Shooting Star

The Shooting Star is a bearish (downward) reversal candlestick pattern that appears in an uptrend. It's used in technical analysis to indicate that a price high has been reached. It is a single candlestick pattern and is considered significant when spotted in an uptrend.

The bullish version of the Shooting Star pattern is the Inverted Hammer candlestick pattern.

Here's a breakdown of the Shooting Star pattern:

  1. The candlestick looks like an inverted hammer (a small body at the lower end, with a long upper shadow or wick, and little to no lower shadow). The color of the body is not as important, but a red or black body is considered more bearish than a green or white body.

  2. The upper shadow or wick of the Shooting Star should be at least twice the length of the body. This long upper shadow represents a failed attempt to further push the price up by the bulls during the period of the candle, with the bears pushing the price back down to close near the open.

  3. The pattern is confirmed if the next candle after the Shooting Star is bearish and moves below the close of the Shooting Star.

The Shooting Star candlestick pattern is seen as a signal that the bulls are losing control and the bears are ready to take over. However, as with all candlestick patterns, traders should look for confirmation through other indicators or patterns to support the potential for reversal.

Last updated