Comparable across symbols with different prices · unlike MACD.
The short answer
- What is the Percentage Price Oscillator (PPO)?
- Percentage Price Oscillator: MACD expressed as a percentage.
- When does PPO get it wrong?
- It inherits the full lag of MACD. See its reading now on platform symbols, at the latest daily close, in the "Reading now" table on this page. See its reading now →
Reading now
| Ticker | Value | Five sessions ago | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| SPY | 0.47 | 0.30 | Above the signal line · above zero |
| QQQ | 1.08 | 1.37 | Below the signal line · above zero |
| IWM | −1.22 | −1.19 | Above the signal line · below zero |
| DIA | −0.50 | −0.83 | Above the signal line · below zero |
A description of where the number sits against its thresholds. It is not an entry or exit signal.
Indicator limit
Inherits the full lag of MACD.
Read it with
Normalized average true range: both are relative, so you can compare a symbol's momentum and volatility with others.
Answers: is momentum changing?
What it actually does
The Percentage Price Oscillator measures the gap between two exponential averages as a percentage of the slower one, not in dollars. It is the same moving average convergence, normalized. That normalization is the whole difference and the source of all its value.
Why normalization matters here
Because MACD in dollars is not comparable: a two-dollar gap on a $50 stock is not the same as on a $500 stock, and even on one stock past readings inflate as its price grows, so its history cannot be measured against itself. A percentage solves both.
How it is read in practice
Exactly like its sibling: zero-line crosses, signal-line crossovers, and bars for acceleration. What it adds is the ability to rank dozens of symbols by reading them in one table, and to compare today's reading with its historical range on the same asset. That is impossible with the raw version.
Hypothetical example
An analyst wants the three strongest symbols by momentum out of twenty. Ranking them by raw MACD always puts the highest-priced stock on top, by arithmetic and not by strength. Ranking by the percentage version surfaces the real leaders whatever their price.
Where it errs and why
It inherits every flaw of its parent: doubled lag and wobble around zero in range-bound markets. Normalizing fixes comparison, not lag.
Read it with
Read it with rate of change, since both are normalized and suit comparative ranking. Add breadth to see whether leadership is wide or narrow, and trend strength as a gate.
Where to see it on the platform
Market scanners use normalized formulas for comparative ranking across symbols and sectors.
Its windows and comparison over time
Its windows match its sibling's (12, 26 and 9 by convention). Its real value shows over time: a 2% reading today compares directly with a 2% reading five years ago, even if the stock price tripled in between. That makes it the best fit for building a historical percentile rank of momentum. Knowing that current momentum sits at its 90th percentile over five years tells you more than a raw number with no reference.
