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2008issue C071-6

A Leader companion for MACD direction warnings

A same-scale Leader is built from the same 12-period and 26-period exponential moving-average structure as MACD, with extra weight on recent prices through the price-minus-average residual. It is framed as a warning overlay for a possible change in MACD direction, not as a standalone price-trend identifier or a generally better substitute for MACD.

  • Standard MACD is a 12-period exponential moving average of the close minus a 26-period exponential moving average of the close, with a nine-period exponential average of MACD as the short-term signal line.
  • The Leader keeps those same periods by adding the exponential average of the price-minus-average residual to each moving average, then subtracting the 26-period form from the 12-period form.
  • The Leader is designed for MACD-like smoothness, a shared plotting scale, and earlier movement at turning situations, but it is not a generally better substitute for MACD.
  • A Leader-versus-MACD comparison and a Leader histogram can warn that MACD may change direction, while earlier histogram crossings also include premature or unwanted signals.
Entries in this reading3 entries
Current trackMACD115 readingsPrice-indicator divergence142 readingsMoving average449 readings

Start from standard MACD

Standard MACD is defined as a 12-period exponential moving average of the close minus a 26-period exponential moving average of the close.

A common MACD reading treats a positive value as a bullish long-term trend characterization and a negative value as a bearish long-term characterization. A nine-period exponential average of MACD is used as a short-term signal line.

Treat lag as part of the design

Because MACD is built from moving averages, its lag can filter short-lived price wiggles and reduce some whipsaws. Lag is presented as a design feature rather than only a defect.

Price-indicator divergence is described as successive higher price highs with lower MACD highs in an uptrend, or successive lower price lows with higher MACD lows in a downtrend. It is treated as an early reversal warning rather than a completed trend change.

Build the Leader from the same 12-period and 26-period pair

The Leader is constructed by replacing each MACD exponential average with a same-period form that adds the exponential average of the price-minus-average residual, then subtracting the 26-period version from the 12-period version.

The intended design properties of the Leader are MACD-like smoothness, shared plotting scale with MACD, and the ability to move ahead of MACD at critical turning situations because recent prices receive relatively more weight.

Keep the Leader as a companion

The Leader is not offered as a generally better substitute for MACD. Both retain similar long-term momentum character, and two averages can still converge while the broader trend remains intact.

Read earlier crossings as warnings

A Leader histogram formed as the Leader minus its nine-period exponential average can produce earlier zero-line crossings than a MACD histogram, but those crossings also include premature or unwanted signals.

A simple Leader-versus-MACD divergence can appear earlier and clearer than a more complex divergence construction, so the companion is framed as a warning overlay rather than a standalone price-trend identifier.

Educational research material, not investment advice. Historical source context does not establish present-day performance.
49 of 80 in the MACD track
20081-3 pp.Next on MACDRelative strength exits with MACD averages and RSIA rank-scale drop below 50 is treated as evidence that a name is no longer outperforming the market and supplies an explicit relative exit threshold.
All readings on this track · 80 readings
  1. 1988Rebuild MACD-Mo and MACD-H before treating them as signals
  2. 1989Four-span MACD lookbacks as perishable parameters
  3. 1989Weekly then daily MACD confirmation on individual stocks
  4. 1991Regime-gated MACD and stochastic rules inside a checklist
  5. 1991Constructing MACD signal lines and divergence tests
  6. 1991MACD parameter order and cycle phase lag
  7. 1992Lengthened bond MACD as an equity regime filter
  8. 1992Long-horizon MACD construction from paired exponential averages
  9. 1993Constructing a signed ten-point trend filter
  10. 1994Constructing lag-reduced double exponential averages for MACD
  11. 1994Seeding DEMA2 filters to build a MACD signal
  12. 1994Constructing MACD from lag-reduced exponential averages
  13. 1994TEMA1 from nested exponential averages, then a two-horizon MACD
  14. 1994Constructing entry and exit on a relative-strength MACD
  15. 1994Constructing a relative-strength MACD crossover spreadsheet
  16. 1995Consensus presignal filters for Relative Strength Index, MACD and the Stochastic oscillator
  17. 1997Confirm the MACD turn with price, then exit on the histogram
  18. 1997Reconstructing a stochastic oscillator, MACD, and a triple-smoothed oscillator
  19. 1997Moving-average windows before crossovers and MACD
  20. 1999Second-stage MACD on relative-strength inputs
  21. 1999Constructing MACD from exponential-average spreads for crossover and divergence
  22. 1999Coding candlesticks into numeric indicators
  23. 2001Second-low confirmation with a percentage oscillator and money-flow filter
  24. 2001Constructing MACD from exponential average spreads and a signal line
  25. 2002Separate bounded and trend-following oscillator rules
  26. 2002Sort the regime before assigning MACD and stochastic jobs
  27. 2002Building classic divergence filters from RSI and MACD
  28. 2002Weekly highs and lows as trend gates
  29. 2002Constructing channel-normalized Fisher reversal signals
  30. 2002Affine-price and the Fisher transform as a constructed companion to MACD
  31. 2003Regularized EMA construction with a MACD line and a thrust oscillator
  32. 2003Curvature-penalized exponential averages versus MACD
  33. 2003MACD, moving averages, and a trend filter as one timing system
  34. 2003Fractional MACD and linear-regression reversal construction
  35. 2004Weekly MACD-histogram timing of bear-market rallies
  36. 2004Candlestick triggers filtered by MACD divergence
  37. 2004Staging energy-complex tops with trendline, breakout, and MACD
  38. 2005Selling climax holds versus fails
  39. 2006Treat a sideways Wave as permission before a breakout
  40. 2007MACD with a Stochastic oscillator for spotting trend reversals
  41. 2007Rebuilding an S&P 500 fifth-wave count after a broken target
  42. 2007Constructing MACD, RSI, and stochastic confirmation for futures
  43. 2007MACD histogram divergence needs a confirming close
  44. 2007Write the plan as a stack: ratio, boundary, then oscillators
  45. 2008MACD divergence and Stochastic oscillator confirmation on lumber futures
  46. 2008Assign confirmation, timing, and a stop before a currency pair is tested
  47. 2008Confirm the ten-bagger launch path before the MACD exit
  48. 2008Reading the offloaded evidence file
  49. 2008A Leader companion for MACD direction warnings
  50. 2008Relative strength exits with MACD averages and RSI
  51. 2008Assign one job per indicator in a three-screens rule set
  52. 2008Sequencing RSI, MACD, and average crossovers
  53. 2010Constructing the Schaff Trend Cycle from MACD and a dominant-cycle window
  54. 2010Schaff Trend Cycle as a MACD and Stochastic oscillator combination
  55. 2010Combining Relative Strength Index, the stochastic oscillator, and MACD as slope filters
  56. 2010Short-term wave and ratio clues without direction calls
  57. 2010A precise pullback entry and an unplanned profit-protection exit
  58. 2010Filtering MACD false signals with trendline breaks
  59. 2011Vendor feeds as an input variable in a MACD evaluation
  60. 2012Out-of-the-money versus in-the-money option sensitivity to implied volatility
  61. 2012MACD window tuning as hold-time control
  62. 2012Combining a moving-average crossover with MACD and support-resistance
  63. 2012Testing a published MACD entry with a histogram and signal-line agreement filter
  64. 2012Treat sample systems as a lab before live rules
  65. 2013Constructing moving averages and MACD from one price series
  66. 2013The next-bar price that forces a MACD signal-line cross
  67. 2013Constructing next-bar MACD reversal prices
  68. 2013Constructing inverted MACD reversal prices
  69. 2014Shared-filter combinations of the stochastic oscillator, MACD, and RSI
  70. 2014Square-root lookbacks for combined MACD and RSI
  71. 2015Audit open interest and trend before trusting oscillator crossovers
  72. 2016MACD without a signal line, confirmed by moving-average trend filters
  73. 2016Use RSI, MACD, and a moving average as a market-health consensus
  74. 2016MACD line versus histogram is a display problem first
  75. 2017Weekly and daily MACD on a single daily chart
  76. 2017Weekly and daily MACD as a stacked momentum filter
  77. 2017Nested weekly and daily MACD from paired EMA spreads
  78. 2018Weekly and daily PPO scale versus MACD, with bounded RSI and stochastic readings
  79. 2018Constructing a weekly and daily percentage price oscillator
  80. 2020Constructing Wyckoff tape reading with MACD, moving-average, and RSI filters
By fieldIndicators and filters682 readingsBy year200867 readings
All 115 readings tagged MACD
Also on MACD5 readings
1989Weekly then daily MACD confirmation on individual stocks1997Confirm the MACD turn with price, then exit on the histogram2001Constructing MACD from exponential average spreads and a signal line2017Nested weekly and daily MACD from paired EMA spreads2017Weekly and daily MACD as a stacked momentum filter