A new era at IBD begins with the launch of MarketSurge, a makeover of the MarketSmith charting and research product that includes a new brand name, new logo and a number of new features. In short, MarketSurge is IBD's newest tool to help investors make money in the stock market.
The new product will launch Monday. With IBD now a part of the Dow Jones/News Corp family, we are upgrading the data infrastructure on the Dow Jones network to make sure that new features and tools are added faster than ever.
MarketSurge already boasts powerful research tools, including pattern recognition, screening capabilities, investing ideas and the list of stocks breaking out.
The Pattern Recognition tool helps you spot proven chart patterns by automatically recognizing them as they happen, then integrating them directly into MarketSurge charts.
The "Breaking Out Today" list overlays the Pattern Recognition functions over the Growth 250 (an institutional-quality list of top growth stocks) to create one list of top stocks that are hitting buy points in the stock market today.
New Features: Earnings Line, Earnings Estimates
There are a number of high-quality new features in MarketSurge, including the Earnings Line, the Ants Indicator and analyst earnings and sales estimates.
The Earnings Line arrives as the No. 1 most-requested feature by MarketSmith subscribers. It is a quarter-by-quarter plot of earnings per share designed to give you a visual representation of the quarterly earnings trend.
"Anyone who has ever heard (IBD founder) Bill O'Neil speak live has seen these plotted on charts," said MarketSurge Manager Scott St. Clair. "He would often use this to identify a potential change in earnings power if the line would turn up after going sideways to down for a number of quarters."
Meanwhile, MarketSurge is adding four quarters of forward earnings and sales estimates for every company. You will find them right next to eight quarters of past earnings and sales data. That will help you gauge the most important factor in winning stocks: earnings growth.
Intraday volume percentage change calculations are another upgrade in MarketSurge. The new method compares the 50-day average volume broken down minute by minute. This change will make the volume percentage change more realistic, especially in the early part of the session, when trading tends to surge.
How To Use The Ants Indicator In The Stock Market
Finally, the Ants Indicator identifies unusually strong price and volume action over a rolling three-week period. The indicator, developed by investing champ David Ryan while working as a portfolio manager at William O'Neil + Co., is a sign of bullish institutional demand and accumulation over a short period of time.
The Ants indicator will be marked on a daily chart by black marks ("ants"). "It is not a signal to rush out and buy the stock," cautioned St. Clair. "After a consolidation or resting period, these stocks could be potential big winners for you to research."
For example, stock market leader Sentinel One triggered this signal on Dec. 27. After topping around 28, there was a three-week pullback to the 10-week moving average that could have been your potential entry. Shares then rebounded above 30.
If you have questions about the transition to MarketSurge, check out the FAQ section. Subscribers also can reach the support team by phone at 800-831-2525 or via email or chat. To subscribe, email marketsurge@investors.com.
Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the stock market today.
