INTC Technical Analysis

INTC Technical Indicators

Oscillators are tools traders use to figure out if a market is overbought or oversold. They don’t predict the future on their own, but when used correctly—and in the right market context—they can improve your chances of making good trades. Misuse them, though, and you’re likely to lose money.

Let’s take the stochastic oscillator as our main example, though the same principles apply to others like the Relative Strength Index (RSI) and MACD indicator, which are especially popular when analyzing high-profile financial instruments like INTC.

What Are Oscillators?

Oscillators calculate their values using price data. Most compare the current closing price to the range of prices over a specific time period. The result is shown as a percentage between 0 and 100. A reading near 80 or above suggests the market is overbought; a reading near 20 or below means it’s oversold.

For example, if the stochastic shows 85, that means price is high relative to recent history—possibly too high. If it shows 15, the price may be too low.

You’ll often see traders refer to the INTC RSI when trying to assess whether the instrument is overheated after a big rally. A reading above 70 on INTC’s RSI might signal the instrument is overbought, while one below 30 could suggest it’s oversold. But again, context matters.

How to Properly Use Oscillators in INTC Trading

In an uptrend, buying when the oscillator shows oversold is usually a smart move. The pullbacks during an uptrend are often temporary, so when the oscillator dips, it’s often a good time to buy.

In a downtrend, selling when the oscillator shows overbought is usually the right approach. Price spikes upward don’t last long, so those overbought moments are often short-lived.

This leads to two key rules:

• Don’t sell just because the market is overbought during an uptrend. Strong trends tend to stay overbought or oversold for long periods.
• Don’t buy just because the market is oversold in a downtrend. It could keep falling for much longer.

Also, divergence isn’t reliable during strong trends. In an uptrend, bearish divergence (where the oscillator fails to match new highs) might show up again and again, while price keeps climbing. It’s the same in a downtrend with bullish divergence. These signals should be ignored unless they come alongside other strong signs of a reversal—like a major resistance zone or a clear break in trend structure.

Once a trend shifts—like a clear breakdown from an uptrend structure—you can switch your approach and start looking for the opposite signals. For instance, after an uptrend breaks down, it’s time to start selling on overbought signals.

You can even look at recent charts of INTC MACD to spot trend momentum. The MACD line crossing below the signal line during a strong rally might look bearish on its own, but if the larger trend is intact, it may just be a short-term dip. Misreading that could cost you.

Oscillators work best in sideways markets. In this case, the price moves between clear support and resistance levels. When it hits the bottom of the range and the oscillator says oversold, that’s usually a good time to buy. When it hits the top of the range and says overbought, it’s usually a good time to sell.

But once the range breaks and the price starts trending, you need to stop using this sideways strategy. Go back to trend-based rules instead.

What Moving Averages Do

A Moving Average (MA) is a tool used in trading to smooth out price data. Instead of focusing on daily price swings (the "noise"), it gives you a clearer view of the overall trend by averaging prices over a specific period.