Stock Market Barometers

Fundamental and technical indicators of the market’s health

A stock index’s 200-day moving average indicates the basic trend, up or down. It is generally bullish if the index stays above the average.

Key indexes vs. their 200-day moving averages:

S&P; 500 (blue-chip stocks), Friday: 1,012.46

200-day moving average: 922.51

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Russell 2,000 index (smaller stocks), Friday: 445.49

200-day moving average: 416.39

Price-to-earnings ratio of the Standard & Poor’s 500: 24.91

Based on actual earnings per share, 12 months ended Sept. 30

Average since 1923: 13.5

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Dividend yield of the Standard & Poor’s 500: 1.56%

Average dividend yield of blue-chip stocks

Average since 1923: 4.5%

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Weekly new highs vs. new lows on the NYSE: 478/64

Data for the week ended Friday. More highs than lows is preferable, indicating a bullish trend.

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Investment newsletter sentiment:

Stocks’ near-term trend as predicted by 135 independent investment newsletters, weekly survey by Investors Intelligence. The data are often viewed as a contrarian indicator: A rising percentage of bulls can signal a topping market.

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Jan. 30

Bullish: 43.5%

Bearish: 36.3

Correction: 20.2

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Friday

Bullish: 41.6%

Bearish: 35.2

Correction: 23.2

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Put-call ratio: 0.37

The ratio of stock put options to call options traded last week on the Chicago Board Options Exchange. A low put-call ratio--under 0.40--can be construed as bearish because it indicates a high level of optimism, leaving a lot of room for disappointment.

Source: A.G. Edwards & Sons. More information can be found at

https://www.agedwards.com on the World Wide Web.