Bearish Pennant
A bearish pennant is a brief continuation pattern: a steep decline followed by a small, symmetrical consolidation whose boundaries converge, typically resolving in the direction of the decline.
- Bias
- Bearish
- Category
- Short Setups
- Scan cadence
- Every close
What has to be true for a Bearish Pennant to trigger
- A sharp, high-volume decline forming the pole
- A small converging consolidation directly after it
- The pennant staying tight and brief
- Volume contracting through the pennant
How PatternGrade grades it
A cleaner pole, a tighter pennant and clearer volume contraction raise the grade.
Every scanner grades its hits A+, A or B from the pattern's own measurable structure. The grading is deterministic — the same chart always produces the same grade. It describes how closely the chart matches the pattern, not how likely anything is to happen; no hit rate or probability is attached to a grade. The reasoning is set out in the methodology.
What a Bearish Pennant looks like in practice
A stock falls 17% over four sessions on very heavy volume, then spends six sessions in a small converging range, lower highs and higher lows spanning about 4% of price, with volume dropping back below average. The consolidation sits near the bottom of the pole rather than recovering into it, and then price breaks the lower boundary and resumes lower.
How a Bearish Pennant fails
The consolidation deepens into a genuine recovery. A pennant that retraces well past a third of the pole has stopped describing a pause; one that lasts a month is a triangle. Both show up in volume: a bearish pennant should form on declining volume, and rising volume inside it suggests real buying rather than a pause in selling.
What this pattern is telling you
Pennants are short-lived. One that drags on has become a triangle, and the continuation logic weakens with time.
PatternGrade is not a financial advisor and does not give buy or sell recommendations. Targets and stops shown on a pattern are reference levels derived from its geometry, not advice.
How to scan for Bearish Pennant setups
PatternGrade rescans every liquid US stock (~4,500 names) for this pattern after every close and returns the hits as a graded list, with the pattern drawn on each chart, so you review setups rather than hunt for them.
Join the waitlist to be invited when sign-ups reopen and see the current Bearish Pennant list, or browse all 75 patterns.
Bearish Pennant FAQ
What is a bearish pennant?
A small converging triangle that forms immediately after a sharp decline, conventionally resolving downward as a continuation of the move.
What is a bearish pennant?
A brief converging consolidation immediately after a sharp decline. The steep drop forms the pole; the small symmetrical range that follows is the pennant. It is read as a pause in an active decline rather than a reversal.
How long should a bearish pennant last?
One to three weeks on daily bars, and often less. Pennants are the shortest continuation patterns. Past about three weeks the momentum argument has weakened and the structure is better read as a triangle.
How is it different from a bear flag?
Only in the shape of the consolidation: converging boundaries rather than parallel ones. Functionally they are graded on the same qualities: pole steepness, retrace depth, and volume contraction.
What is the target on a bearish pennant?
The conventional measured move projects the pole's length down from the breakdown. PatternGrade shows it as a geometric reference derived from the pattern, not as a forecast.
Patterns a Bearish Pennant is mistaken for
- Bear Flag
- A flag's boundaries are roughly parallel; a pennant's converge. Same pole, different consolidation shape.
- Pennant
- The bullish version after a sharp advance. Pole direction is the only difference.
- Symmetric Triangle
- A triangle is a larger, slower structure over weeks to months with no pole requirement.
Last reviewed . Structure and grading for the Bearish Pennant are reviewed against the scanner's own rules.