Technical Analysis: The Complete Resource for Financial Market Technicians [Hardcover]

Already the field's most comprehensive, reliable, and objective guidebook, Technical Analysis, Second Edition has been thoroughly updated to reflect the field's latest advances. Selected by the Market Technicians Association as the official companion to its prestigious Chartered Market Technician (CMT) program, this book systematically explains the theory of technical analysis, presenting academic evidence both for and against it. Using hundreds of fully updated illustrations, the authors explain the analysis of both markets and individual issues, and present complete investment systems and portfolio management plans. They present authoritative, up-to-date coverage of tested sentiment, momentum indicators, seasonal affects, flow of funds, testing systems, risk mitigation strategies, and many other topics. This edition thoroughly covers the latest advances in pattern recognition, market analysis, and systems management. The authors introduce new confidence tests; cover increasingly popular methods such as Kagi, Renko, Kase, Ichimoku, Clouds, and DeMark indicators; present innovations in exit stops, portfolio selection, and testing; and discuss the implications of behavioral bias for technical analysis. They also reassess old formulas and methods, such as intermarket relationships, identifying pitfalls that emerged during the recent market decline. For traders, researchers, and serious investors alike, this is the definitive book on technical analysis.

Praise for the First Edition

“I’ve been reading technical analysis works for forty years. This is the first book on the subject worthy of being called both comprehensive and disciplined. It will be a great asset to both practitioners and serious students alike.”

--Phil Roth, CMT, Chief Technical Market Analyst, Miller Tabak + Co.

“The authors deftly straddle the divide between the artistic and the rigorous aspects of technical analysis. The publication of this text is an important financial-market event and the authors are to be congratulated.”

--John Bollinger, CFa, CMT, President, Bollinger Capital Management

“The authors have done a superb job of making the subject so understandable, setting goals for each chapter, and seeing they are met, with a concise summary at each chapter’s end. After four decades of practicing the subject, I am proud to place my colleagues’ book in a prominent spot in my technical analysis library.”

--Alan R. Shaw, CMT, former Managing Director, Smith Barney, second President of Market Technicians Association

“As both a technical analysis teacher and practitioner, I have long looked for a book that covers the subject from a practitioner’s perspective and at the same time meets a student’s need to learn a complete body of knowledge. Kirkpatrick’s and Dahlquist’s book is the first I have seen that hits the mark on both fronts.”

--Bruce M. Kamich, CMT, Adjunct Professor of Finance, Baruch College, and former President, Market Technicians Association

“This book is an excellent contribution to technical analysis literature. The authors are careful not to overstate the powers of technical analysis, and they include an appendix on statistical procedures and end-of-chapter review questions to empower the new technical analysis student. As either a stand-alone text or as a companion to other technical analysis books, this book should appear on every technician’s bookshelf.”

--Hank Pruden, Professor of Business and Executive Director, Institute for Technical Market Analysis, Ageno School of Business, and Golden Gate University

Technical Analysis is the primary book on the subject suitable for full-length courses taken to achieve the Chartered Market Technician (CMT) designation and series 86 exam exemption.

Already the field’s most comprehensive and reliable guidebook, Technical Analysis, Second Edition, has been fully updated to reflect the latest advances. Selected by the Market Technicians Association as the principal textbook for its prestigious Chartered Market Technician (CMT) program, this book systematically and objectively introduces the entire discipline.

Using hundreds of updated illustrations, the authors show how to analyze both markets and individual issues and present complete investment systems and portfolio plans. Readers learn how to use tested sentiment, momentum indicators, seasonal effects, flow of funds, and many other key techniques. Drawing on current research, the authors reveal which chart patterns and indicators remain the most reliable, demonstrate how to test systems, and show how to use technical analysis to mitigate risk.

This edition covers recent advances in pattern recognition, market analysis, systems management, and other areas. It introduces new confidence tests; innovations in exit stops, portfolio selection, and testing; and the implications of behavioral bias for technical analysis. The authors also reassess classic methods such as intermarket relationships and measurements of market strength, identifying pitfalls that have emerged in recent years.

• A coherent, updated treatment of the entire field
  Current principles, tools, techniques, and applications for both practitioners and students
• Does technical analysis really work?
  The history of technical analysis and the latest assessments of its value
• Identify specific investment opportunities and emerging trends
  Uncover promising securities, markets, shifts, and breakouts--and test your insights
• Take advantage of the latest techniques and research
  Apply recent innovations, as well as new insights into classic methods