The Tradeskill
Market Profile & Auction TheoryAdvanced

Poor Highs, Poor Lows and Single Prints

What poor highs and lows (flat, unfinished auctions) and single prints (prices traded in only one period) are, why traders expect them to be revisited, and the limits of that expectation.

Library categories

What it means

A poor high is a session high made by several periods at the same price with no tail above it: the auction stopped without rejecting higher prices. A poor low is the mirror at the bottom.

Single prints are prices traded in only one period during a fast move, leaving a thin part of the profile.

Why traders use it

A good high has a tail (a few prices rejected quickly). A flat, poor high suggests the auction was unfinished, so traders expect price to return and "repair" it. Single prints show urgency; they often act as support or resistance on a return, or get filled.

In liquidity terms, a poor high resembles equal highs.

Chart examples

Single prints and a poor high

Flat topPoor highSingle prints
One large candle leaves single prints; then three periods stop at the same high with no tail above: a poor high.Schematic diagrams drawn to explain the idea; they are not market data.

How to identify it objectively

  • 1Poor high: two or more periods sharing the same high, no excess above.
  • 2Poor low: the same at the bottom.
  • 3Single prints: a price range covered by one period only, usually inside a large candle.
  • 4Mark both and track whether they are revisited.

Bullish use

  • 1A poor high above price is a potential target.
  • 2Single prints below price can act as support on the first return.

Bearish use

  • 1A poor low below price is a potential target.
  • 2Single prints above price can act as resistance on the first return.

What confirms it

  • The poor high is obvious on the session profile.
  • The single-print area formed with displacement.

What invalidates it

  • The poor high is taken and price continues: it was repaired.
  • Price trades through the single prints without reaction.

How a hypothetical setup is built

Entry

On a pullback into the single prints with a bullish close.

Stop

Below the single-print area.

Target

The poor high above.

A hypothetical illustration of how the concept is turned into a plan, not a recommendation. Practise it on a paper account first.

Related concepts

Historical testing

Not tested on The Tradeskill.

Limitations: when it fails

  • "Same price" needs a tolerance.
  • Not every poor high is revisited.
  • Candle charts only approximate a TPO profile.

Knowledge check

Pick an answer to see the explanation. Nothing is saved.

A poor high is…

1. A poor high is…

Single prints are prices traded…

2. Single prints are prices traded…

Why do traders target poor highs?

3. Why do traders target poor highs?

Practise it risk-free

Open the free chart, use replay to go back in time and look for this concept candle by candle with $20,000 in virtual money.