Bull Flag Pattern: A Guide to Trading Bullish Continuations

A bull flag chart pattern is a continuation pattern that occurs in a strong uptrend. It signals that the prevailing vertical trend may be in the process of extending its range. Bull flags are the opposite of bear flags, which form amid a concerted downtrend.

• The technical buy point is when price penetrates the upper trend line of the flag area, ideally on volume expansion.
• Technical analysis is important, but it’s nothing without candlesticks.
• There are a few key points to look for when identifying a bull flag formation.
• This suggests more selling enthusiasm on the move down than on the move up and alludes to the momentum as remaining negative for the security in question.

A Bull Flag Pattern is a technical analysis term that resembles a flag. It is considered a bullish flag pattern because it generally forms during an uptrend. The “flag” part of the pattern forms when the price consolidates sideways after a sharp rally. This consolidation usually takes the form of a small rectangle.

Risk Management Strategies

If you can identify key levels on a chart where shorts could be underwater, then see a bull flag form, it could be indicative of a coming squeeze. We discuss this strategy in detail in our post on liquidity traps. Then, during the flag formation, we get the pullback on lower volume and tighter range red candles. Lastly, the trend resumes as volume/demand returns and price breaks to a new 30-minute candle high. Unlike a bullish flag, in a bearish flag pattern, the volume does not always decline during the consolidation.

You’ll find trading difficult if you rely on one pattern to tell the story. Hence the shape of the flag isn’t as important as what it’s telling you. For example, a stock with a strong move up and consolidates but refuses to drop tells a story. Candlesticks are a way to gauge the way traders feel about a stock. We may be scattered worldwide and don’t know each other; however, candlesticks tell us how we all feel about a security. Finally, I suggest using a tight trailing stop loss such as the 20-period moving average.

Examples of Bullish Flags

This is somewhat discretionary, but you don’t want to see a weak breakout on low volume. A bull flag is a bullish stock chart pattern that resembles https://www.bigshotrading.info/ a flag, visually. The pattern occurs in an uptrend wherein a stock pauses for a time, pulls back to some degree, and then resumes the uptrend.

You must review and agree to our Disclaimers and Terms and Conditions before using this site. Bull flags can also occur on higher time frames like daily charts. The criteria always remain the same, whether you are trading a 1-minute chart or a daily chart.

Bull Flag vs Flat Top Breakout

In order for it to be a bullish flag pattern, this flagpole has to be followed by the flag — a downward sloping consolidation period. It is usually made up of smaller back-and-forth price moves with continuously lower highs. The flag forms the top part of the pattern, while the pole forms the bottom part. The pattern is considered to be bullish, as it typically forms during an uptrend.

Historical or hypothetical performance results are presented for illustrative purposes only. The flag is formed by the consolidation after that big move up. As a result, the consolidation period can be filled with candles such as doji candlesticks and hammer candlesticks. The strong directional move up is known as the ‘flagpole’, while the slow counter trend move lower is what is referred to as the ‘flag’. We want to clarify that IG International does not have an official Line account at this time. We have not established any official presence on Line messaging platform.

If the resistance of a bull flag is broken, traders can be more confident that the price will continue to move upwards by the length of the pole. On the other hand, if the support of a bull flag is breached, traders can deem that the pattern was invalid. The bullish flag pattern forms when the market undergoes a significant price move-up, followed by a period of consolidation. During this consolidation period, the market typically forms a flag, which resembles a rectangle or pennant. The flagpole is formed by the initial price move, and the flag forms as the market consolidate.

A Bull Pattern is a technical analysis chart pattern that suggests an asset’s price is likely to continue its upward movement. It typically occurs in an upward-trending market and is characterized by a strong and rapid price rise (the “flagpole”) followed by a period of consolidation. A Bear Pattern, on the other hand, is a technical analysis chart pattern that suggests an asset’s price is likely to continue its downward movement. It typically occurs in a downward-trending market and is characterized by a strong and rapid price drop (the “flagpole”) followed by a period of consolidation.

What are bull and bear flag patterns?

Notice in this example of symbol AMC, you see a perfect bull flag formation on the 30-minute chart. However, once the stock has had a chance to pull back and consolidate, the bull flag should produce a breakout, allowing the stock to resume its prior momentum. In other words, there are more traders willing to buy the flag than sell it. A bull flag must have orderly characteristics to be considered a bull flag. There must be a series of lower highs and lower lows within the bull flag consolidation.