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Rollover: E-mini Steps for NinjaTrader

Every three months, futures traders need to perform a contract rollover. CME futures trading is structured in such a way that contracts expire on a quarterly cycle. In the months of March, June, September, and December, you will need to perform roll over steps to ensure that you’re trading an up to date contract. If not, your chart’s price activity will be inaccurate (among other problems).

Some trading platforms automatically roll over your contracts. Others specific a “continuous contract” where you simply don’t need to worry about doing anything – the contract is just always up to date. With NinjaTrader 8, the process has been made simpler, but a couple of steps are still involved.

Rollover Steps for NinjaTrader

  1. In NinjaTrader’s Control Center, go to Tools > Database Management
  2. The Database Management window should appear. Providing you are following these steps on or after the rollover date (see the list of dates here), the contracts needing a roll over should be listed. Click the Rollover button.
  3. Go back to your chart(s) and you should see the new contract periods. For example, your ES 03-18 chart should now appear as ES 06-18. Keep in mind that markets like the CL roll over more frequently, so it’s good to visit the Database Management window on a monthly basis just to roll over anything that may need it.

Some traders prefer to roll over later than the rollover date. This is because it can take a couple of days for the volume to transition to the new contract. If you want to try this approach, you can monitor the volume on this page.

These pictures will help guide you further:

How to Rollover E-mini 1 How to Rollover E-mini 2 How to Rollover E-mini 3

 

 

 

Stock Market Crash in 2018: Are We Recovering?

In late January, many media outlets said that the U.S. stock market was strong and resilient. Record highs were hit. Within a couple of weeks, the Dow experienced one of its largest losses ever. Many consider this to be a stock market crash. What happened?

Well, here are some of the possible explanations:

  • Investors were worried high interest rates, bond yields, and inflation, so a sell-off occurred
  • High frequency trading algorithms somehow caused the activity, perhaps by playing off one another or analyzing the markets and deciding that selling was the best option (a bug, development oversight, or maybe intentionally designed)
  • After the market rose to new levels since the 2016 election, it was simply time for the market to regulate and come back down to “normal” levels

We retail traders have been dealing with increased volatility during this time period, even through today. Much of the time, the E-mini’s ATR (Average True Range) has exceeded levels safe levels for day trading (based on our assessment rules). For example, when the ATR is between one and four points, trading conditions are acceptable. During this highly volatile time, we have seen the ATR push 20.

Stock Market Crash: What You Can Do

What can you do? Sit on your hands, experiment, or engage in higher-risk trading. You can’t control the market or the conditions that may have caused the volatility. Yes, our methods have found many excellent trades, but if you decide to jump in on one of our signals, be very careful. A fast-moving market can easily flip direction and tag you out. If you’re going to trade, jump into simulation mode for a while first and get a feel for what it would be like trading with a live account.

Interestingly, the 2018 January Effect seems to indicate that 2018 will be an up year. If that’s true (and there is basis for historical accuracy), then what does that mean for this period of bearish activity? Well, by watching the video above, the markets may now be on the rise. If that’s the case, you can use the January Effect method to get in before the market reaches new highs.

 

Performance Potential With E-mini

Were you successful with any trades yesterday? The Atlas Line called out a clear winner, totaling about +2.5 points or +10 ticks. This short trade occurred in the E-mini S&P market at about 10 a.m. EST. The signal was generated at the close of the candle at about 2869. At that time, the Average True Range (ATR) was about 2.56. This is where we get the +2.5 profit target (round down to the nearest whole-point). While the maximum profit target may have been double that, once you’re in a trade, the rules say to closely monitor real-time conditions and adjust the profit and stop loss as you go. In some instances, an unexpected news event can dramatically increase volatility. If that happens, you may want to cut your losses and get out sooner than later. Fortunately, this trade was a winner with good volatility.

When trading, getting in as close as possible to the signal price is recommended. In this trade, John Paul got in within a tick or so. If you were trading with five contracts, the profit would have been over $600. Of course, the amount of contracts one can trade with is impacting by one’s ability to properly fund a trading account. Practice is encouraged, then after exploring the risks of trading and consulting with a financial professional, starting off with one contract is probably the best option.

Performance, Risk, and Approach

Students who are new to the price action approach taught by DayTradeToWin may consider the following:

  • Reduce risk exposure by staying in a trade as little time as possible. Get in and hopefully get out with profit. The Atlas Line’s rules limit each trade to about 20 min. Often times, you’ll get out sooner.
  • Before the trading day begins, check the financial news schedule. Market-impacting events are published ahead of time. You may want to stay out until the volatility subsides.
  • Measure your trading success by looking at long-term performance. Look at each month and objectively compare the performance. NinjaTrader has an account performance feature that is useful in this regard. If you are unsatisfied, consider a new approach.

Bull Market – Don’t Always Believe the Trend

Traders have said how much they have enjoyed seeing videos of the ATO 2 and Atlas Line in use on one chart. Here is another recent video showing just that. The E-mini S&P is the market being traded here. The first signal that appears is an ATO 2 short. As John Paul has said previously, you take the first signal that appears. If you were in this trade and held onto it by the time the Atlas Line signal came, you could have placed another short or potentially increased your profit target. What’s interesting about this particular day is that many traders believed it was a bull market. Both of the DayTradeToWin.com indicators believed otherwise. When one trading system confirms another, John Paul believes there may be a better chance for profit. That said, no strategy or signal can guarantee profits. Trading is risky.

Don’t Be Baffled by Bull Markets

See the green line at the bottom of the chart? That’s the ATR (average true range). It’s what John Paul is using to calculate his profit target and stop loss. It’s also what he uses to measure volatility. When the ATR is between two and four points, the conditions are ideal for trading. Above or below that, it’s either too volatile (likely due to a news event) or too slow (perhaps no big market movers are trading, it’s after-hours, or the date is near a holiday). Look to the right of the ATR and you’ll see the current value in the price axis. With a period value of four for the indicator, the ATR says the profit target should be about two points. The rules for determining the profit target and stop loss are taught in the included live training.

Remember, a bullish market is expected if the January Effect applies. We will only know whether 2018 is a January Effect year by market close on January 31. In any case, you can always look for long and short trades using any of the trading methods taught in the eight-week Mentorship Program. All courses and software are included with lifetime licenses. Instead of having to travel to an office, DayTradeToWin.com brings the classroom to you. All lessons are live and are provided through an online trading room. Although John Paul is not calling out trades for you to take, he is teaching you how to be a trader first and foremost. If you want more time to review a particular topic, no worries. Because each class is recorded, you can always log in and watch a recording.

Free Trading Strategies: January Effect for 2018

Traders, on February 1, 2018, be sure to switch to a daily chart and take a look at January 2018’s price activity. If the month closes higher than its opening price (2675 on January 2), the January Effect will apply to 2018. The January Effect is one of the free trading strategies taught by DayTradeToWin.com. In short, the strategy says to expect the year to trend upward, with a higher closing price in December. This strategy applied to 2017, and sure enough, we saw record-breaking highs. In many videos, John Paul demonstrated entry opportunities when price retraced upward in compliance with the strategy rules.

Learning how to identify a compatible year is only part of what the January Effect entails. You will need to understand the trading rules as well. For that, go to about 7:00 into the video. Look for several consecutive days were price falls. When price begins to come back up, that’s a possible entry. To aid your discovery of the entry, consider using NinjaTrader’s Fibonacci tool. John Paul has a way of configuring it to show only the 0%, 50%, and 100% levels. As taught in the video, apply the tool from the recent high and low points. The 50% is the entry level. The market often revists prices previously reached. As price moves up to possibly test prior highs, that’s where you can jump in for the potential ride up. Of course, some free trading strategies (this one in particular) require the January Effect to be in effect first.

What’s Better Than Free Trading Strategies?

To see recent ATO 2 and Atlas Line signals, jump ahead to about 22:40 in the video. The strategies agreed that long was the way to go. The webinar attendees saw the signals. Clients who were using the same configuration received the same signals. Because the webinar was real-time, you can see the market move up over time. If John Paul had placed trades based on the signals, he likely would have been profitable. When conducting a webinar, focusing on teaching and placing trades can be difficult to do simultaneously. When presented with more than one DayTradeToWin trading system, he says to take the trade based on whatever signal comes first.

To get all the courses and software with lifetime licenses, join the next eight-week Mentorship Program. The goal is to minimize risk and maximize profit potential. If you have the will to learn, you can truly change the way you trade for 2018. By having a complete understanding of every method and encountering many types of market scenarios, you can be well-prepared for the opportunities we expect this year.

2018 Trading Strategies: ATO 2 & Atlas Line

What are the best 2018 trading strategies? We expect many great trading opportunities with the ATO 2, Atlas Line, Trade Scalper, and others. Generally, the first week of a new year has greater volatility, which means better trading in most cases. Also, by the end of the month, we will know if 2018 will be a year where we can use the January Effect strategy. Look for another post soon with the details. If 2018 will be anything like 2017, we can expect a trend up with many long retracement opportunities. For now, let’s focus on the ATO 2, Atlas Line, and our other trading strategies. In the video below, you will see how the ATO 2 and Atlas Line performed despite low volatility. The trade signals and video footage is for December 28, 2017. During the last week of the year, because of the holidays, the markets tend to be slower.


Want to be a pro trader in 2018. Our next Group Mentorship Program begins in just a few short days.

Did you have any winning trades for December 28, 2017? The E-mini’s ATR only reached 1.25 points (we set the ATR to a value of four). That’s pretty slow. However, the ATO 2 and Atlas Line produced successful signals. When two trading strategies confirm market direction, John Paul believes there may be a better winning chance. He also says that when trading his methods, take whatever trade comes first. In this case, the ATO 2 signal appeared before the Atlas Line signal. Watch the above video’s real-time trade to see how he handled one of the signals.

2018 Trading Strategies & Management

One component of being a successful trader is knowing how to manage trades effectively. Trade management involves limiting risk and maximizing potential reward by strategically adjusting the parameters of the trade you’re in while it’s happening. Because 2018 trading strategies are a hot topic and there’s such variety, we carefully explain the trade management rules during the live training and training videos you receive with purchase. The trading methods you learn are based on price action. Price action is inherently adaptive because your actions are based on recent price movement. Generally, faster markets may allow for larger profits. We go over the specific ATR ranges to only find the best opportunities.

Yes, the ATO 2, Atlas Line, and Trade Scalper are sold separately. However, Mentorship is the best way to save money and get a complete training so that you’re prepared for 2018. You’ll be taught over 10 concepts/strategies with specific rules. The DayTradeToWin support team can provide free remote support for platform/software installation and configuration, including NinjaTrader.

Trading Futures: 2 More Winners

Take a look at these two recent days trading futures (E-mini S&P) using the Atlas Line and ATO 2 from DayTradeToWin.com. Both of these methods are included with the eight-week Mentorship Program. You can also buy them separately via the courses page. Most traders find it a wiser investment to get both with lifetime licenses by enrolling in the eight-week the Mentorship Program. Let’s take a look at the recent charts…

Trading Futures – Dec. 19

DayTradeToWin Review - ATO 2
Some traders prefer to start out with just one of the Day Trade to Win methods. For many, that’s the ATO 2. It’s simple design produces up to two signals per day on average. These signals occur soon after the market opens. On this occasion, we are looking at a winner of approximately six ticks. How did we figure that out? The profit target is based on the ATR (Average True Range), which is the green line that appears at the bottom of the chart. In effect, the market “allowed” for six ticks because of the recent volatility levels. Excluding broker fees and providing you got in and out at the right times, this trade could have been worth about $75 using one contract. If you trade with more contracts, then you can see how the winnings can add up. We explain all the details in the included training.

Trading Futures – Dec. 15

DayTradeToWin Review - Atlas Line
We’re looking at a trending day here. Look at how both systems fired off winning signals before the market moved up. The Atlas Line signal appeared around 9:55 a.m. EST. If price did not hit the profit target, you would have left the trade using the time-based stop, 20 minutes later, at what should have been a profit. Soon after, the ATO 2 signal at 10:15 a.m. was worth around two points according to the ATR. A third winner was signaled by the ATO-C text. This indicates a “Trade Chaser” setup. Three winners before noon are not too bad for trading futures!

E-mini Charts – 2 Consecutive Winning Days

Take a look at these two back-to-back days of E-mini charts using the Atlas Line and ATO 2. Using 5-min charts, these two trading indicators can display signals that confirm one another. In many cases, the signals will appear before a big move occurs. This allows you to get into a potentially winning position ahead of time and ride the market up or down into success territory. If the trades goes against you, there’s a chance you could get out at a smaller profit, breakeven, or even a smaller loss than the safety net catastrophic stop. The included live training helps you identify the trades as well as understand what to do when a signal occurs. John Paul focuses on ways to potentially minimize risk. Let’s take a look at both charts to see what occurred…

Two Days, Two E-mini Charts

December 12, 2017E-mini Charts: Indicator 2

If you followed the rules, it’s possible that you could have walked away with +17 ticks. TheAtlas Line produced its first signal around 9:55 a.m. US/Eastern (New York time). It was a long trade, which is a prediction that the market will go up. The real-time market conditions allowed for a profit target of around +5 ticks. After that trade, about three Atlas Line Strength signals plotted (the small “S” marks). Later, the ATO 2 and more Strength signals appeared. Both systems were in agreement the market would rise. They were correct!

December 11, 2017
E-mini Charts: Indicator 1

John Paul believes that similar signals from two or more trading systems may be a better predictor of anticipated price movement. Dec. 11 was another day when two systems agreed. In fact, the systems fire off signals around the same time. The ATO 2 trade came first, resulting in a possible +7 ticks. Around 10 a.m., a potential +6 tick winner appeared. The systems were also in agreement there were no trades later when the market began to chop around.

Trading Tips and Tricks – Trading Challenge Tests Multiple Strategies

DayTradeToWin.com received many emails asking when this video would be posted. Many traders attended and asked a number of great questions. On occasion, John Paul holds webinars such as these, where he publicly demonstrates his trading methods in real-time conditions. He also shares a number of trading tips and tricks. In these videos, see how the Atlas Line, Roadmap, ATO 2, and Trade Scalper faired in the E-mini S&P 500 (ES). Recently, the Atlas Line has a produced a number of great trades. In fact, John Paul showed what taking a live trade would be like based on a live Atlas Line signal. Another winning trade was placed later using the Trade Scalper.

Part 1:

  • 00:00-13:30: Understanding the free ABC trading method
  • 13:31-14:50: Atlas Line review of recent trades
  • 14:51-16:56: Roadmap, Atlas Line, ATO 2 and Trade Scalper trading review
  • 16:57-17:56: Using the ATO 2 and Roadmap together
  • 17:57-20:14: Real-time Atlas Line winning trade

Part 2:

• 00:00-02:34: A second real-time Atlas Line signal
• 02:35-06:39: How to possibly minimize risk using trade management
• 06:40-07:28: Configuring the Trade Scalper for the best performance
• 07:29-11:28: Questions from traders about the bar timer and Atlas Line
• 11:29-13:26: Using the Atlas Line and Trade Scalper together on a 1-min chart
• 13:27-19:08: News events + ATO 2 trades
• 19:09-22:39: Real-time Trade Scalper winning trade
• 22:40-27:09: Spotting good volatility in the markets

Trading Tips and Tricks

With many of the trading courses sold by DayTradeToWin, you receive a bonus. For example, the ATO 2 includes the bonus “How to Trail a Stop” video and the ABC indicator (which automates the method seen in the first part of the video above). The Trade Scalper comes with the X-5 strategy, which focuses on finding moves that are based on manipulation. The included live training teaches you how to combine the strategies to find the potential winning opportunities in the markets. The goal is to be a consistently successful trader.

Trading Challenge Webinar With Atlas Line

Many traders attended this live webinar to see the Atlas Line, Roadmap, ATO 2, and Trade Scalper put to the test in a trading challenge. Luckily, the webinar was recorded and can be watched below. The presentation comes in two installments. We will post the second one when it becomes available. In this video, you will see:

  • How to find ABC trades on your chart by breaking the day into three sections
  • Recent Atlas Line chart reviews – multiple days at a glance
  • Live signals start, featuring the Atlas Line, Roadmap, ATO 2, and Trade Scalper
  • A 5-min chart that uses the ATO 2 and Roadmap levels
  • John Paul places a real-time sim trade based on Atlas Line signals

The ABC method works by dividing the trading day (as shown on an E-mini S&P chart) into an A, B, and C period. The A period is for the first 2.5 hours, extended from 9:30 a.m. EST to 12:00 p.m. EST. The B period is for the next 2.5 hours, from 12:00 p.m. EST to 2:30 p.m. EST (1430) The C period is for 2:30 p.m. (1430) until market close. Using NinjaTrader’s drawing tools, you can draw shaded regions that extend to the highest and lowest price points within each period. When price breaks out of the shaded region (such as two candles closing higher or lower than A’s region), you may be able to find a winning entry opportunity. The ABC software we provide as either part of the ATO 2 (as a bonus) or the 8-Week Mentorship Program automates the drawing of the shaded regions and the signals.

Atlas Line and ABC Working Together

Take a look at how the Atlas Line worked with the ABC strategy on Dec. 4. The Atlas Line produced a short signal earlier in the day at 2662. The angled, blue dashed Atlas Line advised for short trades throughout the day, as price regularly stated below the blue line. The ABC short signals confirmed this direction and allowing for a couple of winning opportunities.

There were a number of great questions asked by attendees, so be sure to watch the entire video and the forthcoming second portion.