A dash (—)
Everywhere- What it is
- Wherever a value was not computed — a feed was down, a basis was not measured, a report carried no outlook — the site prints a dash.
- How to use it
- A dash is information: it tells you the read is thinner here. It is not an error.
- What it cannot tell you
- It cannot tell you why the value is missing. The data-health line at the foot of a plan sometimes can.
Above / Below
Dashboard · Market update- What it is
- Two short lines: what the desk expects if the index trades ABOVE a named level, and what it expects BELOW it. The level is the one that flips the read.
- How to use it
- Watch that level. When price is on the other side of it, the stance line above no longer applies as written.
- What it cannot tell you
- A level is where the read changes, not where price will stop. It can be crossed and re-crossed several times in a session.
ATR
Dashboard · Trade plans · Technicals- What it is
- The average of the last 14 days' daily ranges (high to low, including gaps).
- How to use it
- A stop closer than about half an ATR is inside normal noise and will be hit by chance. Targets more than 2–3 ATR away are ambitious for one day.
- What it cannot tell you
- It is an average. On a catalyst day the real range is often two or three times the ATR.
Barometer reading
Barometer- What it is
- Each indicator is scored against where it stood before the crashes of 1929, 2000, 2008 and 2020, then weighted and combined. Under 33 is benign, 33–60 elevated, above 60 pre-crash territory.
- How to use it
- Use it for sizing and for how much cash to hold — pressure for the month, not a signal for the day.
- What it cannot tell you
- Several of the inputs lag by months and one (the drawdown) can only confirm what already happened. A high reading can persist for a year before anything breaks.
Behaviour read
Earnings- What it is
- An AI read across all of a name's past reports: what it usually does on the day, the day after, and over the next week; how often it closes higher; the typical size of the move.
- How to use it
- Use the base rates to size expectations: a name that has reversed its opening gap in 7 of 10 reports deserves patience on day 1.
- What it cannot tell you
- A pattern in ten reports is a tendency, not a law. The sample fit note says whether today's gap even resembles the past ones.
Benign / Elevated / Pre-crash
Barometer- What it is
- Green means the indicator is inside its normal range; orange means it is at levels that preceded past crises; red means it is at or beyond them.
- How to use it
- Count the reds. Three red indicators out of seventeen is a very different picture from ten.
- What it cannot tell you
- Bands are set on history. An indicator can be red for a long time without a crash — and 2020's crash came with several of them green.
Bullish share
Option flow- What it is
- Bullish premium divided by total premium across the whole watchlist, as a percentage.
- How to use it
- It is the board's mood in one number. Above 60% is a decidedly bullish tape; below 40%, decidedly bearish.
- What it cannot tell you
- It is dollar-weighted, so one enormous trade in one name can swing it. Read it beside the count of names on each side.
Catalyst
Dashboard · Graded movers- What it is
- The story behind a gap: what happened, when, and whether it was a beat, a miss, a downgrade, a contract, a secondary offering, a sympathy move…
- How to use it
- Two stocks up 9% are not the same trade if one raised its outlook and the other announced a share sale. Read the catalyst before the percentage.
- What it cannot tell you
- The catalyst is found by the desk's AI from the news it can reach. A move it cannot explain is graded low rather than guessed at.
Confidence
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- Arithmetic over the plan's own fields, 20 points per part, minus penalties for feeds that failed and a cap when the trade goes against every directional read. Bands: 70+ high, 50–69 medium, under 50 low.
- How to use it
- Open the breakdown. A 62 that is weak on 'levels' is a different trade from a 62 that is weak on 'direction' — you can disagree with one part and keep the rest.
- What it cannot tell you
- It is not a probability of winning. It is a consistency check on the plan's evidence, and it is deliberately NOT an AI opinion — the AI's own second look lives in the plan text.
Congress trades
Political catalysts- What it is
- Every disclosed transaction, counted by ticker: how many buys, how many sells, and by whom.
- How to use it
- Read it beside a political call. A name being talked up in Washington while members are net sellers is a different picture from one they are buying.
- What it cannot tell you
- Disclosures arrive up to 45 days after the trade and give a range, not a size. It is a pattern signal, not a live one.
Conviction
Political catalysts- What it is
- The desk's own score for the link between a statement and a name. Most reads land under 30 — politics touches sectors more often than single companies.
- How to use it
- Above 30 is worth a look; the call (long / short / watch) beside it says which way.
- What it cannot tell you
- It measures relevance, not likelihood. A statement can be highly relevant and never become policy.
Data health
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- A line at the foot of each plan listing every source it tried — levels, flow, dealer positioning, whale reads — and whether each was fresh, stale, or down.
- How to use it
- A plan built with a feed down is a thinner read. The confidence score already docks it; this line tells you which part to distrust.
- What it cannot tell you
- A feed being up does not make its number right; it only means the plan was not written blind.
Day 1 / Day 2
Dashboard · Graded movers- What it is
- The movers board has two tabs. Day 1 is the fresh catalyst. Day 2 shows the same names a session later, so you can see whether the move held.
- How to use it
- Day 2 is where many gap trades actually set up: a name that gapped up and held its Day 1 range is a different animal from one that gave it all back.
- What it cannot tell you
- Day 2 rows are written before the second session opens, from the first session's close. They do not update intraday.
Economic prints
Dashboard · Economic calendar- What it is
- The high-impact releases of the session (payrolls, CPI, ISM…) with the actual number, the forecast, and a one-line read of what the result meant for the index.
- How to use it
- A number that beats or misses the forecast is only half the story — the read says which way the index took it. A hot inflation print is 'above forecast' and bearish at the same time.
- What it cannot tell you
- The read is written minutes after the print. How the market digests it over the day can differ from the first reaction.
Entry
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- The planned price of the trade. Often 'the level' itself — the trigger and the entry are the same price.
- How to use it
- If price has run well past the entry by the time you see it, the risk/reward has changed. Recalculate or skip.
- What it cannot tell you
- An entry is a plan price, not a fill. Real fills are worse than plans by the spread and the slippage.
Fair value
Dashboard · Graded movers- What it is
- A price estimate written into the catalyst read, using the new numbers and the company's history.
- How to use it
- Compare it with the last price: a stock well below a credible fair value after a beat may have room; one above it after a miss may not have finished falling.
- What it cannot tell you
- It is a quick read, not a valuation model. Treat it as a direction, never as a target.
Grade
Dashboard · Graded movers, Trade plans- What it is
- A 1–10 score of the news behind a move: how material it is, how surprising, and whether it changes the company's earnings power. 8+ is a real catalyst; 4 and below is noise or a sympathy move.
- How to use it
- Use it to decide how much attention a name deserves. A 9/10 that gapped 3% is more interesting than a 3/10 that gapped 12%.
- What it cannot tell you
- The grade scores the NEWS, not the trade. A 9/10 catalyst can still be fully priced by the open. It says nothing about levels, timing or risk.
Guidance
Dashboard · Graded movers, Trade plans; Earnings- What it is
- Companies report the last quarter's numbers AND an outlook for the next one. This chip grades only the outlook, against consensus. It is kept separate from the numbers on purpose.
- How to use it
- 'Beat the quarter, guided light' is the most tradeable shape there is and it disappears if the two are blended into one word. Read the guide NEXT TO the numbers.
- What it cannot tell you
- Only earnings and guidance events carry this chip. A dash means the story was not about an outlook, not that the outlook was fine.
Implied move
Dashboard · Graded movers- What it is
- Before a report, option prices imply an expected size of move (either direction). 'Actual' is what the stock then did.
- How to use it
- An actual move much bigger than the implied one means the market was surprised — those moves tend to carry further. Much smaller means the report was a non-event.
- What it cannot tell you
- The implied move is a size, not a direction, and it is only shown for names that reported.
Key levels
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- A short list of prices with how strong each is (1–10), which timeframe it comes from (D/W/M/Q) and how many days have traded into it.
- How to use it
- A plan is anchored on one of these. Weekly and monthly levels with high touch counts are the ones worth respecting; a daily level is a suggestion.
- What it cannot tell you
- Levels come from price history. A fresh catalyst can make the history irrelevant — that is what the grade and the setup checks are for.
Largest single orders
Option flow- What it is
- Each row is one order: the contract (strike and expiry), the premium paid, the stock price at the time, and the size against the contract's open interest.
- How to use it
- An order much larger than the existing open interest is a new position, not a roll. A near-dated, far-out-of-the-money strike is a bet on a fast move.
- What it cannot tell you
- You see the trade, not the trader. Whether it opens or closes a position is inferred, not known.
Net premium
Option flow- What it is
- Every option trade the feed sees is signed toward the bullish or bearish direction (buying calls or selling puts is bullish; buying puts or selling calls is bearish) and the dollars are summed.
- How to use it
- A large positive number means real money positioned for upside today. Compare it with the week: money that agrees with the trailing week is conviction; money that fights it is either a reversal or a hedge.
- What it cannot tell you
- It cannot tell a bet from a hedge. A fund buying puts against a stock it owns shows as bearish premium. Size is meaningful; intent is inferred.
No-trade zone
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- Two prices. While the stock is between them, neither scenario is live.
- How to use it
- It is the plan telling you to wait. Trades taken inside the band are guesses.
- What it cannot tell you
- Price can sit in the band all day. A no-trade zone is a valid outcome, not a failure of the plan.
Pre / Post
Earnings calendar- What it is
- The reporting slot. Pre-market reporters gap at the open; after-close reporters gap the NEXT morning.
- How to use it
- A Post reporter's move is tradeable tomorrow, not today. A Pre reporter's is live at 9:30.
- What it cannot tell you
- Unconfirmed dates (marked ?) are estimates from the data source and can move by days.
R:R
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- (Target − Entry) ÷ (Entry − Stop). It is the geometry of the trade, independent of position size.
- How to use it
- Below about 1.5:1 you need to be right very often to come out ahead. Above 3:1 you can be wrong most of the time and still profit.
- What it cannot tell you
- A huge R:R usually means a stop inside the day's normal noise — it flatters the ratio by measuring the risk too small. The confidence score docks points for exactly that.
Regime
Dashboard · Market update- What it is
- A label for how the index is likely to behave, derived from how option dealers are positioned: whether their hedging damps moves (range-bound) or accelerates them (trending, squeezy).
- How to use it
- In a damping regime, fades at the edges of a range tend to work; in an accelerating one, breakouts do. Match the type of trade to the regime.
- What it cannot tell you
- Dealer positioning is a snapshot and it changes through the day as options trade. The label describes the open, not the whole session.
RSI 14
Dashboard · Trade plans · Technicals- What it is
- A momentum gauge from the last 14 days of gains against losses.
- How to use it
- A stretched reading argues for smaller size on trades in the direction of the stretch, not against taking them.
- What it cannot tell you
- Strong trends stay 'overbought' for weeks. RSI alone is not a reason to fade.
RVOL
Dashboard · Graded movers- What it is
- The stock's volume so far, divided by what it typically does by this point in the day.
- How to use it
- A big move on low volume is fragile; on high volume it has participation behind it. Above ~2x is meaningful.
- What it cannot tell you
- Early in the session the base is small and the ratio swings. It measures interest, not direction.
Scenario
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- A single trade idea: a side (long or short), the condition that triggers it, and the prices that define it.
- How to use it
- Most plans are only ever traded through one scenario. Pick the one whose trigger actually happens; ignore the other.
- What it cannot tell you
- Two scenarios on one name are not a contradiction — they are 'here is what to do in either case.'
Sentiment
Dashboard · Graded movers- What it is
- The direction the catalyst implies for the stock, judged from the news alone — before looking at how the stock actually reacted.
- How to use it
- When sentiment and the move disagree (bullish news, stock down) that gap IS the story. Look for why.
- What it cannot tell you
- It is a read of the news, not a prediction. Bullish news that is already priced in produces no move at all.
Setup grade
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- A letter from four checks: a strong catalyst, price at a key level, the market aligned with the direction, and a prior-week break. More checks passed, higher letter.
- How to use it
- A = full size, B = reduced, C = small or skip. The grade answers 'how big', not 'whether'.
- What it cannot tell you
- It says nothing about whether the SCENARIO is good — that is what the confidence score is for. A grade-A ticker can carry a weak scenario.
SMA 20 / 50 / 200
Dashboard · Trade plans · Technicals- What it is
- Three averages that many traders and funds use as reference lines. Price above all three is an uptrend; below all three, a downtrend.
- How to use it
- They act as soft support or resistance because so many people watch them. A plan that trades toward one should expect a pause there.
- What it cannot tell you
- A moving average lags price by construction. It confirms a trend; it never predicts a turn.
Stance
Dashboard · Market update- What it is
- The one-word read the desk publishes after it builds the session — bullish, bearish or neutral — with the sentence of reasoning that produced it.
- How to use it
- It sets the backdrop for everything below it. A long idea on a bearish day needs a stronger reason than a long idea on a bullish one.
- What it cannot tell you
- It is a read on the INDEX, not on any single stock, and it was written before the open. A big print or a headline at 10am can make it stale.
Stop
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- The exit price if the trade goes against you. Placed beyond the level that would invalidate the setup.
- How to use it
- Size the position from the distance between entry and stop, so that a stop-out costs an amount you decided in advance.
- What it cannot tell you
- A stop limits a loss; it does not eliminate one. Gaps and fast markets can fill you worse than the stop price.
Surprise %
Earnings- What it is
- (Actual EPS − consensus EPS) ÷ |consensus|, as a percentage, per report.
- How to use it
- Read it with the guidance chip and the realised move. A beat that sold off tells you the beat was expected — or the guide was the problem.
- What it cannot tell you
- The surprise is on the headline number only. Revenue, margins and the outlook move stocks at least as much.
Target 1 / Target 2
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- Two prices on the profitable side. Many traders close part of the position at T1 and let the rest run to T2 with the stop moved up.
- How to use it
- T1 is usually set just in front of the next obstacle — a wall of option positioning or a key level — so it is the more reliable of the two.
- What it cannot tell you
- Targets are where the plan EXPECTS resistance, not where price must stop. A move can fail before T1 or run through T2.
The week
Option flow- What it is
- Net premium summed across the last week for each name, with a mark showing whether today confirms it or goes the other way.
- How to use it
- Today with the week is persistence. Today against the week is the interesting row — something changed.
- What it cannot tell you
- A week is short. It shows recent positioning, not a long-term view.
Trade plan
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- A plan the desk's AI writes only for names whose catalyst graded high enough. Each has one or more scenarios (long, short, or both) with concrete prices.
- How to use it
- Read the scenario as a sentence: 'If it does X, enter at Y, stop at Z, take profit at T1 and T2.' If X does not happen, there is no trade.
- What it cannot tell you
- A plan is written before the open from pre-market prices. It is a framework, not an instruction. Nothing on this site is investment advice.
Trigger
Dashboard · Trade plans- What it is
- A specific event, like '5-minute close above the level' or 'reclaim of the pre-market high'. Until it happens the plan is only a plan.
- How to use it
- Wait for it. Entering because you expect the trigger is a different, worse trade than the one written.
- What it cannot tell you
- A trigger can fire and fail. That is what the stop is for.
Updated / captured
Everywhere- What it is
- Each board carries the time it was built or refreshed. A board older than its normal cadence says so in a yellow strip.
- How to use it
- Read the stamp before the number. A flow board from 2pm is the session's record, not the current tape.
- What it cannot tell you
- Fresh is not the same as right. The stamp tells you WHEN, never how good.
Whale positioning
Option flow · Where the whales sit- What it is
- A read of the biggest open option positions per stock: the net dollars, and the strikes above and below the current price carrying the most of it.
- How to use it
- Those strikes act like magnets and walls. A plan's target is often set just in front of one. Whether today's flow agrees with the whales is shown beside it.
- What it cannot tell you
- Each reading carries its own date — some are days old — and a large holder's intent is unknown. It is context for levels, not a signal on its own.