IRIS International (IRIS)

Company

"IRIS International, Inc. is a leader in in vitro diagnostic urinalysis systems, digital imaging software development, sample collection, sample processing and small benchtop centrifuges and supplies for chemistry, coagulation, cytology, hematology, and urinalysis for the clinical and veterinary markets." (company website)

Buy

24-Oct-06. IRIS disappointed The Street when it reported earnings in August, and the stock was punished severely, pushing it to a 52-week low. Since then it has been climbing steadily upward in an almost eerie straight line. There is a bit of really short-term deterioration into what looks like a possible consolidation, but in the larger scheme of things, the chart is very positive.

• Price momentum (PPO) — high and steady
• Trend (ADX) — strong, with a convincing spread of buying pressure (+DI) above selling pressure (-DI)
• Money flow (CMF) — solid turnaround from outflow to inflow
• Relative strength (RSI) — weak to strong
• Volume — dropping slightly

Sell

31-Oct-06. IRIS stopped out this morning, and my shares sold for a modest loss. I was getting nervous about IRIS in any case: earnings should be coming out this week but I've not been able to find an announcement of the date. Now that IRIS has started to pull back, I would not be surprised to see it break through the lower Bollinger band, or even the 50-day moving average, considering how far it has come in about three months.