Episodic Pivot Scanner

This episodic pivot scanner finds US-listed stocks whose daily low stays at least 6% above the previous trading session’s high. Final matches also require 20-day relative volume above 1. The free list below is delayed five trading sessions.

Key Takeaways

• The gap is measured from today’s low to yesterday’s high, not from the opening price to the previous close.
• The minimum gap is 6%, and final RVOL must be greater than 1.
• A price gap alone does not verify an earnings surprise, news catalyst or complete trade setup.

Free delayed scan results

Final matches also require price above $5 and more than $10 million in daily dollar volume, calculated as closing price multiplied by final share volume. Developing and after-close preliminary scans in the app keep the price floor and skip volume filters. Choose a week, then select a stock to update the chart beside the results. Charts include all available stored price history; free signal markers and highlighted candles stop at the delayed cutoff.

The board shows four calendar weeks, with up to five unique stocks per direction in each week. A symbol uses its latest qualifying session that week. Dated-match counts can be higher than the sample shown. An empty direction means no qualifying rows in that delayed week; an unavailable message means the history could not be verified.

Our definition of an episodic pivot gap

A stock qualifies on price only when its lowest traded price for the daily session is at least 1.06 times the previous session’s high. The gap percentage is (today’s low / yesterday’s high – 1) multiplied by 100. The two daily ranges must remain separated by the required distance.

If yesterday’s high was $100, today’s low must be $106 or higher. An opening print of $110 followed by a low of $105 fails the 6% condition. An opening price above yesterday’s close is insufficient when the ranges overlap. A low of $100 also fails because there is no gap above the prior high.

This definition is deliberately stricter than an open-to-close gap screen. It avoids describing a stock as a qualifying gap when it traded back into the prior range. The minimum percentage is inclusive: exactly 6% passes the price condition.

The final 20-day relative volume rule

For a final match, the signal session’s complete volume is divided by the average volume of the preceding 20 complete daily sessions. The current session is excluded from that average. The ratio must be greater than 1, so volume equal to the average fails.

For example, 1.2 million shares on the signal session divided by a prior 20-day average of one million shares gives RVOL of 1.20. A ratio above 1 shows more activity than the measured recent average; it does not prove that institutions are buying or that the move will continue. Missing required volume prevents final qualification.

During a developing regular session, the journal skips this volume gate. Partial intraday volume is not compared as though it were a complete day. A preliminary price match can therefore fail after complete volume becomes available.

What the scanner does and does not verify

The scanner tests the price gap and relative volume. It does not read earnings releases, evaluate guidance, identify a catalyst, confirm revenue acceleration or classify the quality of a news event. A split, corporate action or data issue can also distort an apparent gap, which is why chart and company-event review matter.

The episodic pivot guide explains the trading idea and catalyst research. Use that context to investigate a match, while keeping the mechanical scan separate from a conclusion about the business. A large gap can already price in optimistic expectations, and a move can reverse even after strong volume.

How to use the result list

Start with the signal date and gap percentage, then open the chart to inspect the separated ranges. Review the event that caused the move and check liquidity, spreads and nearby resistance independently. This free scanner applies no additional liquidity gate, so a listed stock can still be unsuitable for your trading approach.

Weekly picks use the latest qualifying date per symbol in that week and rank by gap percentage, with symbol as the tie breaker. They are not selected by subsequent gains. A bigger gap ranks higher under this display rule, but is not automatically a better trade. Record your reasoning and risk before taking a position.

What the delay and history mean

The free cutoff is five actual exchange trading sessions behind the latest complete daily-data session. Weekends and exchange holidays do not count. Missing scan dates do not shorten the delay. The page updates automatically from stored final scan results, and it never includes forming-candle matches.

Charts show the listed signal date and scanner lines. Price bars can extend beyond the delayed signal to a later permitted final close, but scan markers stop at the delayed cutoff. Initial history for these four scanners covers approximately 60 finalized sessions using the currently eligible stock universe. It is not a survivorship-free database of all companies that existed historically.

Current scanners and trade tracking

The Financial Tech Wiz Trading Journal provides current scanner lists, dated charts, trade tracking and performance analytics. Its developing daily scans are labeled preliminary, require a daily candle close for confirmation, and skip all volume qualification filters. Coverage rotates across the stock universe, so the list is not a simultaneous real-time view of every stock.

Compare the other available tools in our free stock scanner directory. If you want an accessible way to start recording trades, use the free trading journal template.

FAQ

What is a 9-million episodic pivot?

That phrase commonly refers to an additional absolute-volume threshold used in some episodic pivot screens. This scanner does not impose a nine-million-share rule. Its final volume condition is current complete daily volume divided by the prior 20-day average, greater than 1.

Can this scanner identify breakout stocks?

It identifies stocks meeting the specified low-to-prior-high gap and final relative-volume conditions. It does not test every breakout pattern, so a stock breaking resistance without this gap can be absent.

Is any buy or sell indicator 100% accurate?

No. A qualifying gap and above-average volume do not guarantee a profitable trade. You still need to evaluate the chart, catalyst, execution costs and risk.