Three's Not A Crowd - Triple Candlestick Patterns

Evening and Morning Stars

The morning star and the evening star are triple candlestick patterns that you can usually find at the end of a trend. They are reversal patterns that can be recognized through these three characteristics:

1. The first stick is a bullish candle, which is part of a recent uptrend.
2. The second candle has a small body, indicating that there could be some indecision in the market. This candle can be either bullish or bearish.
3. The third candle acts as a confirmation that a reversal is in place, as the candle closes beyond the midpoint of the first candle.

Three White Soldiers and Black Crows

The three white soldiers pattern is formed when three long bullish candles follow a downtrend, signaling a reversal has occurred. This type of candlestick pattern is considered as one of the most potent in-yo-face bullish signals, especially when it occurs after an extended downtrend and a short period of consolidation.

The first of the three soldiers is called the reversal candle. It either ends the downtrend or implies that the period of consolidation that followed the downtrend is over.

For the pattern to be considered valid, the second candle should be bigger than the previous candle's body. Also, the second candle should close near its high, leaving a small or non-existent upper wick.

For the three white soldiers pattern to be completed, the last candle should be at least the same size as the second candle and have a small or no shadow.

The three black crows candlestick pattern is just the opposite of the three white soldiers. It is formed when three bearish candles follow a strong uptrend, indicating that a reversal is in the works.

The second candle's body should be bigger than the first candle and should close at or very near its low. Finally, the third candle should be the same size or larger than the second candle's body with a very short or no lower shadow.

Three Inside Up and Down

The three inside up candlestick formation is a trend-reversal pattern that is found at the bottom of a downtrend. It indicates that the downtrend is possibly over and that a new uptrend has started. For a valid three inside up candlestick formation, look for these properties:

1. The first candle should be found at the bottom of a downtrend and is characterized by a long bearish candlestick.
2. The second candle should at least make it up all the way up to the midpoint of the first candle.
3. The third candle needs to close above the first candle's high to confirm that buyers have overpowered the strength of the downtrend.

Conversely, the three inside down candlestick formation is found at the top of an uptrend. It means that the uptrend is possibly over and that a new downtrend has started. A three inside down candle stick formation needs have the following characteristics:

1. The first candle should be found at the top of an uptrend and is characterized by a long bullish candlestick.
2. The second candle should make it up all the way down the midpoint of the first candle.
3. The third candle needs to close below the first candle's low to confirm that sellers have overpowered the strength of the uptrend.

1. What is a Japanese Candlestick?
2. Sexy Bodies and Strange Shadows
3. Basic Candlestick Patterns
4. Lone Rangers - Single Candlestick Patterns
5. Double Trouble - Dual Candlestick Patterns
6. Three's Not A Crowd - Triple Candlestick Patterns
7. Japanese Candlesticks Cheat Sheet
8. Summary: Japanese Candlesticks

Forex Training in the School of Pipsology