Why the 200-day matters
The 200-day simple moving average (SMA) is the market's most-watched long-term trend line. Because so many participants reference it, it often acts as support in uptrends and resistance in downtrends.
How to read it
- Price above the 200-day — long-term trend is up.
- Price below the 200-day — long-term trend is down.
- Distance to the 200-day (how far above/below, in %) gauges how stretched or washed-out a stock is.
How we use it
Every ticker page reports the 200-day level and the distance to it. We rank sector constituents by that distance, because it's a clean read on relative trend strength.