charge The Aroon indicators signal a consolidation when both are below 50 and/or both are moving lower with parallel lines.

Consolidation Period

The Aroon indicators signal a consolidation when both are below 50 and/or both are moving lower with parallel lines. It makes sense that consistent readings below 50 are indicative of flat trading. For 25-day Aroon, readings below 50 mean a 25-day high or low has not been recorded in 13 or more days. Prices are clearly flat when not recording new highs or new lows. Similarly, a consolidation is usually forming when both Aroon-Up and Aroon-Down move lower in parallel fashion and the distance between the two lines is quite small. This narrow parallel decline indicates that some sort of trading range is forming. The first Aroon indicator to break above 50 and hit 100 will trigger the next signal.

The chart below shows Omnicom (OMC) with the Aroon indicators moving below 50 in a parallel decline. The width of the channel could be narrower, but we can see the consolidation taking shape on the price chart for confirmation. Both Aroon-Up and Aroon-Down were below 50 in the yellow area. Aroon-Up then broke out and surged to 100, which was before the breakout. Further confirmation came with another Aroon-Up surge at the breakout point. This surge/breakout signaled the end of the consolidation and the beginning of the advance.

The next chart shows Lifepoint Hospitals (LPNT) with 25-day Aroon. Both lines moved lower in May with a parallel decline. The distance between the lines was around 25 points throughout the decline. Aroon-Up and Aroon-Down flattened in June and both remained below 50 for around two weeks as the triangle consolidation extended. Aroon-Down (red) was the first to make its move with a break above 50 just before the triangle break on the price chart. Aroon-Down hit 100 as prices broke triangle support to signal a continuation lower.

Conclusions

Aroon-Up and Aroon-Down are complementary indicators that measure the elapsed time between new x-day highs and lows, respectively. They are shown together so chartists can easily identify the stronger of the two and determine the trend bias. A surge in Aroon-Up combined with a decline in Aroon-Down signals the emergence of an uptrend. Conversely, a surge in Aroon-Down combined with a decline in Aroon-Up signals the start of a downtrend. A consolidation is present when both move lower in parallel fashion or when both remain at low levels (below 30). Chartists can use the Aroon indicators to determine if a security is trending or trading flat and then use other indicators to generate appropriate signals. For example, chartists might use a momentum oscillator to identify oversold levels when 25-week Aroon indicates that the long-term trend is up.