5 Big Stocks to Trade for Gains

Cisco

Not all of the setups we're looking at today are bullish. Our sole short-side setup is IP networking firm Cisco (CSCO), which has been acting out a comedy of errors over the last few years, missing earnings consistently, getting embroiled in stories of unsavory business practices, and becoming known to traders as a stock that likes to gap.

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Whatever you may think of Cisco fundamentally, those facts haven't helped this stock win over any upside momentum in 2012. And now, shares are definitively pointed lower.

That's because Cisco spend most of August and September forming a rounding top, a pattern that indicates a gradual shift in control of shares from buyers to sellers. The initial short signal came when CSCO broke down below support at $18.25, but with shares sitting at their next-lowest support level (S1 on the chart), there looks to be some more downside here. S2 at $15 is a stronger place for Cisco to historically catch a bid, and it may be the next downside target for this stock.

For that to happen, we'd need to see CSCO push down through S1. In the short-term, I'd expect to see a bit of sideways consolidation as sellers regroup. Wait for the S1 break if you want to ride shares to S2. Otherwise, prospective buyers would be well-advised to wait for Cisco to establish meaningful support before buying.

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