To The Moon

Small Caps Improve, but Execution Still Matters

My plan for tonight is to watch whether small-cap strength holds and stay selective around earnings. These are watchlist decisions, not orders or fills. After reviewing Tuesday’s close, I’m more interested in the quality of the recovery than in how green the headline indices look.

The gap between SPY and its equal-weight counterpart, RSP, is a useful reminder. A stronger headline index can still depend heavily on a narrow group of technology names. I want to see whether that strength spreads to more companies. If participation stays uneven, I need to judge each setup on its own merits instead of treating an index rally as permission to buy whatever has fallen.

Small caps gave me something more encouraging to study. IWM recovered its short-term trend average and its long-term average, making this move more interesting than another bounce below resistance. My next question is whether it can hold that progress. One strong session improves the picture, but it does not settle what happens at the next obstacle. I’ll be watching the response to a pullback and whether momentum remains constructive.

Earnings are another reason to keep expectations flexible. A company can report good numbers and still see its shares fall. That makes the price reaction part of the information I need, alongside the results themselves. With several large technology companies reporting, I do not want to turn an attractive chart into a prediction about an announcement. Waiting for the reaction can leave me with a clearer decision, even if it means missing the first move.

The other lesson I’m taking into tonight is about execution. Thermo Fisher is a useful example to study: a chart can look orderly while the options market makes the trade awkward. Wide bid-ask spreads affect both entry and exit, and combining two legs can make that friction harder to assess. Before considering any options idea, I want to check liquidity, the likely cost of getting out, and whether the capital required fits my own limits. Liking a chart does not answer those questions.

I’m also keeping biotech on the watchlist, with attention on whether an apparent break above resistance can turn into support. I do not need to chase every improving area at once. A shorter list gives me more room to understand the setup, the event calendar and the practical trading conditions.

Tonight’s focus is to look for improving participation, wait for evidence that reclaimed levels can hold, and give execution quality as much attention as the chart.

Options involve substantial risk and may not be suitable for every investor.

$Victoria's Co(VSXY)$  

$VSXY 20261218 80.0 CALL$