Distribution Day of the Spring 2012 Rally

Identifying tops and positioning your portfolio to maximize your profits are a challenging skill in trading. I want to analyze a key warning sign in the spring 2012 rally, which would have helped traders prepare for the top.

On March 16th, 2012 you see a 97% increase in volume from the daily volume moving average 50 coinciding with a very small increase in price compared to the day before. This signifies a "stall" or "distribution" day. These days are crucial to identify in long up-trends because they display funds and other investors dumping their stocks, meaning the rally will end soon. If one sold on the distribution day they would have confirmed their profits before the market topped a couple weeks later on April 2nd, 2012.