The S&P 500 (SPX) continues its slow grind higher confirming our latest hypothesis that the market may have found a summer floor at the 2007 high. This also aligned with the last planetary station at Mercury retrograde. Following this period, Saturn stationed direct July 8, Uranus went retrograde July 17, and this weekend Mercury stationed direct, July 20. Yes, the summer holidays are coming to a close, and both Saturn and Mercury are now direct.
In my last article on planetary stations, we explored the symbolism of the Mercury retrograde cycle. Mercury retrogrades 3-4 times per year while Saturn and Uranus retrograde only once per year. Let’s look at a chart, then dig a little deeper.
S&P 500 Chart with Planetary Stations and Major Aspects (click to enlarge)
Saturn and Uranus – some background
Saturn represents building structures and is associated with long-term growth cycles. During the retrograde period (February 18 – July 8), projects and endeavors may experience delays and/or required revision. Those projects may now be finally turning around, in the early phases of gaining momentum, or now being abandoned. Uranus represents sudden shocks that we may or may not see coming. Uranus can appear like a bolt out of the blue. An example that highlights both these planetary stations can be seen with the news of activist investor Dan Loeb abruptly leaving the board of YHOO and cashing in – project completion, at least for Loeb. Interestingly, the Uranus station that took place on July 17 was conjunct (0 degree) YHOO IPO Mars at 14 Aries.
Earnings Season and Saturn and Mercury now Direct
Saturn and Mercury are now both direct, so we can expect that many market participants are returning from summer holidays. Mercury will be out of shadow by August 5, the final closing to the Mercury retrograde period. It is a good time to review watch lists for base building and possible preparation to begin fresh trends now that the time catalysts have arrived.
Evercore Partners Inc. (EVR)
Below is the chart for Evercore Partners Inc. (EVR). EVR provides advisory financial services and was an early mover last November following the fall 2012 correction. Since the Saturn retrograde in February, EVR has simply traded sideways. Today, EVR has formed a multi-week “W” base. The technical breakout for the base is the high in middle of the “W”. However, while EVR initiated a price move last week, what is missing to confirm the move is volume. The lack of volume highlights uncertainty about this uptrend in general. Earnings for EVR are scheduled before the market opens July 24, a potential catalyst to confirm or deny a new trend. Stay tuned.
EVR Weekly Stock Chart
Fossil Inc. (FOSL)
Below we see a multi-week cup and handle formation on the daily chart for FOSL. Like EVR, FOSL has traded relatively sideways since February. Multiple attempts to move higher in May failed when the market pulled back. Today, it is making another attempt after forming a handle to its cup base. We can see that volume was slightly above average last week when FOSL made its attempt to breakout. Again, lack luster volume tells us that FOSL is waiting for more information (and confirmation). Earnings are scheduled for August 6.
FOSL Daily Stock Chart
Planetary Stations and Aspects through the end of the Year
We have shared several articles now demonstrating how identifying planetary stations and major planetary aspects on the x-axis of the price chart can block out the daily noise and highlight periods ripe for change. Below is a calendar through the end of the year for your own study. Please note that the dates in bold mark Pluto-Uranus square. The next Pluto-Uranus square is this coming November 1. The first Pluto-Uranus square was part of the 2012 summer stations marking that summer’s lows, while the Pluto-Uranus squares for September 19, and May 21, marked the last market highs. Whether or not the next Pluto-Uranus square will mark the next high is still too early to tell as the current uptrend has yet to prove itself. What we can see from studying the calendar is that there are few catalysts until later in the year beginning late October and early November. The next Pluto station is September 20. Recall that Pluto station was part of the September 2012 high as well as the short pull-back this April.
I’ll try to provide another update on planetary stations as we near another critical juncture. Enjoy the remainder of your summer and thank you for reading.
Planetary Stations and Aspects Calendar
- Jun 26 – Mercury Retrograde
- Jul 8 – Saturn Direct (Retrograde February 18)
- Jul 17 – Uranus Retrograde
- Jul 20 – Mercury Direct
- Aug 5/8 – Mercury leaves shadow/Jupiter – Pluto opposition
- Aug 13 – Jupiter enters shadow
- Sep 20 – Pluto Direct
- Oct 21 – Mercury Retrograde
- Nov 1, 2013 Pluto-Uranus square (#4)
- Nov 7 – Jupiter Retrograde (Direct January 30)
- Nov 11 – Mercury Direct
- Nov 27 – Saturn enters shadow
- Dec 17 – Uranus Direct
- Dec 22 – Venus Retrograde
- Pluto-Uranus square (7x) – June 24, 2012, September 19, 2012, May 21, 2013, November 1, 2013, April 21, 2014, December 15, 2014, March 17, 2015
References: Charts from FreeStockCharts.com, Astro dates from Astro.com, Earnings date from Think or Swim
Twitter: @RinehartMaria and @seeitmarket
No position in any of the mentioned securities at the time of publication. Any opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author, and do not in any way represent the views or opinions of any other person or entity.
