SortWizard – Stock Screening and Stock Scanning Software, Search Development and Consulting

Tutorial #1:

Identify NASDAQ stocks with good liquidity (more than 1,000,000 shares traded), volatility (trading range greater than 2 points), closed up or down by a point in the previous session and other criteria. As a active trader, you will find that this search should identify a good base of stocks that might be traded the next day.

SortWizard Setup:

1. Bring up a new page by clicking on (New) or File-New on the menu bar to open a blank search file (*.STK)
2. Setup Search Criteria: Click on the (Search Parameters Setup) on the tool bar to bring up the Search Parameters Setup screen. Click on the "Primary Criteria" tab.
      Set the Price Range to Search: Click on "Hist Close" in the Available Fields list box. In the Search Criteria Setup field click the down arrow to the right of "No Criteria Selected" text. Select "Between (Value1) and (Value2): Inclusive" In the Value 1 field type "10" and in the Value 2 field type "50"
    Set the Trading Volume for the day to Greater than 1,000,000: Click on "Hist Volume" in the Available Fields list box.   In the Search Criteria Setup field click the down arrow to the right of "No Criteria Selected" text. Select "Greater than or equal to (Value1)". Then in the "Value 1" box, type 1000000 (do not use commas when typing in numbers).
      Set the Average 20 day Trading Volume to Greater than 250,000: Click on "Avg Vol 20" in the Available Fields list box. You will notice that the check box to the left of the field is not checked. That means the data for that filed will not be displayed in your search results. If you want the data to be displayed; click on the box. If you had trouble located a field, you can click on the down arrow to the right of the list box displaying "Column display order" and select "A to Z order" to sort the Available Fields in alphabetic order. So, back to where we were; in the Search Criteria Setup field click the down arrow to the right of "No Criteria Selected" text. Select "Greater than or equal to (Value1)". Then in the "Value 1" box, type 250000.
      Set the Net Change from the previous day to greater than 1 and less than -1. Click on "HistNetChg" in the Available Fields list box. In the Search Criteria Setup field click the down arrow to the right of "No Criteria Selected" text. Select "Outside (Value1) and (Value2): Inclusive" In the Value 1 field type "1" and in the Value 2 field type "-1"
      Set the Net the Exchange Click on "Exchange" in the Available Fields list box. In the Search Criteria Setup field click the down arrow to the right of "Search ALL exchanges" text. Select "Choose exchanges to be included in search" Then select the NASDAQ by clicking the box in front of "NAS" if it not already checked by default.
      Trading Range Greater than 2:   Click on the "Add/Remove Fields" tab. In the list box on the right named Available Fields, in the Server field select the "SORTWIZARD" server, then below that field select the "TODAY" Table. This will display all the fields that relate to the current trading day. From the list box of fields select "Range High & Low". Click on the button to add the field to your new search available fields list. Click on the "Primary Criteria" tab. Click on "Range High & Low" in the Available Fields list box. In the Search Criteria Setup box, click on the drop down arrow and then click on "Greater than or equal to". In the "Value 1" box, type 2.
      Remove any unneeded search criteria: Check the "Search Criteria Summary" box below the "Search Criteria Setup" to verify the entries you have made for your search are as you intended. Note that the names for the fields you selected are represented by the names used by the data feed server. You can click on the Field in the Summary box to quickly get back to a field to modify it if you like. To remove Criteria from a search, select the Field and in the "Search Criteria Setup" select "No Criteria Selected". Once your are satisfied with your search setup, click on either "Hide" at the bottom of the Setup window or the "X" box in the upper right hand corner.
3. Save this Search: Before performing this search, let's save it by clicking on "File" on the menu bar and then "Save As". Name this search in a descriptive way so you can easily determine what the searches does at later date. Suggest: "Liquidity and volatility_NAS only". Then click on "Save".
4. Run the Search: Click on (Do Search) on the tool bar to run the search. The results will appear in the upper section of the search window withe file name you just named it in the header. This window can be resized by dragging the bar that divides the upper and lower windows when the double arrow appears. Note the Trade Date in the results. The servers start their update after the market closed and are completed by 7:30 EST (New York time).
5. Setup Columns: It is easiest to follow the column setup after running the search. For this strategy we want the first nine columns to be as follows: Symbol, Hist Close, HistNetChg, HistChgOpen, Range High & Low, Hist High, Hist Open, Hist Volume, and Trade Date. First, you should right click on the column heading "Symbol" and then click on "Freeze." Freezing this column ensures that it will always show in your window, even if you scroll to the right. If you freeze other columns, they will each become locked on the left of the window in the order you freeze them. For this tutorial, we will only freeze Symbol column and setup the remaining columns in a different way. The Trade Date column needs to be moved to the right. Click on the column heading and hold down the left mouse button. Drag the column to the right. You will notice a red vertical line appear. That line is where you will place the column when you release the left button of your mouse. Release the button when the Trade Date column is moved completely to the right. Last Price and Net Chg are in the correct place so we will leave them alone. Next click on the column heading "Range" to highlight the column. Then, click on the column heading again but without releasing and drag the column to the left until the red line that appears is on the right hand side of the "Net Chg" column. Repeat this process for the High, Low, and Volume columns. Save again by Clicking on the Save icon on the toolbar so you do not lose the column setup.
6. Sort the result by "Range": To find the stocks with the greatest daily range, double click on the column heading "Range" (previously "Rng(day)"). This will sort the results in ascending or descending order. Repeated double clicking on the column heading will toggle the sort between ascending and descending order.
7. To run this search daily: Open the file saved in step 3 above using (Open) or File-Open on the menu bar. Then proceed with step 4 above.
8. Exporting search results: To export the data, it must be moved to the lower window (basket) of the SortWizard page. To do this, Select the symbols you would like to export or click on (Select All in Current List or hold down the Ctrl key and type "a" to highlight all of the lines). Once this is done, click on the button (Move to Basket) to move the symbols to the basket. Click on File in the menu bar. Select export data to export to a spread sheet in *.csv (spreadsheet format) format. Name and save this file in the folder of your choice. Make sure you list "All Files" when you are opening this file in MS Excel. If you would like to use a different format, click on the Global Settings tab in Search Parameters Setup and select the format you would like to use in the "Data Export Delimiters" section in the middle of the window.

Click here for the *.stk file created in this tutorial. Make sure you save *.stk files to be downloaded to the folder: c:\Program Files\Neo Inc\SortWizard

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Tutorial #2 Productivity Tips

Tip #1 Tips to make analysis easier by using the SortWizard’s sorting functions.

There are a three ways to sort a column with the SortWizard. The most commonly used method is simply to double click on the column heading. Repeated double clicks on the heading will toggle the column sortation back and forth between ascending and descending order. Another choice would be to right click on the column heading and select “Set Primary Sort” then select either “Ascending” or “Descending”. Selecting Ascending will place a “/\" in the column heading and for Descending a “\/”. Now go to your second most important column and right click on the column heading and select “Select Secondary Sort”. Set the sort order and the secondary sort order will be displayed in the column heading as either a “/\/\" or “\/\/”. The secondary sortation will sort the results of that column by each primary sort level/group.

Tip #2 Checking out recent news on a stock.

If you would like to see the currently available news on a stock, right click on the stock symbol in the search results. Select "Web Links". Then select "Yahoo Investments". The relevant news for the stock symbol you selected should be displayed in the browser window at the bottom of the SortWizard window. If you would like to have a separate session of your browser spawn instead of the integrated browser read Tip # 3.

Tip #3 You can save some of your desktop space by removing the integrated web browser in the lower section of the SortWizard window.

The purpose of the integrated browser window is to inform you of new features, developments and updates regarding the SortWizard. So, after we show you how to turn it off, you might want to check back from time to time to see if there is something new being announced.

Go to the menu bar at the top of the SortWizard. Select "View" and then uncheck the selection "Show Internet Explorer window". The check mark to the left should now be removed. Now when you look for news on a symbol (reference Tip #6 below) or click on the Globe and spyglass on the tool bar to go to the SortWizard web site, a separate session of your browser will be launched with your web site selection displayed in it.

Tip #4 A tip to make viewing your symbol display list easier by converting decimals to a percentage (if applicable), using colors and commas and renaming column headings.

Let’s use an example to illustrate how this works. Select a scan of your choice. Initiate the scan by clicking on the “Binoculars” icon on the toolbar. You can edit the column format by going to the Search Parameters Setup window, select the “Column Display Setup” tab. Click on the column Net Chg from the “Available Fields” list box. To the left you will find the “Column Setup” section. In the "Label" field Type "Test". This will display the Net Chg display column heading to Test. For longer column headings, putting spaces in the label will enable the column heading to wrap underneath itself when you resize it and reduce the overall column width. For example; a "TestTest" label would be better set up as "Test Test".

In the “Display Type” field, click the down arrow, select “Percent (x100%)“. You will probably want to change the “Precision” by clicking on the down arrow to the right and selecting “0.0”. Then if you selected a column like Net Chg you could check to box after “AutoColor” to display the numbers in green if they are positive and red if they are negative.

Either exit out of the search you are using without saving or go back to the Display Type field and change Percent back to Decimal +/- and rename the label back to Net Chg to set the field back to its original configuration.

Tip #5 Here is a tip to make using the SortWizard easier by using Workspaces.

To illustrate how this works, open up 2 to 4 searches. Position and size the searches so you can see them all (just like you would a RealTick page). Now position the SortWizard on your screen where you like it for everyday use and where you would like it to position itself upon opening the next time you start it up. Click “Workspace” on the menu bar and select “Save Workspace As”. Name your Workspace making sure it is saved in the SortWizard folder. Click “Workspace” on the menu bar again and click on “Load Workspace on Start”. This will place a check mark in front of the selection and then load the last Workspace you had open when you start the SortWizard up again.

You can set up as many Workspaces as you like. Open them by clicking on “Workspace” on the menu bar and select “Recent Workspaces” then click on the Workspace you would like to use.

Tip #6 A tip making analysis easier by using the SortWizard's Ignore Symbol functions.

Let’s assume you have analyzed a symbol and would like to eliminate it from subsequent scan results. Select a scan of your choice. Initiate the scan by clicking on the “Binoculars” icon on the toolbar. Right click on your chosen symbol from the list of stocks displayed. That will spawn a list box. Left click on “Ignore Symbols”. Select “Ignore Symbol Local”. That will place the symbol you selected in an ignore list. That symbol will no longer show up in the scan until you close the scan file. When the file is closed, all locally ignored symbols will be restored. If you would like to remove a symbol permanently, select “Ignore Symbol Globally”. That will place the symbol you selected in an permanent ignore list for all scans. You can edit the global list by going to the Search Parameters Setup window select the “Global Settings” tab and remove the symbols from the ignore list in the “Ignore Symbols” section of that window. Check the box in front of symbol(s) you wish to restore and then click the “Remove checked items” button.

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Tutorial #3 An example for creating a search using Formulas and Limits

Click here to learn more about the SortWizard Plus capabilities (EoD version incorporates Plus capabilities).

We are going to create a search from scratch that will looks for stocks that have turned up from a downward trend. The get started, click on the "Template Files" tile in the file browser on the left of the SortWizard's display. Select "EoD_Default". Or download the EoD_Default if it is not displayed by clicking here. Make sure you save *.stk files to be downloaded to the folder: c:\Program Files\Neo Inc\SortWizard

Open the Parameters Setup window for the Default file. Under the "Primary Criteria' tab select Hist Chg Open and Hist Net Chg and set both of those to be "Greater than or equal to" ".5". This will eliminate stocks that are not sufficiently active and also speed up the search. Leave the Parameters window open. Click on "File" in the Menu Bar, select "Save as" and name the search "EoD_Plus Pullback Reversal".

1. Adding required fields:

In the Parameters Setup window for the Default file , click the "Add/Remove Fields" tab. In "Available Fields" select "SORTWIZARD" in the "Server" list box. This displays all the fields available in the large list box below "Sub Type". There are presently two "Tables" for data to chose from. For This example select the "TODAY" table.

From the list box below "Sub Type". Select "Avg Vol 20", click the button to move that field to the "Selected Fields" list box on the left. Repeat this process for Mov Avg 10, Mov Ave 20 and Mov Ave 50.

Select the field "Days in a trend(Close)" and move that to the "Selected Fields" list box. This field displays the number of sequential days a stock has moved up or down in a row. In this example we are looking for stocks that have be down 3 or more days in a row. Go to the Parameters Setup window, select "Days in a trend" and set the criteria to "Less than or equal to" and enter "-3" in Value 1 field.

2. Creating a Limit:

A Limit is a True / False conditional statement. If the criteria is met (True), then the symbols that qualify are allowed to flow into the search. If the criteria is not met (False), the the symbols are eliminated.

First, we are going to set up some moving average limits. Click on the "Limits" tab in Parameters Setup. Click the button. "New Limit" is displayed. Click to the right of the "=" under "FORMULA=". Double click on the Mov Ave 10, that places the field into the formula bar. Type ">". The double click on Mov Ave 50. Your Limit should now look exactly like this in the formula bar: "=MA_10>MA_50". Click the check box in front of the "New Limit"; the sets the Limit and makes it an active Limit. Repeat this process to add the Limit Mov Ave 10 > Mov Ave 20.

3. Creating a formula:

We are going to create a formula that allows you to adjust the criteria for on pace volume. This formula will provide a reference of the current day's accumulated volume as compared to the historic average volume. A result of "1" means that it is on pace, at the time of the search, to finish the day at the the average volume that is selected in the formula.

In the Search Parameters Setup window, select the " Formulas" tab. Click the button. Name your new formula in the blank FID (Field ID) Name field. For this example "AvVol20pace". Make sure " Data Type" is set to Decimal/Fraction. Click the Accept button.

In the Selected Fields list box, check the box in front of your new FID Name field "AvVol20pace". This will make the Field viewable in the Primary Criteria Available Fields list box. You will be setting the qualification criteria for the formula under the " Primary Criteria" tab.

Just below the there is a check box that says: "When checked, double click... ". Check that box to activate that function. Click just to the right of the "fx =" in the formula line below (just like in Limits). Double click on " Tot Vol" field in the Selected Fields list box. That inserts "Volume". Then type "/" to divide. Double click on the "Avg Vol 20" field in the Selected Fields list box. That will insert "AvgVol_20" into the formula bar. The completed formula should look like this: =Volume/ AvgVol_20. Check your formula by clicking on the button. If there is an error, this function will tell you the nature of the error and mark its location with a "^" in your formula. Uncheck the check the box just below the that says: "When checked, double click... " to turn off the special inserting function.

As in spreadsheets, once you move to another area (a cell in Excel) the formula is saved. There is no need to save at this point (although you can by clicking on the Save icon at the bottom Parameters Setup window). Or, just click the " Primary Criteria" tab. Then, select "AvVol20pace" from the Available Fields list box. Go to the Search Criteria Setup box. Select " Greater than......." and enter "1" in Value 1 field. This will set the criteria to find stocks with trading volume on pace with or greater than their historic 20 day average volume.

Test the search to make sure the search runs. Now save the search to make you retain your work.

This search can be modified in a number of ways to suit your specific requirements. Try changing some of the variables to either tighten or loosen the parameters to return either less or more symbols or to adjust for market conditions.

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Tutorial #4 Examples for creating specific search elements using the Formulas function.

1. Stocks trading at their 200 Moving Average:

Click on the "Add/Remove Fields" tab. Add the "Mov Avg 200" field from the "SORTWIZARD" Server "TODAY" Table to your Selected Fields.

Click on the "Formulas" tab. Click , a Dialog window will pop up. In the blank FID Name field type "Near200MA". In the Selected Fields list box, check the box in front of your new FID Name field "Near200MA". This will make the field viewable in the Available Fields list box under the Primary Criteria tab. Later, you will be setting the qualification criteria for the formula under the " Primary Criteria" tab. Just below the there is a check box that says: "When checked, double click... ". Check that box to activate that function. Click just to the right of the "fx =" in the formula line below.

Double click on "Hist Close" in the "Selected Fields" list box. Then type "/". The double click on "Mov Avg 200". The formula should look like this: =ClosePr/MA_200

Just below the there is a check box that says: "When checked, double click... ". Uncheck the box to de activate that function for now.

Click on the Primary Criteria tab. Select your new formula "Near200MA" from the Available Fields list box. In the Search Criteria Setup field select "Between (Value1) and (Value 2) Inclusive". In the Value 1 field enter ".99" and in the Value 2 field enter "1.01". Those entries will give you all the stocks that are between 1% below and 1% above the the 200 day moving average. To tighten up the criteria to 1/2% use: ".995" and "1.005".

This same technique can be used to setup moving average crossovers, average volume comparisons, entry and exit triggers and much more. #2 below is another example of how this can be used

2. A 20 Day High break out:

Click on the "Add/Remove Fields" tab. Add the "High 20 days" field from the "SORTWIZARD" Server "TODAY" Table to your Selected Fields.

Click on the "Formulas" tab. Click , a Dialog window will pop up. In the blank FID Name field type "Near20DayHigh". In the Selected Fields list box, check the box in front of your new FID Name field "Near20DayHigh". This will make the field viewable in the Available Fields list box under the Primary Criteria tab. Later, you will be setting the qualification criteria for the formula under the " Primary Criteria" tab. Just below the there is a check box that says: "When checked, double click... ". Check that box to activate that function. Click just to the right of the "fx =" in the formula line below.

Double click on "Hist Close" in the "Selected Fields" list box. Then type "/". The double click on "High 20 days". The formula should look like this: =ClosePr/High_20

Just below the there is a check box that says: "When checked, double click... ". Uncheck the box to de activate that function for now.

Click on the Primary Criteria tab. Select your new formula "High 20 Days" from the Available Fields list box. In the Search Criteria Setup field select "Greater than or equal to (Value1). In the Value 1 field enter "1". That entry will give you all the stocks that are currently trading at or above the 20 day high. To catch them before they break out use ".98" or ".99".

3. Find stocks that closed yesterday in the upper 15% of its daily range:

Click on the "Add/Remove Fields" tab. Add the "Hist High", "Hist Low" and "Hist Close" fields from the "SORTWIZARD" Server "TODAY" Table to your Selected Fields.

We first want to create the a field that calculates the range for the previous day. Click on the "Formulas" tab. Click , a Dialog window will pop up. In the blank FID Name field type "HistRange". In the Selected Fields list box, click your new FID Name "HistRange" field to identify that field as the one you you wish to edit. Just below the there is a check box that says: "When checked, double click... ". Check that box to activate that function. Click just to the right of the "=" in the formula line below.

Double click on "Hist High" in the "Selected Fields" list box. Then type "-". Double click on "Hist Low". The formula should look like this: =HighPr-LowPr.

Just below the there is a check box that says: "When checked, double click... ". Uncheck the box to de activate that function for now.

Now, we want to create the formula that will calculate the percentage of the range of the day in which the stock closed. In the "Formulas" tab. Click , a Dialog window will pop up. In the blank FID Name field type "PctHistRange". In the Selected Fields list box, check the box in front of your new FID Name field "PctHistRange". This will make the field viewable in the Available Fields list box under the Primary Criteria tab. Later, you will be setting the qualification criteria for the formula under the " Primary Criteria" tab. Just below the there is a check box that says: "When checked, double click... ". Check that box to activate that function. Click just to the right of the "fx =" in the formula line below.

Type "(". Then double click on "Hist Close" in the "Selected Fields" list box. Then type "-". Double click on "Hist Low". Type ")" then "/". Double click on "HistRange". The formula should look like this: =(ClosePr-LowPr)/HistRange

Just below the there is a check box that says: "When checked, double click... ". UNcheck that box to deactivate that function.

Click on the Primary Criteria tab. Select your new formula "PctHistRange" from the Available Fields list box. In the Search Criteria Setup field select "Greater than or equal to (Value1). In the Value 1 field enter ".85". That entry will give you all the stocks that closed above the upper 85% of the range of the previous trading day. To find stocks that closed in the lower 15% of the day select "Less than or equal to (Value1). In the Value 1 field enter ".15".

4. Compare yesterday's trading range to the prior day:

We assume you tried the previous example (3 above) and have those fields already added to your Selected Fields. We will need to add two more fields. Click on the "Add/Remove Fields" tab. From the "SORTWIZARD" Server "HISTORIC" Table add the "Hist High -1"and "Hist Low-1" fields to your Selected Fields.

We first want to create the a field that calculates the range for the trading range two days ago. Click on the "Formulas" tab. Click , a Dialog window will pop up. In the blank FID Name field type "HistRangeMinus1". In the Selected Fields list box, click your new FID Name "HistRangeMinus1" field to identify that field as the one you you wish to edit. Just below the there is a check box that says: "When checked, double click... ". Check that box to activate that function. Click just to the right of the "=" in the formula line below.

Double click on "Hist High-1" in the "Selected Fields" list box. Then type "-". Double click on "Hist Low-1". The formula should look like this: =HighPr_01-LowPr-01.

Just below the there is a check box that says: "When checked, double click... ". Uncheck the box to de activate that function for now.

To set up a filter that will only return stocks the had the previous day's range greater than the day prior to that we will use a Limit. Click on the "Limits" tab in Parameters Setup. Click the button. "New Limit" is displayed in the Defined Limited list box. Click to the right of the "S =" Double click on "HistRange" in the "Selected Fields" list. Type ">". Then double click on "HistRangeMinus1" in the "Selected Fields" list. The formula should look like this: =HistRange>HistRangeMinus1. Click the check box in front of the "New Limit" to set the Limit and make it active.

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SORTWIZARD WEB SITE
AND
INFORMATION

USE DISCLAIMER

The trading setups, examples and strategies are intended for educational purposes and only for demonstrating SortWizard usage. Those who act in accordance with the contents and suggestions of this document or any other references linked to or from this web site are acting on their own volition. The user of the information contained in this web site is entirely responsible for his or her own actions, if any. The user understands there could be errors in the information, in the SortWizard software and data that could produce erroneous results. The use of any of the supplied information, files, strategies, software, data and etal supplied to you from anywhere in this web site, materials supplied to you from any other source and/or your reading of this document constitutes that you are in agreement with this disclaimer and exempts the author(s), IPS Technologies, Inc., and Neo Inc. from any liability or from any litigation under any circumstances. If you do not agree with this disclaimer, it is the user's/reader's responsibility to refrain from taking action on anything detailed within this or any other document(s) referred to or the use of the SortWizard.

BY VIRTUE OF HAVING READ THIS DISCLAIMER THE USER acknowledges that THEy had a full and ample opportunity to consult counsel prior to the use of thE SORTWIZARD AND THE INFORMATION AND REFERENCES CONTAINED ON THIS WEB SITE .

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