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Double top and double bottom

Not tested by us Not tested by us yet. No verdict stamp.

In one line: Two peaks (or dips) at about the same level, said to signal a turn.
Evidence
Strength: weak to mixed. Lo, Mamaysky and Wang (2000) looked at US stocks from 1962 to 1996. They found that several patterns, for example head-and-shoulders and double bottoms, "provide incremental information and may have some practical value". They give no success-rate percentages, and they did not test profits after costs.

A double topPrice hits the same high twice and fails. looks like the letter M: price hits the same ceiling twice and falls back. A double bottom looks like a W.

What traders claim: after the second touch, the trend reverses.

Double tops and bottoms were among the ten patterns Lo, Mamaysky and Wang (2000) tested automatically.

Evidence: see Do chart patterns work? What the research says. In short: mixed, and very sensitive to how you define the pattern.

Related

Sources & studies

  1. Investopedia (secondary): Double top
  2. Lo, Mamaysky & Wang (2000), Journal of Finance (author PDF)

Chart and candlestick patternsHead and shouldersSupport and resistance

Last checked: 2026-11-04 · Educational, not financial advice.

Education only, not financial advice. No signals. Backtests are hypothetical: real trading can be worse. Past results don't predict future results.