Using Display Fields

The Portfolio View can be set up to display entry/exit signals and other fields using Display Fields. Any data field in any data series can be used as a display field.

Display fields are primarily used for displaying the current value of entry/exit signals and other information relevant for trading. For example, signal analysis fields can be used to display information about how an entry/exit signal has been trading. In addition, display fields can be sorted so that you can easily locate the best performers.

&  For a step-by-step introduction to this topic, see the tutorial called Modifying the Portfolio View.

Adding Display Fields to the Portfolio View

Display fields are assigned to portfolios or groups, allowing you to display information only where it is relevant. To display a field in the portfolio view, select Modify Display Fields… from the context menu for the portfolio or a subgroup that contains the field you want to display. This will display the Modify Group Dialog: Display Page, where you can define and manipulate the display fields associated with this group.

To add a display field for this group, select a field from the listing of available fields on this dialog and press the Add to Display button. When you exit from the Modify Group Dialog, the selected field or fields will be displayed in the Portfolio View.

Ä    Note: If you have added display fields, but do not see them in your Portfolio View, make sure the Portfolio View window is wide enough to display the added fields. The Portfolio View can be resized by dragging the edge of the window. In addition, the grid in the Portfolio View can also be resized.

Viewing Display Fields

All of the display fields in the Portfolio View display data for a single date at one time. This date is called the Display Date and is shown at the top of the Portfolio View over the display fields.

Ä    Note: If no display fields are currently being displayed, the display date will not be displayed.

The values displayed in the Portfolio View represent the last known value of a field in a data series. For example, when the closing price of a stock is displayed for a Sunday, the value being displayed is from the last day with data, which is typically the preceding Friday. This allows you to view weekly, monthly, and quarterly data along with current daily data.

Every data series in a group with a display field will attempt to display a value for the selected field. If that field hasn’t been defined for a data series, the value "n/a" will be displayed. In addition, if no data is available on or prior to the display date, the value "n/a" will be displayed.

Display fields are highlighted when they need to be brought to your attention. The following colors are used:

·      Pink Background

A pink background is displayed when an entry/exit signal results in a change in position from the previous values of that signal. For example, an exit long after an enter long or an enter long after an enter short.

Ä    Note: Signal highlighting does not take into account stops or limits in trading styles. Because of this, enter signals may not be highlighted when previous trades were stopped out or did not occur due to failure to reach a price limit.

·      Light Gray Background

A light gray background is displayed when data for a data series may be "out-of-date". For end-of-day data, this means the last date in the data series is not equal to the last date in the portfolio. For intraday data, this means the data is not being streamed.

Ä    Note: When displaying previous display dates in the Portfolio View, a gray background is used to indicate that the date associated with the currently displayed data occurs prior to the display date.

·      Dark Gray Background

A dark gray background is displayed when a signal analysis field with an adjusted date range is displayed for a date prior to the last date in the data series. These values should not be used. Fields of this type contain valid data only for the last date in the data series.

:    Example: A signal analysis field with a one-year percent gain only contains the analysis for one year of data on the last date of the data series.

Ä    Note: The raw values of signals do not include the effects of Entry/Exit Strategy settings in the Trading Styles used to analyze them. To see the effect of a trading style on a signal, create the Current Trading Signal Signal Analysis field for the signal and trading style you would like to view.

&  For an explanation of how entry/exit signals are displayed, see Analyzing Entry/Exit Signals.

Sorting Display Fields

Data that is displayed in a display field can be sorted in the Portfolio View for an entire subgroup. This is useful for comparing the values in multiple data series. To sort a display field in the Portfolio View, select Sort Values Ascending or Sort Values Descending from the context menu for the heading of the display field you would like to sort. To return to sorting the data series by their name, select Sort Data Names from the context menu for the subgroup.

Ä    Note: Data in multiple subgroups cannot be sorted together. However, you can achieve the same result by creating a new subgroup with copies of all of the data you would like to sort and sorting the copies.

Changing the Display Date

By default, the display fields will initially display the data for the last available date. Any display fields added after these initial fields will be displayed for this same date.

To adjust the display date, use the Portfolio menu or use the context menu from the display date. These menus provide options for viewing the next day, viewing the previous day, viewing today, and selecting a specific date and time. In addition, toolbar buttons are available with these items.

&  For help selecting a display date, see the help for the Select Portfolio View Display Date Dialog.

Once a new display date is selected, all of the display fields in the Portfolio View will update automatically to display the values for the new date.

&  For more help with the Portfolio View, see Managing Data with the Portfolio View.