Bull Trap

Just like being caught in a mousetrap, a bull trap happens when the market appears to be signaling that a downward trend for a particular stock is reversing and is now headed for the sky. Seeing an upward trend, investors jump on the bandwagon (like New England Patriot fans) and purchase the stock, only to find that the stock quickly reverses direction and continues to decline.

Like...bullish (false) sentiment has trapped investors hoping, believing, praying that a stock is going up up up...only to find that it ain't.

Early warning signs often include things like the volume starting to decrease (get out as quickly as possible). You can also issue a “stop-loss” order to automatically sell at a particular price, so that if you are wounded, the holes in your leg actually heal.

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Find other enlightening terms in Shmoop Finance Genius Bar(f)