5 Big Stocks to Trade for Gains

Xcel Energy

Last up this week is Xcel Energy (XEL), a $13 billion utility stock that's showing traders a bullish pattern of its own this week. XEL is forming a rounding bottom (also sometimes called a saucer pattern), a setup that indicates a gradual shift in control from sellers to buyers. As the name implies, rounding bottoms typically happen when a stock bottoms after a downtrend, but they can also occur after a rally. Don't get harangued by the terminology -- instead, focus on XEL's breakout level.

The time to buy comes when XEL pushes above resistance at $27.50, the price where this stock's uptrend got reversed and the saucer started forming.

In the near-term, XEL has hit some resistance at $27. That means that it's likely XEL will make the move from $27 to $27.50 rather quickly. With shares testing $27 this week, it's going to be important to keep a close eye on this name from this point on. The $26 mark is a good place to put a protective stop once this trade triggers.

To see this week's trades in action, check out the High Volume Technicals portfolio on Stockpickr.

-- Written by Jonas Elmerraji in Baltimore.

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At the time of publication, author had no positions in stocks mentioned.

Jonas Elmerraji is the editor and portfolio manager of the Rhino Stock Report, a free investment advisory that returned 15% in 2008. He is a contributor to numerous financial outlets, including Forbes and Investopedia, and has been featured in Investor's Business Daily, in Consumer's Digest and on MSNBC.com.

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