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Analyst and creator of Bollinger Bands

John Bollinger

John Bollinger (born 1950, Montpelier, Vermont) is an American financial analyst who developed Bollinger Bands in the 1980s and runs Bollinger Capital Management. He was chief market analyst at the Financial News Network from 1984 to 1990 and was the first person to hold both the CFA and CMT designations. He set out his method in Bollinger on Bollinger Bands (2001).

What they argue

  • Touches of the bands are just 'tags', not buy or sell signals in themselves.
  • Closes outside the bands are initially continuation signals, not reversal signals.
  • The middle band should describe the intermediate-term trend rather than be tuned to be the best crossover line.

Sources

BollingerBands.com: Bollinger Band RulesWikipedia: John BollingerStockCharts ChartSchool: Bollinger Bands

Summaries are Be The Puck's paraphrase of public material. Be The Puck has no affiliation with the people listed.

Books and papers

  • Bollinger on Bollinger Bands (2001)

The full reading list

Bollinger band breakout

Rule and full record

Breakouts & channels · daily

Bollinger says closes outside the bands usually mean the move continues. Buy a close above the upper band; sell when price slips under the middle.

Calls right33%67,889 closed calls on 377 stocks.
Beat buy and hold (Sharpe)54 of 375On raw return: 46 of 375.
In right now96 of 377As of the Oct 13, 2026 close.

Best risk-adjusted results against buy and hold:

LACOUTNPCEOUTCRWVOUTACOUTAPPOUTBTEINALABOUTMDAOUTGPROOUTETHOUTEQBOUTBHCINAll 377 stocks →

Bollinger Method I: the squeeze breakout

Rule and full record

Breakouts & channels · daily

Bollinger's own volatility breakout. Wait for the bands to pinch to their narrowest in about 6 months, then buy the first close above the upper band.

Calls right31%12,064 closed calls on 377 stocks.
Beat buy and hold (Sharpe)26 of 375On raw return: 34 of 375.
In right now27 of 377As of the Oct 13, 2026 close.

Best risk-adjusted results against buy and hold:

SUPXOUTCARROUTPETINACOUTAPPOUTLINSPBOUTPPTAOUTSRU.UNOUTBKROUTCRR.UNOUTVITL.UNOUTAll 377 stocks →

Bollinger band reversion

Rule and full record

Mean reversion · daily

A common way traders use the bands, not Bollinger's own: buy a close below the lower band, sell when price gets back to the middle.

Calls right64%57,747 closed calls on 377 stocks.
Beat buy and hold (Sharpe)57 of 375On raw return: 62 of 375.
In right now105 of 377As of the Oct 13, 2026 close.

Best risk-adjusted results against buy and hold:

BBUCOUTAAUCOUTLEAPINDDOGOUTGEHCOUTGFLOUTAYAOUTNTROUTATDOUTTIHOUTFTSOUTAGIINAll 377 stocks →

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