An Aborted Trade in Hansen Natural Corporation (Nasdaq: HANS)

If you look at the 30-min bars of Hansen Natural Corporation, it’s going straight up.

… so the only way to find an entry without waiting is to drill down some. On the 1-min charts (ok, make that drill down a lot) I thought the setup under 35 was decent. It topped out around 34.97 twice, with higher lows after the second attempt. I decided to buy in as it leaped across 35 with rising volume. I got filled at 35.03. Then… nothing. It kept dropping to 35.02, then rising to 35.04. 35.02, 35.07, 35.02. Plus, the volume was drying up. When it hit 35.07, with the overall markets so flat and choppy, I said “enough! I’ll take a couple cents of profit and be done with it.” I issued my order, and the bid immediately dropped to 35.03, where I was filled. So, I had an exactly b/e trade (minus commissions, of course). Here’s the 1-min chart:

You can see that the stock did eventually find its way out of that channel and go higher. I could have gotten 1R out of it 20 minutes later. But, as I type this, the market indices have all slipped into negative territory, and they are choppy as ever. Here’s the 10-min QQQQ chart so far:

… so, while it’s not crystal clear, I think I made the right choice for my style of trading. One thing I could have done better, maybe, is buy in at 34.98, rather than wait for the push through 35. I’d have to keep my finger on the “sell” button until it made it over 35, of course. I might have had to break even and try again to get the actual break. But, if I had done that, I might have stuck around while it sat there at 35.02… or at least I would have been able to cover commissions on the exit. Something to think about. I go back and forth on whether to wait for round numbers, or not.