As of 03/28/2024
  Indus: 39,807 +47.29 +0.1%  
  Trans: 16,212 +183.07 +1.1%  
  Utils: 882 +7.51 +0.9%  
  Nasdaq: 16,379 -20.06 -0.1%  
  S&P 500: 5,254 +5.86 +0.1%  
YTD
 +5.6%  
 +2.0%  
 +0.1%  
 +9.1%  
 +10.2%  
  Targets    Overview: 03/13/2024  
  Up arrow40,000 or 38,500 by 04/01/2024
  Up arrow16,300 or 15,350 by 04/01/2024
  Up arrow885 or 830 by 04/01/2024
  Up arrow16,600 or 15,200 by 04/01/2024
  Up arrow5,350 or 5,100 by 04/01/2024
As of 03/28/2024
  Indus: 39,807 +47.29 +0.1%  
  Trans: 16,212 +183.07 +1.1%  
  Utils: 882 +7.51 +0.9%  
  Nasdaq: 16,379 -20.06 -0.1%  
  S&P 500: 5,254 +5.86 +0.1%  
YTD
 +5.6%  
 +2.0%  
 +0.1%  
 +9.1%  
 +10.2%  
  Targets    Overview: 03/13/2024  
  Up arrow40,000 or 38,500 by 04/01/2024
  Up arrow16,300 or 15,350 by 04/01/2024
  Up arrow885 or 830 by 04/01/2024
  Up arrow16,600 or 15,200 by 04/01/2024
  Up arrow5,350 or 5,100 by 04/01/2024

Bulkowski on the Homing Pigeon Candle Pattern

My book, Encyclopedia of Candlestick ChartsEncyclopedia of Candlestick Charts book., pictured on the left, takes an in-depth look at candlesticks, including performance statistics.

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-- Tom Bulkowski

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The homing pigeon is an interesting name for a candlestick. This candlestick is an inside day, something that traders using traditional western methods might recognize. However, the identification rules do not mention shadows, so it is possible that some homing pigeons are not inside days at all.

The homing pigeon is supposed to act as a bullish reversal, but testing found that it performs as a bearish continuation 56% of the time. That is what I call "near random" because you won't be able to tell the breakout direction with any certainty. Despite the poor reversal rate, the overall performance is quite good, ranking 21st, suggesting that the post breakout trend can be a worthwhile move.

Important Results
Discussion
Identification Guidelines
Three Trading Tidbits
Example
See Also

Homing Pigeon Candlestick: Important Results

Theoretical performance: Bullish reversal
Tested performance: Bearish continuation 56% of the time
Frequency rank: 34
Overall performance rank: 21
Best percentage meeting price target: 68% (bull market, up breakout)
Best average move in 10 days: 4.76% (bear market, up breakout)
Best 10-day performance rank: 33 (bear market, up breakout)

All ranks are out of 103 candlestick patterns with the top performer ranking 1. "Best" means the highest rated of the four combinations of bull/bear market, up/down breakouts.

The above numbers are based on hundreds of perfect trades. See the glossary for definitions.

The ideal homing pigeon candlestick
Homing Pigeon

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Homing Pigeon Candlestick: Discussion

As I mentioned in the introduction, the homing pigeon acts as a bearish continuation 56% of the time when it is supposed to be a bullish reversal. Thus, performance is near random. With a frequency rank of 34, it is a plentiful candle, so you should have no trouble finding it nesting in the treetops. The overall performance rank is 21 and that suggests good post breakout performance.

The best average move 10 days after the breakout is a rise of 4.76% in a bear market. That move also ranks 33rd where 1 is best out of 103 candlestick types. However, a good move would be 6% or more.

Homing Pigeon Candlestick: Identification Guidelines

CharacteristicDiscussion
Number of candle linesTwo.
Price trend leading to the patternDownward
ConfigurationLook for a two line candle in a downward price trend. The first day should be a tall black body followed by a small black body that fits inside the body of the prior day.

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Homing Pigeon Candlestick: Three Trading Tidbits

If you want a few bones from my Encyclopedia of candlestick charts book, here are three to chew on. The pages refer to the book where the tips appear.

  1. Homing pigeon candles that appear within a third of the yearly low perform best -- page 421.
  2. Select tall candles -- page 421-422.
  3. Reversals from homing pigeons occur on the right of an inverted and ascending scallop -- page 422-423.

Homing Pigeon Candlestick: Example

The homing pigeon candlestick on the daily scale

The chart shows a homing pigeon on the daily chart, circled in red. The first candle is a tall black one that appears in a downward price trend. The second day is also a black candle, but it is smaller and fits inside the body of the first black candle. Together, they make up the homing pigeon candle pattern.

The breakout from this homing pigeon is downward when price closes below the lowest low in the two-candle pattern. The decline is brief, lasting one day and forming a southern doji. That doji acts as a reversal and price rises in a sort of V-Shaped pattern.

-- Thomas Bulkowski

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See Also

 

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