Measured move down
A fall, a pause or bounce, and a second fall of about the same size as the first.
Continuation patternsBest on 3M, 6M, 1YAlso called AB=CD down, equal legs down
What it shows
A measured move down has a first leg down, a correction up, and a second leg down. The legs are about equal in size.
Our code only measures. It finds completed moves where the legs match.
How we find it
The same code that draws it on your chart follows these steps, with the same result every time.
- Find a first leg down: a swing high to a swing low.
- Find a correction that retraces 30% to 80% of the first leg.
- Find a second leg from the correction high to a later swing low.
- Mark it as measured if the second leg is within 20% of the size of the first.
Starting values: Retracement 30% to 80%; Leg match within 20%. These are proposed and will be tuned on real price data before launch.
How to read it
- The gold brackets show the size of each leg.
- The two brackets are the same height.
- The ratio of the two legs is shown in the status.
Status labels you may see
| Label | What it means |
|---|---|
| Leg 2 in progress | Second leg is under 80% of the first. |
| Equal legs | Second leg is within 20% of the first. |
| Longer second leg | More than 120% of the first leg. |
What cancels it
A close above the start of the first leg cancels it.
What traders check next
- The correction depth.
- Time taken by each leg.
- Volume on each leg.
Limits
- Equal legs are common by chance.
- Measuring a pattern that is still forming predicts nothing.
- The match tolerance is a choice.
Try it in forecastviz
- Open any ticker and choose Continuation patterns → Measured move down in the left menu.
- Switch between 3M, 6M, 1Y to see how the picture changes.
- Compare with Measured move up and ABCD pattern on the same chart.
Questions
Is it the mirror image?
Yes.
Does it say where price will stop?
No. It only reports legs that already happened.
Related trends
Further reading
- Edwards and Magee, Technical Analysis of Stock Trends
- Bulkowski, Encyclopedia of Chart Patterns
- O'Neil, How to Make Money in Stocks
Educational only. Not financial advice, and not a price forecast. Charts are drawn by code from past price data, which may be delayed.