Stock Meadow · Metric glossary · Price trend
Position in the 20-Day Range (Donchian): formula and how to read it
Donchian channels, named after Richard Donchian, simply mark the highest high and lowest low of the last N days. The position shows where the latest close sits between them: at the top, a new 20-day high; at the bottom, a new 20-day low. Breakouts from this kind of range were the basis of the classic trend-following system known as the Turtle rules.
What is Position in the 20-Day Range (Donchian)?
Where the close sits between the 20-day low (0%) and the 20-day high (100%). The latest close minus the lowest low of the last 20 days, divided by the range between the highest high and the lowest low (the edges of the Donchian channel). 100% means the close is at a 20-day high and 0% at a 20-day low.
Stock Meadow groups it under Price trend, and shows it in tables as Range pos 20d.
Formula and a worked example
Position = (latest close − lowest low of 20 days) ÷ (highest high of 20 days − lowest low of 20 days)
If the last 20 days ranged from $30 to $40 and the stock closed at $39, the position is (39 − 30) ÷ (40 − 30) = 90%. The numbers are made up for illustration.
How to read it
100% means the close is at the top of the 20-day range and 0% at the bottom. It is a filter only, because neither end is better.
It can be used as a filter and as a column, but not for scoring: it describes a company rather than making it better or worse.
Common pitfalls
- It is nearly the same idea as the stochastic oscillator but over 20 days, so the two often agree.
- A close at 100% can be a breakout or just the end of a sideways week.
- Blank when the price did not move at all over the 20 days.
How Stock Meadow handles gaps. Usually blank when there are fewer than 20 days of prices, or the price did not move at all.
Treat any single metric as one clue, and read the company's financial statements before drawing a conclusion. Stock Meadow's figures are research tools based on reported data, not investment advice.
Stock Meadow models that use it
No scoring model uses it. It is a filter and a table column only.
Read about every scoring model in How scores work.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a Donchian channel breakout?
- A breakout is a close above the highest high of the last N days. In the Turtle rules traders entered on 20-day or 55-day breakouts, which is what a 100% reading here marks.
- Can I score stocks on Range pos 20d?
- It can be used as a filter and as a column, but not for scoring: it describes a company rather than making it better or worse.
- Why is Range pos 20d blank for some stocks?
- It is usually blank when there are fewer than 20 days of prices, or the price did not move at all. Stock Meadow leaves the figure blank rather than guessing it.
Use Range pos 20d in Stock Meadow
Filter the whole stock list on Position in the 20-day range and show it as a column in the stock screener. Sign up free, no card needed.
Open the stock screener