Scan using indicator value of a specific stock or index

curryscott

I'd like to create a scan that uses the current indicator of a specific stock or index. For example scan for stocks that have an ATR(14) > ATR(14) of the $SPX. Is this kind of scan possible?

markd

Unfortunately, you cannot write a scan that directly compares the indicator value of one symbol to others.

However, there are two alternative approaches.

One is, get the value for the indicator, and plug that value into your scan each time you run it.

The other is, limit your scan to a list (up to 500 symbols), and include $SPX in that list. Rank the results by your indicator. Symbols that appear above $SPX in the results list have a larger indicator value than $SPX.

Note that the result is meaningful as a comparison between symbols only if the indicator is normalized (expressed on a per cent scale). For instance, ATR is expressed in points, not per cents, so higher priced symbols with have larger ranges.

curryscott

Thanks Markd! i've been using the first approach and will look into your second suggestion .

lmkwin

Using the Rank by function in a scan is a great method.

If you already have a list, you can also use the Summary and Number in Sorted Order function, for different specified time periods, in the Summary list view for a generalized view of the "performance". The Summary view doesn't really show indicators though, other than SCTR.