Patterns › Bullish marubozu vs Bearish marubozu
Look-alikes
Bullish marubozu vs Bearish marubozu
They look alike, so beginners mix them up. Here is what each one means, and how often each one worked on real charts.
Bullish marubozu
A full green body with no wicks. Buyers owned the whole candle.
A bullish marubozu is a long green candle with little or no wick at either end. It opened at or near its low and closed at or near its high. That shows buyers pushed all the way through the candle. The name is Japanese and is often translated as 'bald head', because nothing sticks out of it.
Chasing a huge green candle after price has already run far and may need a rest.
Bearish marubozu
A full red body with no wicks. Sellers owned the whole candle.
A bearish marubozu is a long red candle with little or no wick at either end. It opened at or near its high and closed at or near its low. That shows sellers pushed all the way through the candle. It is the mirror image of the bullish marubozu.
Chasing a huge red candle late in a long fall, when a sharp bounce can reach a close stop.
Real odds side by side
| Pattern | Found | Target first | Stop first | Went nowhere |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bullish marubozu | 12,134 | 38% | 55% | 7% |
| Bearish marubozu | 10,777 | 37% | 57% | 6% |
Counted by the Trading Class research engine on real past candles: entry at the signal candle's close, target 1.5 × ATR(14), stop 1 × ATR(14), 12 candles to decide, a candle that touches both counts as the stop. How we count. Past data, not a forecast and not advice.