CMU
▲ Bullish
Streaming Alert (Scanner)
Check Mark Alert (CMU)
By Daniel Mirkin, CEO, Trade Ideas. Updated October 2026.
Find stocks forming a check mark: higher highs, a pullback, then even higher highs, in real time, with Trade Ideas Streaming Alerts (Scanner). A check mark pattern is higher highs, then a pullback, then even higher highs. It is usually read as a continuation pattern and is based on daily highs and lows.
Know when the pattern finishes.
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Streaming Alerts show a check mark the moment it completes, not on the next refresh.
How Trade Ideas finds it: by default, the check mark alert will be triggered when a stock exhibits a distinctive check mark continuation pattern—characterized by an initial upward surge, a subsequent pullback, and finally, a reinforced upward movement. See Trade Ideas plans and pricing to run it live.
What is a check mark?
A check mark is a stock making higher highs, pulling back, and then pushing to an even higher high. Drawn out, it looks like a check mark.
It is a continuation pattern. The trend was up, it paused, and then it kept going.
Parts of a check mark
Push up
The stock makes a new high for the day.
Pullback
Price eases back. Buyers let it breathe instead of chasing.
Higher high
The stock clears the earlier high. That is when the check mark is complete.
How traders use it
Step 1: Let the Trade Ideas alert find it
Turn on the Check Mark alert (CMU). It is built on the day's highs and lows, so it fires during market hours, never before the open or in the first three minutes. See it live in the Web Dashboard.
Step 2: Wait for the trigger
Trader tip
The alert itself is the trigger: the new high past the pullback. Some traders still wait for the next candle to hold.
Step 3: Entry
Momentum traders often buy as the new high prints, or on a small dip right after it.
Step 4: Exit
A stop under the pullback low is the common choice. Some trail the stop as new highs come in. That is typical practice, not advice.
Tips
- Check marks early in the day often come with more volume.
- A shallow pullback usually means stronger buyers.
- Add a gap or change-from-close filter to focus on today's leaders.
- The bearish twin is the Inverted Check Mark (CMD).
Past results, including backtests, are not indicative of future results.
How the Check Mark alert works
The check mark pattern is defined by higher highs followed by a pullback followed by even higher highs. This pattern is most commonly seen as a continuation pattern.
Key point
These patterns are based on daily highs and lows. The exchanges report highs and lows almost exclusively during market hours, so these alerts rarely if ever occur after market. We never report these alerts before the open or in the first three minutes after the open. The last part of the check mark must happen at least three minutes after the open.
Default settings
By default, the check mark alert will be triggered when a stock exhibits a distinctive check mark continuation pattern—characterized by an initial upward surge, a subsequent pullback, and finally, a reinforced upward movement.
What the alert shows you
The description column will give you more details on this alert.
Related alerts
Filters to pair with the Check Mark alert
Categories
FAQ
What is a check mark pattern in stocks and how do I find them?
Turn on the Check Mark alert (CMU) in Trade Ideas Streaming Alerts. By default, the check mark alert will be triggered when a stock exhibits a distinctive check mark continuation pattern—characterized by an initial upward surge, a subsequent pullback, and finally, a reinforced upward movement.
What is the Check Mark alert?
A check mark pattern is higher highs, then a pullback, then even higher highs. It is usually read as a continuation pattern and is based on daily highs and lows.
What is the opposite of the Check Mark alert?
What is a check mark pattern in trading?
A higher high, a pullback, and then an even higher high. It shows an uptrend picking back up.
Is the check mark a bullish pattern?
Yes. Trade Ideas treats it as a bullish continuation.
When does the Check Mark alert fire?
During market hours, at least three minutes after the open, when price makes the new high after a pullback.
Does the check mark alert work premarket?
No. It uses daily highs and lows, which exchanges report almost only during market hours.