Small Buisness Optimism?
To be certain I am far from an economist and have zero interest in becoming one. But it is widely known that small business is very important as they generate nearly all net job gains. When this segment of the economy is healthy it could be a good sign overall. Some companies have their pulse on this theme better than other and below is the chart of CTAS which I have closely followed in this regard. They are primarily a uniform play, however, do a multitude of services for small businesses. Again I am strictly a technician and therefore believe the PRICE action of a chart can tell you a lot about the industry it is in and also where it can be going. CTAS is essentially UNCH YTD but trading right off all-time highs and last week (up 1.2% as the XLI dropped .1%) bullishly digested the big 11/11 week-ending gain of 8.1%. At the expense of sounding like a broken record, we favor names that never went on to touch their June-July lows. This name could be ready to set up an add-on on the way UP with a bull flag, something the leaders very often do.