Shares of Ramsay Health Care Ltd (RHC.AX) have been trending up over the past quarter, revealing solid bullish momentum for the equity, as they ran 10.92 over the past 13 weeks. Looking more nearterm, the stock moved 0.36% for the week. Looking slightly further out we note that the shares have moved 6.56% over the past 4-weeks, 2.62% over the past half year and -16.19% over the past full year.
As many veteran investors have already seen, market movements are extremely hard to accurately predict. Financial news outlets are always producing headlines and offering predictions for future market performance. Sometimes the predictions are right, and sometimes the predictions are wrong. Investors may have a hard time separating fact from fiction when it comes to bullish and bearish sentiment. Adjusting the portfolio based strictly on headlines can be tempting for the amateur investor. Filtering out the noise and focusing on the pertinent data can help keep the individual focused and on track. Straying from the plan and basing investment decisions on news headlines may lead to portfolio confusion down the road. Crunching the numbers and paying attention to the important economic data can greatly help the investor see through the smoke when markets get muddled.
Currently, the 14-day ADX for Ramsay Health Care Ltd (RHC.AX) is sitting at 18.33. Generally speaking, an ADX value from 0-25 would indicate an absent or weak trend. A value of 25-50 would support a strong trend. A value of 50-75 would identify a very strong trend, and a value of 75-100 would lead to an extremely strong trend. ADX is used to gauge trend strength but not trend direction. Traders often add the Plus Directional Indicator (+DI) and Minus Directional Indicator (-DI) to identify the direction of a trend.
Investors have the ability to use technical indicators when completing stock research. At the time of writing, Ramsay Health Care Ltd (RHC.AX) has a 14-day Commodity Channel Index (CCI) of 12.98. Developed by Donald Lambert, the CCI is a versatile tool that may be used to help spot an emerging trend or provide warning of extreme conditions. Moving averages have the ability to be used as a powerful indicator for technical stock analysis. Following multiple time frames using moving averages can help investors figure out where the stock has been and help determine where it may be possibly going. The simple moving average is a mathematical calculation that takes the average price (mean) for a given amount of time. Currently, the 7-day moving average is sitting at 57.96. Moving averages have the ability to be used as a powerful indicator for technical stock analysis. Interested traders may be keeping an eye on the Williams Percent Range or Williams %R. Williams %R is a popular technical indicator created by Larry Williams to help identify overbought and oversold situations. Ramsay Health Care Ltd (RHC.AX)’s Williams Percent Range or 14 day Williams %R currently sits at -54.51. In general, if the indicator goes above -20, the stock may be considered overbought. Alternately, if the indicator goes below -80, this may point to the stock being oversold.
Shifting gears to the Relative Strength Index, the 14-day RSI is currently sitting at 58.62, the 7-day is 58.58, and the 3-day is currently at 62.57 for Ramsay Health Care Ltd (RHC.AX). The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is a highly popular momentum indicator used for technical analysis. The RSI can help display whether the bulls or the bears are currently strongest in the market. The RSI may be used to help spot points of reversals more accurately. The RSI was developed by J. Welles Wilder. As a general rule, an RSI reading over 70 would signal overbought conditions. A reading under 30 would indicate oversold conditions. As always, the values may need to be adjusted based on the specific stock and market. RSI can also be a valuable tool for trying to spot larger market turns.
As we move closer towards the end of the year, investors may be undertaking a portfolio review. Reviewing trades over the past six months, investors should be able to see what has worked and what has not. There might be some stocks that have outperformed the market, and there might be some underperformers as well. Focusing on what has worked so far this year may help provide a clearer picture for future moves. Pinpointing what went wrong can also help the investor see which areas of the portfolio need improvement. If the stock market continues on to reach new heights, investors might be looking to lock in some profits before making the next big trade.