Custom Formula Collection

This indicator was discussed in the December 1997 Technical Analysis of Stocks &
Commodities magazine, page 19. The article was written by Cyril V. Smith Jr.

"This indicator, a long - term stock market investment tool, compares the performance of the S&P 500 to the New York Stock Exchange index to measure sentiment. The theory is that investors have a preference for certain types of investments, blue chips versus mid-cap, during phases of a bull market."

To plot this in MetaStock for Windows, follow these instructions. When complete, if you save this as a chart, you will simply need to load the chart and it will recalculate using the newest data.

• Open a chart of the S&P 500.
   
• Open a chart of the New York Stock Exchange index.
   
• Drag the S&P 500 price plot into the NYSE chart.
   
• Drop the indicator listed below on the plot of the S&P 500. The plot will turn a different color when you are pointing at it.
   
• The resultant plot is the Investor Preference Index.

Investor Preference Index Formula:
Sum(Mov(ROC(Log(C),24,%)-ROC(Log(P),24,%),15,S)-Mov(ROC(Log(C),24,%)-ROC(Log(P),24,%),38,S),54)+1)*100

System test:

• Enter Long
  C=HHV(C,26)
   
• Close Long
  Fml("Investor Preference Index")<97.6 AND ROC(Fml("Investor Preference Index"),2,$)<=(-.04)