Most Requested Symbols
Daily Summary
Q2 2026 Technical Earnings Review
With the majority of S&P 500 (SPX) companies having released their 2026 Q2 earnings report, today, we wanted to review how stocks behaved based on their technical rating.
Morning Pulse
NDW Morning Pulse - August 28, 2026
- Big tech was lifted higher after positive news from Nvidia (more on that later), as the Nasdaq-100 (NDX) rose 1.4% on the day. That said, breadth was limited to technology for the most part, as the Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) was the lone major sector SPDR fund to rise on the day.
- NVDA reported earnings on Wednesday evening, allowing the stock to rise 8.7% on Thursday. The 3 for 5’er completed a bullish catapult at $228, triggering its second consecutive buy signal. NVDA is now just 3-4% away from its highs from earlier this year.
- Within the broader technology sector, it was software, not semiconductors, that led the way to the upside. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF rose over 3%, but the iShares North American Tech-Software ETF (IGV) stole the show, rising more than 7.7%—its strongest single-day gain since the Tariff Tantrum bottom in 2025. The group was helped by blowout earnings from CrowdStrike (CRWD), which rose over 20% on the day.
- For the sixth week in a row, there were more bearish than bullish respondents in AAII’s sentiment survey (AAIISPREAD). In fact, 44.4% of respondents thought the market would move lower over the next six months (AAIIBEARS), which is the most bearish the market has been since the start of June. Thankfully, bearish sentiment has historically been associated with stronger market returns.
- Participation within small and mid caps has waned recently. The bullish percents for the S&P Midcap 400 (BPSPMID) and S&P Smallcap 600 (BPSPSML) have dropped around 15% each over the last couple weeks, leaving them right above the 50% level. While their participation has weakened, both indicators remain in a normal range.
Below are highlights from the NDW Morning Update Video for the morning of 08/28. Access the video on the NDW Morning Update Video page.
- Big tech was lifted higher after positive news from Nvidia (more on that later), as the Nasdaq-100 (NDX) rose 1.4% on the day. That said, breadth was limited to technology for the most part, as the Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) was the lone major sector SPDR fund to rise on the day.
- NVDA reported earnings on Wednesday evening, allowing the stock to rise 8.7% on Thursday. The 3 for 5’er completed a bullish catapult at $228, triggering its second consecutive buy signal. NVDA is now just 3-4% away from its highs from earlier this year.
- Within the broader technology sector, it was software, not semiconductors, that led the way to the upside. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF rose over 3%, but the iShares North American Tech-Software ETF (IGV) stole the show, rising more than 7.7%—its strongest single-day gain since the Tariff Tantrum bottom in 2025. The group was helped by blowout earnings from CrowdStrike (CRWD), which rose over 20% on the day.
- For the sixth week in a row, there were more bearish than bullish respondents in AAII’s sentiment survey (AAIISPREAD). In fact, 44.4% of respondents thought the market would move lower over the next six months (AAIIBEARS), which is the most bearish the market has been since the start of June. Thankfully, bearish sentiment has historically been associated with stronger market returns.
- Participation within small and mid caps has waned recently. The bullish percents for the S&P Midcap 400 (BPSPMID) and S&P Smallcap 600 (BPSPSML) have dropped around 15% each over the last couple weeks, leaving them right above the 50% level. While their participation has weakened, both indicators remain in a normal range
With the majority of S&P 500 (SPX) companies having released their 2026 Q2 earnings report, today we wanted to review how stocks behaved based on their technical rating. For instance, did stocks with a high technical attribute (TA) rating beat fundamental analyst estimates more frequently than low TA stocks? Did high TA stocks behave better on their earnings date compared to low TA stocks? Were there more technical upgrades in certain sectors compared to others?
Before answering these questions, we should first give a brief overview of our ratings for those unfamiliar. Note that we will often use the terms technical attribute, attribute, and rating interchangeably. If you are a veteran, go ahead and skip to the “High Attributes vs. Low Attributes on Estimates” section.
For those still reading, every stock on our system is assigned a rating that ranges from 0 to 5. Stocks with an attribute of 2 or below are considered technically weak and, consequently, carry a sell rating. Stocks with a 3 rating are considered a hold, while those with a 4 or 5 attribute are given buy and strong buy ratings, respectively. Our studies show that high rated stocks, which carry a technical attribute of 3 or better, have historically outperformed stocks with low technical attribute ratings. Academics attribute this success to the momentum factor. It is a weird phenomenon, but it is as simple as stocks that have gone up the most in the past tend to keep going the most in the future.
By no means did we discover momentum — we merely provide an objective and quantifiable means to access the factor via our technical attributes. These ratings were not built with the intention of chasing near-term alpha nor should they be heavily relied upon for short-term trading; however, closely rated stocks tend to behave similarly in certain seasons — one of them being earnings season.
High Attributes vs. Low Attributes on Estimates
More stocks rated as a hold, buy, or strong buy (high technical attribute, 3+) heading into this earnings season beat fundamental analyst expectations compared to stocks rated as a sell (weak technical attribute, 2 or lower). In fact, 83% of high technical attribute stocks beat top line, mean fundamental analyst estimates sourced by FactSet and 88% beat bottom line estimates. This quarter, the percentage (70%) of low attribute stocks that beat top line estimates was 10% lower compared to Q1 2026, while beats against bottom line estimates for low attribute names remained stable quarter over quarter. The overall percentages/trends for Q2 2026 were mixed compared to Q1 of 2026, with a decrease in top & bottom-line beats among low attribute stocks, while percentages for high attribute remained largely the same as Q1 2026. Companies have numerous opportunities to manage their earnings per share via revenue recognition practices, depreciation/amortization decisions, funded statuses for pensions, changes in allowances/provisions for payments, etc. This quarter, top line estimates proved challenging for low attribute names, suggesting that either the bar for expectations was too high or low attribute names witnessed notable misses that sustained technical deterioration.
Technical Upgrades and Downgrades
Earnings season still brings surprises, often in the form of big share price reactions. After a large share price reaction, our technical attribute ratings can adjust. We call these changes in rating technical upgrades and technical downgrades. By our definition, a technical upgrade is when a stock gains an attribute, so a 1-rated stock moving up to a 2 would classify, just as a 4-attribute stock moving up to a 5 would classify. A technical downgrade is the opposite, so it counts whenever a stock loses an attribute rating.
It is important to recognize that just because a stock received a technical upgrade, it is not instantly a high attribute stock worth buying. Recall that a stock that was a 0 and became a 1 is classified as a technical upgrade. Also, note that the chart below does not show maintained ratings. So, a 5-attribute stock that had a positive earnings surprise is nowhere to be seen, just like a 0-attribute stock that may have experienced further downside. Nonetheless, interesting trends emerged. We pulled data as of August 26th, 2026.
Sector Highlights:
- Q2 saw five of the eleven sectors see more technical upgrades than downgrades with healthcare, industrials, and discretionary seeing the most upgrades. Healthcare remained the top sector this quarter with roughly a quarter of the sector seeing technical upgrades. The largest swing in technical upgrades belongs to industrials with 23% of stocks seeing upgrades, after seeing only 4% of stocks have technical upgrades in Q1 2026.
- Notable sectors to see decreases in technical upgrades from Q1 to Q2 were consumer staples and energy, with both sectors seeing zero upgrades in Q2 after seeing 12% and 5% in Q1.
- Six sectors saw more technical downgrades than upgrades, with materials witnessing the largest percentage of downgrades and change in downgrades from Q1 to Q2. Technology ranks 2nd in terms of technical downgrades, while consumer staples and energy saw notable increases in technical downgrades.
- The most improved stocks among the five sectors that saw the most notable technical upgrades following earnings were Airbnb (ABNB), Dexcom (DXCM), General Motors (GM), and General Dynamics (GD). Other notables to see improvement this quarter post earnings were Apollo Global (APO) and BlackRock (BLK).
- The stocks within the S&P 500 Index that witnessed the most notable technical downgrades were the TJX Companies (TJX) and Tapestry (TPR) – both of which fell from 4 TA ratings down to 2s.
Featured Charts:
Portfolio View - Major Market ETFs
| Symbol | Name | Price | Yield | PnF Trend | RS Signal | RS Col. | Fund Score | 200 Day MA | Weekly Mom |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DIA | State Street SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust | 535.22 | 1.37 | Positive | Sell | X | 4.30 | 496.88 | + 1W |
| EEM | iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF | 67.61 | 1.94 | Positive | Buy | O | 4.00 | 61.37 | + 2W |
| EFA | iShares MSCI EAFE ETF | 108.02 | 3.08 | Positive | Sell | X | 4.22 | 101.23 | + 5W |
| IJH | iShares S&P MidCap 400 Index Fund | 76.65 | 1.18 | Positive | Buy | O | 4.29 | 71.41 | - 1W |
| IJR | iShares S&P SmallCap 600 Index Fund | 146.78 | 1.13 | Positive | Sell | X | 4.39 | 133.06 | - 7W |
| QQQ | Invesco QQQ Trust | 721.11 | 0.46 | Positive | Buy | O | 4.42 | 654.71 | + 2W |
| RSP | Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF | 221.45 | 1.49 | Positive | Sell | O | 3.41 | 202.69 | + 3W |
| SPY | State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust | 771.10 | 1.01 | Positive | Buy | X | 5.05 | 709.41 | + 4W |
| XLG | Invesco S&P 500 Top 50 ETF | 62.66 | 0.67 | Positive | Sell | O | 2.93 | 59.72 | + 5W |
Average Level
24.02
| < - -100 | -100 - -80 | -80 - -60 | -60 - -40 | -40 - -20 | -20 - 0 | 0 - 20 | 20 - 40 | 40 - 60 | 60 - 80 | 80 - 100 | 100 - > |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| < - -100 | -100 - -80 | -80 - -60 | -60 - -40 | -40 - -20 | -20 - 0 | 0 - 20 | 20 - 40 | 40 - 60 | 60 - 80 | 80 - 100 | 100 - > |
| AGG | iShares US Core Bond ETF |
| USO | United States Oil Fund |
| DIA | SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF |
| DVY | iShares Dow Jones Select Dividend Index ETF |
| DX/Y | NYCE U.S.Dollar Index Spot |
| EFA | iShares MSCI EAFE ETF |
| FXE | Invesco CurrencyShares Euro Trust |
| GLD | SPDR Gold Trust |
| GSG | iShares S&P GSCI Commodity-Indexed Trust |
| HYG | iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF |
| ICF | iShares Cohen & Steers Realty ETF |
| IEF | iShares Barclays 7-10 Yr. Tres. Bond ETF |
| LQD | iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corp. Bond ETF |
| IJH | iShares S&P 400 MidCap Index Fund |
| ONEQ | Fidelity Nasdaq Composite Index Track |
| QQQ | Invesco QQQ Trust |
| RSP | Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF |
| IWM | iShares Russell 2000 Index ETF |
| SHY | iShares Barclays 1-3 Year Tres. Bond ETF |
| IJR | iShares S&P 600 SmallCap Index Fund |
| SPY | SPDR S&P 500 Index ETF Trust |
| TLT | iShares Barclays 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF |
| GCC | WisdomTree Continuous Commodity Index Fund |
| VOOG | Vanguard S&P 500 Growth ETF |
| VOOV | Vanguard S&P 500 Value ETF |
| EEM | iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF |
| XLG | Invesco S&P 500 Top 50 ETF |
Long Ideas
| Symbol | Company | Sector | Current Price | Action Price | Target | Stop | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ZION | Zions Bancorporation | Banks | $67.91 | mid-to-hi 60s | 87 | 55 | 4 for 5'er, top half of favored BANK sector matrix, new RS buy signal, buy on pullback, R-R~2.0, 2.5% yield |
| FR | First Industrial Realty Trust | Real Estate | $62.39 | mid-to-hi 60s | 86 | 59 | 4 for 5'er, top 25% of REAL sector matrix, LT pos peer RS, spread sextuple top, R-R>2.0, 2.9% yield |
| FITB | Fifth Third Bancorp | Banks | $54.85 | mid to upper 50s | 84 | 46 | 4 for 5'er since March '24, pos. LT Peer RS since March '09, LT pos. trend since Dec. '23. |
| HIG | Hartford Insurance Group Inc/The | Insurance | $137.80 | hi 130s - 140s | 164 | 126 | 5 for 5'er, LT pos peer & mkt RS, bullish catapult, good R-R, 1.65% yield |
| BNY | Bank of New York Mellon Corporation | Banks | $162.24 | low 150s to 160 | 192 | 130 | 5 for 5'er since Sept. '24, top 10% of Banks matrix, LT peer and mkt RS, Pos. trend since Nov. '23. |
| GD | General Dynamics Corporation | Aerospace Airline | $380.06 | 380s - low 390s | 424 | 340 | 4 for 5'er, Pos. ST Peer RS, Pos. LT & ST Mkt RS, Pos. trend and buy signal since June, ATH 7/29. |
| TXRH | Texas Roadhouse, Inc. | Restaurants | $200.12 | 190s - 200s | 262 | 172 | 5 for 5'er, top half of favored REST sector matrix, LT pos peer & mkt RS, good R-R, 1.4% yield |
| GHRS | GH Research Plc | Biomedics/Genetics | $28.66 | 28 - 33 | 46.50 | 24 | 5 for 5'er, LT Mkt. since Feb. '25, top quintile of Bio. matrix, matched chart high on 8/7. |
| GSL | Global Ship Lease Inc. | Transports/Non Air | $44.99 | low 40s | 55 | 35 | 4 for 5'er, favored TRAN sector, LT pos mkt RS, R-R~2.0, 6% yield |
| SXT | Sensient Technologies Corporation | Chemicals | $133.64 | 124 - 132 | 176 | 106 | 4 for 5'er, Pos. LT Peer RS, Top 5 of Chemicals matrix, Pos. Trend since 4/26, ATH on 8/6. |
| MLI | Mueller Industries Inc | Metals Non Ferrous | $64.18 | low-to-mid 60s | 104 | 53 | 5 for 5'er, top third of META sector matrix, LT pos peer & mkt RS, spread triple top, buy on pullback, R-R~3.0 |
| CAH | Cardinal Health, Inc. | Drugs | $235.13 | 224 - mid 240s | 334 | 188 | 4/5 TA rating, top 50% of DRUG sector matrix, LT RS buy, consec buy signals, buy-on-pullback |
| AME | Ametek Inc | Electronics | $243.67 | mid 230s - mid 250s | 342 | 204 | 4 for 5'er, LT pos mkt RS, bullish catapult, buy on pullback, R-R>2.0 |
| WAB | Wabtec Inc. | Transports/Non Air | $297.28 | hi 280s to hi 300s | 344 | 248 | 5 for 5'er since Apr. '25, Top quintile of Trans. matrix, Pos. trend since June '23. |
| CART | Maplebear Inc. | Retailing | $50.48 | hi 40s - low 50s | 68 | 42 | 4 for 5'er, top 25% of RETA sector matrix, peer RS buy, one box from mkt RS buy, bullish catapult, R-R>2.0 |
| WELL | Welltower Inc. | Real Estate | $239.60 | low 230s to low 250s | 366 | 194 | 5 for 5'er since Feb. '24, top quintile of Real Est. matrix, Pos. trend since Feb. '24, buy on pullback. |
| CENTA | Central Garden & Pet Company | Household Goods | $37.74 | mid-to-hi 30s | 48 | 31 | 4 for 5'er, favored HOUS sector, LT pos peer RS, spread quad top, buy on pullback |
Short Ideas
| Symbol | Company | Sector | Current Price | Action Price | Target | Stop | Notes |
|---|
Removed Ideas
| Symbol | Company | Sector | Current Price | Action Price | Target | Stop | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAMI | Acadian Asset Management Inc. | Wall Street | $97.31 | low to mid 90s | 122 | 78 | AAMI has moved into heavily overbought territory. OK to hold here. Maintain $78 stop. |
Follow-Up Comments
| Comment | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||||||
NDW Spotlight Stock
CENTA Central Garden & Pet Company R ($37.88) - Household Goods - CENTA is a 4 for 5'er and member of the favored household goods sector that has been on a peer RS buy signal since 2022. On its default chart, the stock has completed three consecutive buy signals, most recently completing a spread quadruple top at $38, which took out resistance that had been in place since late 2024. The stock has subsequently pulled back to that resistance, offering an entry for long exposure. Positions may be added in the mid-to-upper $30s and we will set our initial stop at $31, which would take out two levels of support on CENTA's default chart. We will use the bullish price objective, $48, as our target price.'
| 25 | 26 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 41.00 | X | • | 41.00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 40.00 | X | O | • | 8 | 40.00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 39.00 | X | X | O | • | X | O | 39.00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 38.00 | X | O | X | O | • | • | • | X | O | Mid | 38.00 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 37.00 | X | O | 5 | O | • | X | • | X | • | X | 6 | O | 37.00 | ||||||||||||||||
| 36.00 | 2 | O | X | 6 | C | O | • | X | O | • | X | O | X | 36.00 | |||||||||||||||
| 35.00 | X | 4 | X | O | X | X | X | O | X | • | X | O | • | X | X | X | O | X | • | 35.00 | |||||||||
| 34.00 | X | O | O | X | O | X | O | X | O | X | O | X | 8 | 9 | • | X | O | X | O | X | O | • | 34.00 | ||||||
| 33.00 | O | X | O | X | O | X | O | 2 | O | 7 | O | X | O | • | X | O | X | O | X | • | 33.00 | ||||||||
| 32.00 | • | 7 | 8 | X | 9 | B | 1 | X | O | X | O | X | O | X | 2 | 3 | X | 5 | • | Bot | 32.00 | ||||||||
| 31.00 | • | O | O | X | O | X | O | X | O | O | X | O | X | 4 | • | 31.00 | |||||||||||||
| 30.00 | • | A | X | O | • | 4 | X | • | O | B | O | X | • | 30.00 | |||||||||||||||
| 29.00 | O | X | • | O | X | • | A | X | C | • | 29.00 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 28.00 | O | • | 5 | • | O | X | • | 28.00 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 27.00 | • | • | O | X | • | 27.00 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 26.00 | O | • | 26.00 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 25 | 26 |
| DAL Delta Air Lines Inc. ($80.20) - Aerospace Airline - DAL broke a spread triple bottom at $80 for a second sell signal and to violate the bullish support line, shifting the trend to negative. This will cause DAL to drop to a 4 for 5'er and place the market RS chart within one box of reversing down into Os. From here, support lies at $77, while additional can be found in the mid to upper $60 range. |
| TER Teradyne, Inc. ($358.93) - Semiconductors - Shares of TER fell on Friday, breaking a double bottom at $356 for its second consecutive sell signal. The 4 for 5'er is currently testing is bullish support line at $352, below which it would move into a negative trend. While TER remains a buy for now, investors should watch the name closely given its precarious positioning. |
The option suggestions featured here are pulled from the NDW Options Ideas tool. These are just a sample of the ideas that can be found there. The Options Idea tool contains numerous additional income and speculative plays. It also offers relative strength-based screens targeting the highest (and lowest) relative strength stocks and ETFs that have recently moved counter to their longer-term trend. To access or subscribe to the Options Ideas tool, click here.
Call
Apple Inc (AAPL) Nov 20 $315 Call
| Additional Data: | |
| Bid/Ask Spread | 4.36% |
| Delta | 59.71 |
| Gamma | 0.95 |
| Implied Volatility | 26.29% |
| Expiry Date | 84 |
| Earnings Date | 10/29/2026 |
Put
Carvana Company (CVNA) Nov 20 $75 Put
| Additional Data: | |
| Bid/Ask Spread | 4.47% |
| Delta | -44.54 |
| Gamma | 1.75 |
| Implied Volatility | 63.95% |
| Expiry Date | 84 |
| Earnings Date | 10/28/2026 |
Income
Fortinet Inc (FTNT) Sep 25 $155 Short Put
| Additional Data: | |
| Ann. Static Return | 32.15% |
| Bid/Ask Spread | 52.03% |
| Delta | 26.79 |
| Gamma | -1.54 |
| Implied Volatility | 42.72% |
| Expiry Date | 27 |
| Earnings Date | 11/4/2026 |
