Breakouts & channels · daily rule · Market indexes
P&F Double Top on Russell 2000 index
What the play says
Russell 2000 with the play, last two years
Shading shows the play's call from the close that triggered it.
Growth of 10,000 since 2005
Log scale. After trading costs, with T-bill interest while out.
The record
The play against buying and holding Russell 2000 over exactly the same dates, after costs.
| Play, since 2005 | Hold, since 2005 | Play, 5 yrs | Hold, 5 yrs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual return | +6.0% | +7.0% | +3.5% | +4.4% |
| Total return | +258% | +335% | +19% | +24% |
| Worst drawdown | −36.9% | −59.9% | −32.5% | −33.0% |
| Volatility | 18.4% | 24.4% | 17.5% | 22.4% |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.31 | 0.33 | 0.07 | 0.14 |
| Time invested | 80% | 100% | ||
| Switches per year | 1.8 | 0 |
Every call, graded
Right on 16 of 40 closed calls (40%). In calls averaged +6.6%; out calls saw Russell 2000 move +2.0% on average.
| Called | Call | Price | Until | Russell 2000 moved | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 23, 2025 | IN | 1,919.14 | now | +45.0% | open |
| Feb 28, 2025 | OUT | 2,163.07 | Apr 23, 2025 | −11.3% | ✓ right |
| Dec 14, 2023 | IN | 2,000.51 | Feb 28, 2025 | +8.1% | ✓ right |
| Mar 23, 2023 | OUT | 1,720.29 | Dec 14, 2023 | +16.3% | ✕ wrong |
| Aug 8, 2022 | IN | 1,941.21 | Mar 23, 2023 | −11.4% | ✕ wrong |
| Apr 26, 2022 | OUT | 1,890.47 | Aug 8, 2022 | +2.7% | ✕ wrong |
| Mar 29, 2022 | IN | 2,133.10 | Apr 26, 2022 | −11.4% | ✕ wrong |
| Dec 17, 2021 | OUT | 2,173.93 | Mar 29, 2022 | −1.9% | ✓ right |
| Nov 1, 2021 | IN | 2,358.12 | Dec 17, 2021 | −7.8% | ✕ wrong |
| Jul 19, 2021 | OUT | 2,130.68 | Nov 1, 2021 | +10.7% | ✕ wrong |
| May 20, 2020 | IN | 1,346.93 | Jul 19, 2021 | +58.2% | ✓ right |
| May 13, 2020 | OUT | 1,233.25 | May 20, 2020 | +9.2% | ✕ wrong |
An in call is right when the price rose before the next call; an out call is right when it fell. The latest 12 of 41 calls shown.
How the play works
- In on a double-top breakout: the current X column rises at least one box above the top of the previous X column.
- Out on a double-bottom breakdown: the current O column falls at least one box below the bottom of the previous O column.
- Otherwise the rule keeps the chart's last signal.
Boxes are 2% apart, and a new column needs a 3-box reversal (about 6%). Dorsey's classic box table uses fixed price bands; ChartSchool's examples use 1% boxes.
The chart is built from daily highs and lows by StockCharts' high-low method: a new box from the high wins, and the low only counts if it reverses the column.
The signal fires on the day the breakout box fills during the day. Be The Puck acts on that day's close.
Where the rules come from
The case against
Valeriy Zakamulin tested moving-average timing on up to 155 years of U.S. stock data and found no statistically significant edge in the second half of that record. The rules earned their keep in a few severe bear markets and lagged buy and hold for long stretches in between.