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Volume & momentum scan

Volume Spike Screener

This scan finds stocks that traded at least 3 times their 20-day average volume on a day when the price rose more than 2%.

Run this scan in the live demoFree, no sign-up. The demo uses made-up sample data.

The exact rule

Type this in Chalni: volume above 3x average and up more than 2%

  1. Volume > 3× Avg vol(20)
  2. Chg % > 2

Find US stocks where today's volume is above 3 times the 20-day average volume; and today's change (%) is above 2.

Formula view
volume > 3 * avg_volume(20)
AND change_pct > 2
Example chart: Volume spike up dayDaily candles of a made-up sample stock with Lower panel: volume bars, and 3 × the 20-day average volume. The shaded day is the day the scan fired.
  • Lower panel: volume bars, and 3 × the 20-day average volume
  • Shaded day: the scan fired
Example from Chalni's made-up sample market, not a real stock. It shows the most recent time this scan fired in the sample US market, picked whether or not the trade worked.

What it means

Unusual volume is one of the clearest footprints of big money. When three times the normal number of shares change hands, something has changed: news, an earnings surprise, or a large fund building a position.

Asking for an up day keeps the scan on stocks where the heavy trading pushed the price up, not down.

How traders use it

  • Check the reason: earnings, other news, or no news at all. Moves with no news can be the most interesting.
  • Watch the next few days. A stock that holds most of the gain is showing strength.
  • Many traders add a price or liquidity rule to skip very small stocks.

Watch out for

  • One-day spikes on hype often fade.
  • Stocks that normally trade very little spike easily. A liquidity filter helps.

Test it before you trust it

Every scan in Chalni sits an exam. First it runs on older data, the practice: each time it picks a stock, the stock is held for 10 trading days and 0.2% is paid in costs. Then it runs on newer data it has never seen, the exam. A scan that only works in practice has just memorised the past.

See the practice and exam results for this scan in the demo (on sample data; real data comes at launch).

Questions

What is unusual volume in stocks?

Volume far above normal, often 2 to 3 times the average or more. It shows strong interest from buyers or sellers.

Is a volume spike bullish?

On an up day with a strong close it is often read as buying by big players. On a down day it can mean heavy selling.

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