Kicker Pattern
Also called: bullish kicker, bearish kicker, kicker candlestick
A two-candle reversal where a strong candle opens past the prior opposite-color candle's open, so the bodies never overlap — an abrupt flip in control.
A bullish kicker starts with a strong down candle. The next session opens at or above that candle's open — erasing the whole prior body before trading even begins — and closes higher as a strong up candle. The two bodies don't overlap, so sentiment flipped overnight rather than over the session.
The bearish kicker is the mirror: a strong up candle, then a session that opens at or below its open and closes lower as a strong down candle. Kickers often follow news, so the gap itself can carry the move; a gap that fills in the next few sessions weakens the read.
How it has actually played out
- Bullish Kicker: across 365 signals on US stocks in the last 150 days, price was higher a week later 45.2% of the time (+0.6 pts vs. an ordinary session) and higher a month later 47.5% (+5.1 pts).
- Bearish Kicker: across 356 signals on US stocks in the last 150 days, price was lower a week later 50.6% of the time (-4.0 pts vs. an ordinary session) and lower a month later 53.5% (-3.7 pts).
Measured from the signal-day close, no stops or costs, versus every session of the same stocks over the same window. A base rate, not a prediction.
On StockSetups
StockSetups flags a kicker on the last daily bar when both bodies fill at least 60% of their range and the second opens at or past the first's open: bullish only after a downtrend, bearish only after an uptrend. With no chart pattern it lands on the login-gated Daily Candlesticks board (free accounts see one example per type); on a setup it's a confirmation. A bearish kicker is a caution flag, not a short signal.
Scan for candlestick patterns nightly →Frequently asked
What is the difference between a kicker and an engulfing pattern?
In an engulfing pattern the second body overlaps and covers the first. In a kicker the second candle opens beyond the first candle's open, so the two bodies never overlap at all.
Does a kicker need a gap?
It needs the second candle to open at or beyond the first candle's open. It doesn't have to clear the prior candle's whole high-low range, though a bigger gap makes the shift in control more obvious.
Related terms
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