Last week when the S&P 500 Index (SPX) broke below 2120 and then 2100 our sentiment indicator calculated from the Twitter stream took a nose dive. The decline came mostly from a surge in bearish sentiment. The bulls, however, did not decrease their volume or intensity of tweets. What happened is the bears got extremely vocal. 7-day momentum has fallen to the level registered at the August 2015 lows and also at the February 2016 lows. This puts the indicator squarely in bear market territory.

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Breadth calculated between the number of bullish and bearish stocks on Twitter is declining, but not at a rapid pace. The number of bullish stocks is still at normal bull market levels, but just barely. This is encouraging for the bulls given the length of time the market has been in decline. 

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Support and resistance numbers gleaned from Twitter for SPX show market participants chasing price. Tweets for price targets are coming after a price is reached rather than ahead. The 200 day moving average on SPX is the level everyone is now watching. 

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Conclusion

The bears are getting vocal on the general market, but the bulls haven’t given up yet. Individual stock sentiment as measured by the number of bullish stocks is still holding above bear market levels. Meanwhile, traders are noting price, rather than predicting it. Added all together, it paints a picture of hopeful bears, but everyone else is waiting to see if the 200 dma is broken to the downside.