This week, we speak with Stephen Suttmeier, director and chief equity technical strategist at B of A Merrill Lynch. His Monthly Chart Portfolio of Global Markets and Market Analysis Commentary are both widely read among professional traders. He has been highly ranked in Institutional Investors’ Research Poll and was the winner of the Best Bank for Equity Research category in the Technical Analyst Awards. He is both a chartered market technician and CFA.
We discuss how he thinks about gauging risk and reward, and the role of charts in facilitating those analyses. He explains how computing power has allowed more rules-based algorithms. He also explains on how he combines both fundamentals and technicals.
Suttmeier notes that sentiment is more useful in identifying lows than highs because a low in the market is about fear and urgency. He states Tops, on the other hand, are not, adding “Complacency, by definition, is not urgent.”
He also explains how advisors and brokers at Merrill use his work, and how he has learned about sentiment and retail investors from Merrill’s vast sales force.
A list of his favorite books is here; A transcript of our conversation is available here this week.
You can stream and download our full conversation, including any podcast extras, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and Bloomberg. All of our earlier podcasts on your favorite pod hosts can be found here.
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This is our last podcast for 2023; we have a great lineup coming up in 2024! Happy and healthy holidays!
Stephen Suttmeier Favorite Books
Evidence-Based Technical Analysis: Applying the Scientific Method and Statistical Inference to Trading Signals by David Aronson
Stock Market Logic: A Sophisticated Approach to Profits on Wall Street by Norman Fosback
Technical Analysis Explained by Martin J. Pring
Technical Analysis of the Financial Markets: A Comprehensive Guide to Trading Methods and Applications by John J. Murphy
Trading for a Living: Psychology, Trading Tactics, Money Management by Alexander Elder
How to Make Money in Stocks by William J. O’Neil
Stephen Suttmeier Current Reading
D&D Waterdeep Dragon Heist by Dungeons & Dragons
The Lord of the Rings 3-Book Paperback Box Set by J.R.R. Tolkien
The Iliad & the Odyssey by Homer