17% from its most recent 52 week high. That is one juicy yield of close to 5% however.