The Putback
NQ rimmed out at Monday's high overnight, then took 29,613 back for good at 10:30 a.m. and ran to the top of its expected move. The morning call was wrong; here is how.
Tuesday, October 27, 2026 · After the Close
This morning's prep said NQ had rimmed out at Monday's high. It ran 29,572 three times overnight, to a 29,628.75 high at 8:25 a.m., and handed it back. We said we were wrong if NQ got back over 29,613, its 6:47 a.m. high, and held. It did, from 10:30 a.m. ET to the close.
It wasn't clean. NQ's first 5-minute bar closed at 29,626.25, over the line, and then it slipped. It dipped to 29,494.50 at 10:17 a.m., under last week's median at 29,550 and the overnight hourly bear at 29531. Back over 29,550 at 10:24 a.m., over 29,572 at 10:28 a.m., over 29,613 at 10:30 a.m. That's the putback.
Then the board lit up. At 11:00 a.m. the imbalance board tapped Daily bear levels on both ES (7751) and NQ (29727.5), less than a minute apart. Neither held price back for long. NQ was over 29727.5 for good by 11:12 a.m. and ran to 29,875.50 at noon, over the top of its daily expected move at 29,844.03.
That band was the real edge of the day. NQ's high was 29,881.25 at 3:46 p.m. Its best hourly close was 29,842.25, 1.78 points shy of the band. It finished near 29,812, back inside the band.
ES told the same story a step behind. It took the prep's 7,743.25 line at 10:54 a.m. and never closed a minute under it again. It topped at 7,772.75 at 3:45 p.m., 16 points under its own expected-move top, and finished near 7,758. Both indexes finished over the Daily bears the board tapped at 11:00 a.m., ES by about 7 points and NQ by about 85.
The morning call was wrong. The levels still told us what wrong looked like before the open.
Members get alert counts, the call scored and Wednesday's levels.
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