Distance From Lows
What Is the Distance From Lows Indicator?
The Distance From Lows indicator shows how far a security's price is from a recent significant low. Because previous lows often act as natural support lines, knowing whether or not price is close to a previous low during a downtrend can help chartists to identify potential changes in trend and set entry/exit points.
Calculating the Distance From Lows
The formula for this indicator is simple:
The Low value is subtracted from the Close in order to determine the difference between the two values. The difference is divided by the Low value and multiplied by 100 in order to convert the raw value to a percentage.
Cool Tip: Expressing the value as a percentage makes it easier to compare Distance From Lows values over time or even between different securities.
The formula can be calculated using the 52-week, 9-month, 6-month, or 3-month low. In addition, the indicator can be calculated with either the intraday low or the closing low. Choose the type and length of low that best meet your technical analysis needs.
Interpreting the Distance From Lows
Recent lows often act as support during a downtrend, so it can be useful to see how far away the current price is from the low. If it is close and moving closer to the low, the stock may be heading for a bounce or a change in trend. Chartists should assess momentum and other technicals to determine whether a bounce or reversal is more likely.
In the chart above, Salesforce (CRM) was in a downtrend from January to February, making new 52-week lows repeatedly during those months, as shown by the number of times the Distance From Lows indicator touched the zero line. Price rallied a little in late February, but then dropped lower, making a new low in April and bouncing off that support low twice more in May and June. The Distance From Lows value for the latest bar on the chart is -0.82%, meaning it is less than 1% away from reaching another 52-week low.
Cool Tip: Another way to look at this same information is with the Distance To Lows indicator, which measures the percent the price would need to decrease to reach a previous low.
The Bottom Line
Plotting the historical Distance From Lows values on the chart allows chartists to see at a glance not only how close or far the current price is from the low, but also whether or not it's moving in the right direction over time. This valuable information can help traders to identify potential bounces and reversals, as well as time trade entries and exits.
As with all indicators, traders should use the Distance From Lows indicator in conjunction with other indicators and analysis techniques.
Charting with the Distance From Lows
The Distance From Lows indicator can be added to SharpCharts and ACP Charts.
Using with SharpCharts
Distance From Lows is available on SharpCharts in the “Indicators” section. The indicator can be positioned above, below, or behind the security's price plot. Once the indicator is chosen from the dropdown list, a Distance From Lows indicator is added to the chart with the default settings. The first parameter determines the length of the low: 52W (52 weeks, the default), 9M (9 months), 6M (six months), or 3M (three months). The second parameter indicates whether the closing low or the intraday low is used. To configure the indicator for intraday lows, replace the "CLOSE" with "INTRADAY".
Click here for a live version of this chart.
Learn More: For more details on the parameters used to configure Distance From Lows indicators, please see our SharpCharts Parameter Reference in the Support Center.
Using with StockChartsACP
The Distance From Lows indicator can be added from the Chart Settings panel for your StockChartsACP chart. The indicator can be positioned above, below, or behind the security's price plot.
Click here for a live version of this chart.
By default, the indicator uses the 52-week closing low, but the length and type of low can be adjusted to meet your technical analysis needs.
Last updated
Was this helpful?