EverHint Signal — Momentum Swing: Explosive Volume Breakout — December 10, 2025

What This Signal Is (Quick)

This scanner identifies breakouts confirmed by explosive institutional volume—stocks breaking out with 2.5x+ average volume, signaling serious institutional buying pressure.

The Setup: When a stock breaks out on 2-3x normal volume, it's not retail traders. It's institutions moving serious capital. This scanner catches those moments when:

• Volume surges 2.5x+ above 20-day average (institutional confirmation)
• Stock is breaking out or consolidating near resistance
• Momentum is strong across multiple timeframes

Why Volume Matters: Volume is the fuel for price moves. A breakout on light volume fails. A breakout on 2.5-3.5x volume has institutional backing—mutual funds, hedge funds, pensions piling in. That's the difference between a fakeout and a real move.

Key Criteria:

• Volume thrust: 2.5x+ average (minimum threshold)
• Breakout mode: Near or at 52-week highs
• Strong momentum: Rate of change across 10, 21, 63 days
• Holding Period: 1-4 weeks (swing trading)

This is experimental and designed for traders who trust volume as confirmation. No volume = no trade. That's the discipline.

How We Ranked Today (Reader Version)

Signals are ranked by composite quality score (0-100 scale), which weighs:

• Volume thrust magnitude (2.5x minimum)
• Rate of change momentum (short, medium, long-term)
• Relative strength vs S&P 500
• Proximity to 52-week high
• Price vs moving averages

Higher scores indicate cleaner, higher-quality breakouts. We've overlaid:

• Insider Net (USD): Net insider buying/selling over 90 days. Positive = insiders buying breakout (strong confirmation). Negative = insiders selling (caution).
• Days → Earnings: Proximity to earnings. < 30 days = catalyst potential but event risk.
• Vol Thrust: How much above average volume. Higher = stronger institutional conviction.

Important: These signals are for educational use and back-testing. This is an experimental scanner, not financial advice. Always confirm volume on your own platform before entering.

💥 Explosive Volume Breakout Signals (5 Signals)

Breakouts confirmed by 2.5x+ institutional volume.

Field Notes:

• Score: JBTM dominates at 77.5 (highest quality breakout). ALLY at 47.5 (solid). AKRO at 40.0. PRO at 32.5. HSII at 0.0 (lowest quality but meets volume threshold).
• Vol Thrust: AKRO leads at 3.58x (258% above average volume)—absolutely massive. PRO at 3.23x, JBTM at 2.76x, HSII at 2.67x, ALLY at 2.56x. All well above 2.5x threshold.
• % of 52W High: JBTM, PRO, HSII at exactly 100% (fresh all-time highs today). ALLY at 99.8% (within $0.08 of highs). AKRO at 98.3% (near highs).
• Insider Net: JBTM -$19K (director sold small amount Nov 26). ALLY -$1.18M (Chief HR Officer sold $1.18M in Oct). AKRO -$1.62M (CEO sold $1.62M in Oct). PRO and HSII show $0 (no P/S transactions in dataset).
• Days to Earnings: ALLY reports in 49 days (soonest). Others 57-82 days (clean runways).
• Market Cap: From $1.1B (PRO small-cap) to $13.7B (ALLY mid-cap).

Recent Headlines (Last 3 Days)

ALLY (Ally Financial):

• Dec 10: Board authorized $2.0 billion share repurchase program with no expiration date. May begin buybacks this quarter.
• Dec 10: Presented at Goldman Sachs 2025 U.S. Financial Services Conference.
• Dec 10: First Trust Advisors cut holdings by 30.5% in recent quarter.
• Dec 3: Arrowstreet Capital raised stake by 39.3%, now owns 5.4M shares ($210.4M position).

AKRO (Akero Therapeutics):

• Dec 9: Novo Nordisk completed acquisition of Akero for $54/share in cash (aggregate $4.7B). Transaction originally announced Oct 9, now closed.
• This explains the 3.58x volume surge and 98.3% of 52-week high—acquisition arbitrage finalizing.

Other Tickers:

• JBTM, PRO, HSII: No major recent news in dataset.

Vlad's Take (EverHint)

Today delivered 5 explosive volume breakouts—all with 2.5x+ volume surges and most at fresh 52-week highs. This is textbook institutional buying pressure captured in real-time.

Market Backdrop: S&P 500 +0.78%, Nasdaq +0.50%, Dow +1.02%—solid green across the board. VIX at 15.77 (low volatility environment). Russell 2000 +1.39% (strong small-cap performance). Treasury yields flat at 4.19%, Bitcoin $92.6K, gold +0.44%. This is a risk-on environment that supports breakout strategies.

The Explosive Volume Thesis:

Volume is the single most important confirmation for breakouts. Without it, breakouts fail. With it, they run. Here's what we have:

JBTM (JBT Marel Corporation) — The Quality Leader:

• Score 77.5 (highest on the list)—this is a clean, high-quality breakout.
• 2.76x volume thrust—176% above average. Institutions piling in.
• 100% of 52-week high—fresh breakout confirmed today.
• $8.0B market cap (mid-cap industrials)—big enough for institutional money, small enough to move.
• Minimal insider selling (-$19K from director in Nov—essentially neutral).
• Industrials sector—benefits from infrastructure spending, manufacturing resurgence.

The Trade: JBTM is the cleanest setup on this list. High score, strong volume, fresh highs, no major insider divergence. If you're picking one signal from today, this is it.

ALLY (Ally Financial) — The Buyback Play:

• $2.0B share repurchase authorization announced today (no expiration date).
• 2.56x volume thrust—confirmation of buyback news being absorbed by market.
• 99.8% of 52-week high—within $0.08 of highs at $44.50.
• Financial Services sector—benefits from rate environment stabilization.
• Mixed insider signals: Arrowstreet Capital added 39.3%, but First Trust cut 30.5%. Chief HR Officer sold $1.18M in Oct.

The Trade: ALLY is a buyback-driven breakout. Buybacks are price-insensitive demand—the company will buy regardless of price (within reason). This creates a floor under the stock. The 2.56x volume suggests institutions front-running the buyback program.

Risk: 49 days to earnings (soonest on the list). Any negative surprise could derail momentum.

AKRO (Akero Therapeutics) — The Acquisition Arb:

• 3.58x volume thrust (highest on the list)—258% above average.
• Novo Nordisk completed $54/share acquisition on Dec 9. Stock at $54.65.
• This is not a momentum play—this is acquisition arbitrage closing. The 3.58x volume is final arb traders exiting and Novo Nordisk buying remaining shares.

The Trade: Skip this one unless you're an arb specialist. The deal is done. The $54.65 price is the acquisition price. There's no upside here—this is a closed loop.

PRO (PROS Holdings) — The Small-Cap Rocket:

• 3.23x volume thrust—223% above average.
• 100% of 52-week high at $23.25.
• Small-cap SaaS at $1.1B market cap—thin float, easy to move.
• Score 32.5 (lower quality than JBTM/ALLY but meets volume threshold).
• No insider selling in P/S dataset (neutral).

The Trade: PRO is the same stock from the Aggressive Momentum list. It's showing up on multiple scanners because of the extreme volume (3.23x) and fresh breakout. This is a high-risk, high-reward small-cap play. 70.7% annualized volatility means 4-5% daily swings.

Risk: Small-cap with thin float = high volatility and low liquidity. Don't size big.

HSII (Heidrick & Struggles) — The Low Score Outlier:

• 2.67x volume thrust—167% above average.
• 100% of 52-week high at $59.01.
• Score 0.0 (lowest quality)—this means weak momentum/relative strength despite volume.
• $1.2B market cap—small-cap staffing/recruiting firm.
• No insider activity in dataset.

The Trade: Caution. The 0.0 score is a red flag. Volume confirms breakout, but momentum/RS is weak. This could be a false breakout—volume without follow-through. If you trade this, keep stops tight (5-7%).

Trading Strategy for Explosive Volume Breakouts:

1. Volume is king: Without 2.5x+ volume, these are fakeouts. Confirm volume on your platform before entering.

2. Entry timing: Don't chase end-of-day moves. Wait for tomorrow's action. If volume remains elevated (1.5-2.0x) and price holds, enter. If volume dies and price pulls back, wait or skip.

3. Stop placement: Set stops 5-8% below entry. Breakouts with volume tend to hold support at breakout levels. If it breaks back below, the breakout failed—exit.

4. Profit targets: Look for 10-20% gains in 1-4 weeks. Don't get greedy. Volume breakouts are fast but short-lived.

5. Position sizing: 3-5% of portfolio per signal. These are medium-high risk (not as extreme as Aggressive Momentum, but not as stable as SMA crosses).

6. Volume fade = exit signal: If volume drops below average for 2-3 consecutive days, consider trimming or exiting. Volume breakouts need sustained volume to work.

Sector Context:

• Industrials (2): JBTM, HSII — manufacturing/staffing plays
• Financial Services (1): ALLY — buyback-driven
• Healthcare (1): AKRO — acquisition (skip)
• Technology (1): PRO — small-cap SaaS

No sector concentration. These are idiosyncratic volume surges, not sector rotations.

Best Setups:

1. JBTM — Highest quality (77.5 score), clean volume, minimal insider selling
2. ALLY — Buyback catalyst, strong volume, near highs
3. PRO — High-risk small-cap with extreme volume (3.23x)

Skip:

• AKRO — Acquisition closed, no upside
• HSII — 0.0 score suggests weak momentum despite volume

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