One FANG stock is bottoming, but another has further to fall, technician says

Posted by jbrumley on October 30, 2018 2:57 PM

By Keris Lahiff, CNBC

FANG is getting shredded this month.

Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google parent Alphabet are down double digits in October, getting burned by a market turn toward defensive stocks over high-growth and high-momentum tech names.

One technician says one of those stocks could stanch its bleeding.

"Amazon is just in an astronomic climb well contained in this parallel channel," TradingAnalysis.com founder Todd Gordon said on CNBC's "Trading Nation" on Friday. "These two lines are just that railroad track going up the mountain here, so what we need to do is hold this area right here which is about $1,550 to $1,600. While we're above that, the uptrend in Amazon is still in place."

Amazon has not traded below $1,550 since early May. It would take a nearly 2 percent drop from Friday's levels to get its stock below the top-end of Gordon's range.

However, Netflix could see more of a drop before reaching a bottom.

"This is your defining uptrend channel, very, very clear uptrend approach here," said Gordon, pointing to its moves higher during the past three years. "Unfortunately support won't come in until about $260 so if you have a little bit more weakness, you might look for that flush through $300."

Netflix broke below $300 during Friday's session. It had last closed below that level in April. Netflix would need to fall another 13 percent before reaching support at $260.

Erin Gibbs, portfolio manager at S&P Global Market Intelligence, is doubtful any one of the FANG stocks can break out to move independently of the rest in this market climate.

"One of the things you've got to keep in mind when you're in these corrections is that stocks become highly correlated and the fundamentals matter less, so the individual earnings reports are going to have less of an effect," Gibbs told "Trading Nation" on Friday.

Netflix has fallen 14 percent since reporting earnings in mid-October, even though it topped analysts' expectations with a blowout report. Amazon and Alphabet shares suffered heavy losses on Friday, a day after both companies beat earnings but missed revenue estimates.

"Even if Facebook blows it out of the park, it could still probably more likely just follow the market. It might have a one-day pop but eventually just follow the overall market correction," said Gibbs.

Facebook is the last FANG name to report earnings. It is scheduled to release quarterly numbers after the bell Tuesday.

From CNBC

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