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Engulfing Patterns
"Learn all about Engulfing candlestick patterns: the types, what they mean, and how you can trade them for trading signals to find apparent trend reversals and trading opportunities."
Wikilix Team
Educational Content Team
Imagine this: you have a favourite trading chart in front of you. You're observing the price action and BAM! Two candles stick out from the bunch. The first candle is small and almost forgettable. But the second one is enormous!
It's bold, decisive, and it engulfs the first candle's body. Something has changed. The power dynamic between the buyers and sellers has shifted, and the market is giving you an overt yet subtle suggestion.
Welcome to the captivating world of Engulfing patterns. These price-action formations are some of the most recognisable and dependable candlestick patterns that traders use to identify possible reversals. In this post, we will break down what they are, why they are essential to you, how to identify them, and how you can use them to make better trading decisions.
An Engulfing pattern is a two-candle formation that suggests a possible change in market sentiment. It is identified when the second candle engulfs, or covers the entire body of the previous candle.
Key characteristics of Engulfing patterns:
• The first candle has a small size, indicating weaker price movement.
• The second candle has a large size, indicating stronger price movement.
• The direction of the second candle is opposite that of the first candle, suggesting a possible reversal.
The psychology behind this pattern is simple—the second candle indicates that the losing side from the first candle has been overwhelmed. This flip will generally represent the commencement of a new short-term trend.
• Formation: Pattern shows up after a downtrend. A small bearish candle is followed by a larger bullish candle that engulfs the smaller candle's body.
• Meaning: This means that buyers are coming in and overtake the sellers, which usually means that at least mild upwards reversals will appear.
• Formation: Pattern occurs after an upward trend. A small bullish candle has a large bearish candle follow it that completely engulfs the bullish candle.
• Meaning: This means sellers are now back in control. It usually means that at least mild downward shifts are likely.
Both types of patterns, in isolation, are conditional. For example, if we see a bullish engulfing pattern in an overall uptrend, we shouldn't assume immediate reversal. It could be a continuation as well. It is good to know where the pattern appears in the chart as well as its general shape.
Engulfing patterns aren't just shapes on the chart—they are puzzles of market sentiment.
• Bullish engulfing—sellers push prices lower initially, but buyers come in with enough urgency to eliminate sellers' loss much lower, and even trade higher than the initial open.
• Bearish engulfing—buyers make the opening move near the open of the bull candle, but lose their momentum, only to find sellers take the price down aggressively.
This pull-pull of the buyer/seller dynamic makes engulfing patterns good indicators of a reversal control change.
This same candlestick pattern can mean completely different things depending on where it is located:
• At the bottom of a downtrend: A bullish engulfing can signal seller exhaustion and the start of an upward move.
• At the top of an uptrend: A bearish engulfing can signal loss of bullish momentum, and potential reversal.
• Sideways markets: Patterns in consolidated markets are less reliable and often result in false signals.
Make sure you always consider the trend direction, support and resistance zones, and the market volume to be able to understand the pattern correctly.
Step 1. Identify the Pattern
Look for two consecutive candles where the second candle completely engulfs the first. If you are going to identify engulfing patterns, it's even better if they are being formed at necessary support or resistance zones.
Step 2. Wait for Confirmation
Don't always enter the trade just because you have identified the engulfing pattern. Monitor the next candle:
• If it moves in the same direction as the engulfing candle, the setup is more powerful.
• If it reverses right at the engulfing candlestick, it may be best to avoid taking the trade.
Step 3. Use Other Indicators as Supporting Factors
It is always best to use liquidity patterns with other tools to confirm the generated trends so that you can discard false signals:
• RSI: A reversal pattern will be more potent if identified in the oversold/overbought zones.
• MACD: Divergence at the same point as your engulfing candlestick will help to create confidence in the possibility of a pattern forming.
• Volume: An engulfing candlestick with a lot of volume; it will usually mean continuation in that direction. As the engulfing candle indicates, there is momentum behind the price. Set Smart Stop-Losses
• In bullish trades, place a stop-loss just below the engulfed candle's low.
• In bearish trades, place a stop-loss just above the engulfed candle high.
This keeps our risk contained until we begin to win.
The strength of an engulfing could be confirmed by checking the higher timeframes as well. A bullish engulfing on the 4-hour would hold more weight if it is aligned with a bullish daily trend.
An engulfing pattern that occurs alongside key trendlines or levels of strong support/resistance will show more reliability and confidence.
A bullish engulfing candle on low volume might not be as reliable as a bullish engulfing candle with a lot of trading activity. Always take into consideration how active the market is when you are trading.
1. Too Quick to Act
Traders jump headfirst into trades without confirmation. Consequently, they often lose money.
2. Not Looking at the Bigger Overall Picture
Using one engulfing pattern in isolation can get traders in trouble. Always consider the direction of the overall trend.
3. Overtrading the Pattern
Not every engulfing pattern is tradable. You should be concentrating on the quality, not quantity.
4. Not Managing Your Risk
A reliable engulfing pattern can fail at any time. Always define entry, exit, and stop loss before you trade it.
Scenario 1 – Bullish Engulfing Within a Support
Let's say a stock is pulling back to a strong historical support area over several sessions. You may then see a small bearish candle, followed by a bullish candle that completely engulfs the prior small bearish candle. To confirm the bullish reversal setup, traders will look for a few candles supporting the move in the direction of the engulfing candle before buying.
Scenario 2 – Bearish Engulfing After Rally
After a sharp rally in a currency pair, a small bullish candle was formed near an area of potential resistance, followed by a large bearish candle that completely engulfed the previous bullish day. As subsequent sessions confirmed, the price moved downward, providing the opportunity for traders who made the call early to profit from the correction.
• Higher timeframe engulfing patterns will yield better signals.
• Always combine engulfing patterns with key support and resistance zones.
• Track trades in a journal to develop more of a feel for them while improving.
• Back-test the strategy before implementing it in live markets.
Engulfing patterns can be much more than visual formations. They can be windows into the psychology behind the market itself. They provide insight into situations where one side loses momentum and the other side takes over, leading to considerable price movement.
However, it is essential to remember that an engulfing pattern should not be conclusive; it should only be used as an indicator. To use engulfing patterns effectively, you must always pair them with a bigger context, technical indicators, and disciplined risk management techniques.
Once you learn how to identify these patterns in the context of structure, you will locate more than just a candle; you will start recognizing what the candle tells you. And, that is the real edge you will build as a trader.
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