Market InternalsUpdated daily after close
Advance-Decline Line: Daily Net Advances & Cumulative A-D vs SPY
The classic participation gauge across ~5,600 US equities: how many stocks rose vs fell each session, and the cumulative advance-decline line whose divergences from the index have preceded most major tops. Equal-weighted — it tells you what the average stock is doing while the cap-weighted index can be carried by a handful of names.
Today's reading
As of market close on June 5, 2026, 1,491 US stocks advanced and 3,846 declined (27% advancers) — net advances of -2,355, a negative-breadth session. The cumulative advance-decline line stands at 150,821, accumulated across roughly 5,600 US equities since 2010.
Source
Daily OHLCV for ~5,600 US equities (2010–present)
Methodology
Advancing/declining vs prior close per stock; net advances accumulated into the cumulative A-D line
Updates
Daily after market close (~1:30 PM PT)
Last: 2026-06-05
Advance-Decline2026-06-05 · close
DECLINING
-2,355
27% of issues advanced today.
Advancing
1,491
Declining
3,846
Unchanged
139
A-D Line
150,821
SPY closed at $737.55. Watch the cumulative line for divergences against price — narrowing participation precedes most major tops.
Range:
01
Cumulative A-D line
Cumulative Advance-Decline Line
Running total of net advances since 2010. Direction and divergences vs SPY are the signal; the absolute level is arbitrary.
Cumulative A-D lineSPY price (right)
02
Daily advancers vs decliners
Advancing vs Declining Stocks
Advancers above the zero line (green), decliners mirrored below (red), SPY overlaid. Extremes beyond ±4,000 mark washout / thrust days.
AdvancingDecliningSPY price (right)
Reading the current tape
On 2026-06-05, 1,491 stocks advanced and 3,846 declined (139 unchanged) — net advances of -2,355. The cumulative A-D line stands at 150,821 with SPY at $737.55.
How Advance-Decline Line Works
- 1Classify every stock, every dayAfter each close we compare every stock's close to its prior trading day's close across our ~5,600-symbol US equity universe: higher = advancing, lower = declining, equal = unchanged.
- 2Net advances = advancing − decliningThe day's breadth pulse. A +2,000 day means broad buying; a −3,000 day means broad selling, regardless of what the cap-weighted index did.
- 3Accumulate into the A-D lineThe cumulative A-D line adds each day's net advances to a running total. Its absolute value is meaningless; its direction and its divergences from the index are the signal.
- 4Watch for divergences against SPYWhen SPY makes a new high but the A-D line does not, fewer stocks are participating — historically one of the most reliable early warnings of major tops (1972, 2000, 2007, 2021 all showed multi-month A-D divergences).
Who Uses Advance-Decline Line
Position Traders
Top detection: a multi-week divergence between SPY highs and A-D line highs is a reason to tighten stops and reduce size, even while price still rises.
Swing Traders
Confirmation filter: breakouts accompanied by strongly positive net advances (broad participation) carry better follow-through odds than narrow, mega-cap-driven breakouts.
Dip Buyers
Capitulation days — net advances below −4,000 across the broad universe — historically cluster near short-term lows; two such days within a week is a washout signature.
Market Historians
The A-D line's long memory makes it the cleanest single chart for comparing the breadth structure of today's market against prior cycles.
Pro Tips
01
Direction matters; level does not
The cumulative line's absolute value depends on when the series started — ours begins in 2010. Read slopes and relative highs/lows, never the raw number.
02
Breadth thrusts are rarer and stronger than washouts
When advancers outnumber decliners ~9:1 on consecutive days (a Zweig-style breadth thrust), forward 6-12 month returns have historically been strongly positive. Watch the daily panel for back-to-back deep-green days off a low.
03
Confirm with new highs - new lows
The A-D line counts every stock equally, including small caps that dominate the count. Cross-check with NH-NL: if the A-D line rises but new lows keep expanding, the rally is repair, not leadership.
04
Divergences resolve slowly
A-D divergences at tops historically led price by 3–12 months. Treat them as a regime warning to manage exposure, not a timing trigger to short.
Common Issues & Solutions
The A-D line looks different from NYSE A-D lines elsewhere▾
Universe difference. The classic NYSE A-D line counts ~2,800 NYSE-listed issues including bond funds and preferreds; ours counts ~5,600 US common equities across exchanges. Ours is more equity-pure but will diverge from NYSE-based versions.
Net advances swing wildly day to day▾
That's normal — daily net advances are noisy by nature. The information is in extremes (±4,000), streaks, and the cumulative line's trend, not in any single ordinary day.
Why does the line start in 2010?▾
Our daily universe history begins 2010-01-04. Since cumulative levels are arbitrary anyway, the start date only matters for cross-cycle comparisons — slopes and divergences are unaffected.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the advance-decline line?▾
The advance-decline (A-D) line is a running total of net advances — the number of stocks that rose each day minus the number that fell. It weights every stock equally, so it measures participation breadth rather than capitalization-weighted price. It is among the oldest and most-watched market internals.
What is an A-D line divergence?▾
When the index makes a new high but the A-D line makes a lower high (negative divergence), the average stock is no longer keeping up — the advance is narrowing to fewer, larger names. Major tops in 2000, 2007 and 2021 were all preceded by multi-month negative A-D divergences. The reverse (positive divergence at lows) is rarer but similarly meaningful.
What counts as an extreme net-advances day?▾
Across our ~5,600-stock universe, days beyond roughly ±4,000 net advances represent over 70% of issues moving in one direction — genuine washouts or thrust days. The classic 9:1 up-day (advancers ≥ 90% of advancers+decliners) is a recognized bullish breadth-thrust component.
Why does the A-D line matter if the index already tells me the market direction?▾
The index is cap-weighted — a handful of mega-caps can carry it while most stocks fall. The A-D line is equal-weighted, so it reveals when the "average stock" disagrees with the index. That disagreement (narrow leadership) is historically what late-stage advances look like.
What universe does this use?▾
Approximately 5,600 US common equities from our daily OHLCV database, refreshed after every close — broader than NYSE-only A-D lines and more equity-pure (no bond CEFs or preferreds).
Is the absolute level of the A-D line meaningful?▾
No. The level depends entirely on the accumulation start date (2010 here). Only the direction, the slope, and relative highs/lows versus the index carry information.
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Last updated: 2026-06-05