Moving averages smooth out price noise and show trend direction. The 20, 50, and 200-day MAs are the most watched by institutional investors -- making them self-fulfilling support and resistance levels.
MA20 (20-day): short-term trend -- where is the stock going this month?
MA50 (50-day): medium-term trend -- the 'health' of a stock's momentum.
MA200 (200-day): long-term trend -- the line institutional investors use
to decide if a stock is in a bull or bear phase.
Price > MA200: stock is in a long-term uptrend (bullish bias).
Price < MA200: stock is in a long-term downtrend (bearish bias).
Price crossing MA50 from below: medium-term bullish signal.
Price bouncing off MA50: the MA acted as support -- continuation signal.
Golden Cross: MA50 crosses above MA200.
-> One of the most bullish signals; triggers major institutional buying.
Death Cross: MA50 crosses below MA200.
-> Major bearish signal; often leads to sustained selling pressure.
Related: MACD -- Moving Average Convergence Divergence • Golden Cross & Death Cross • RSI -- Relative Strength Index