To apply the Parabolic SAR to a chart, you need to  click the Insert tab on the MetaTrader 4 platform, then choose Indicators, Trend, and the Parabolic SAR will open.

After choosing the indicator, a pop-up window appears asking you to set the parameters. You can choose the colour, the size of the dots to be applied, and even the period to be taken into consideration when applying the dots.

Ways to Use the Parabolic SAR Trend Indicator

There are two main ways to use the Parabolic SAR indicator, the best-known one being to apply the indicator on a reasonable timeframe (from the hourly timeframe and longer) and trade with a short-term horizon based on the overall trend. In other words, scalp your way for short profits based on the longer trend direction. The other way to use this indicator is to time the exit from a trade that was profitable. It doesn’t matter what the logic behind that trade was, as long as it ended in profit. Being a profitable one, the next question that comes to mind is when to exit the trade in such a way that the trend is not missed. This is where the Parabolic SAR comes into play, as it allows traders to trail their stops for profitable trades in order to time the exit.

Buying Dips/Selling Spikes with the Parabolic SAR Indicator

Using the indicator with this approach implies that a trend is already in place, and that traders are looking to identify places to trade in the general direction of the overall trend. This usually means scalping when markets are correcting the overall trend, with the purpose of realising some profits on a short timeframe.

Identifying a trend can be done using either  moving averages (as described in another article here at Forex Trading Academy, this can be done by using golden and death crosses) or simply using the very definition of a trend: a series of higher lows/lower highs that is not broken. The next thing to do is to apply the Parabolic SAR indicator on the chart in order to see the underlying main trend. The chart below shows the EUR/USD 4-hour timeframe with the Parabolic SAR indicator applied.

It is obvious that the main trend is a bearish one, but this is not necessarily a conclusion offered by the Parabolic SAR. What traders do is use it in order to trade in the same direction as that of the general trend, but when the price is consolidating. In the example above, given the fact that the main trend is a bearish one, all we have to do is to look for shorting the pair for short-term to very-short-term profits. This is called scalping.

As mentioned at the start of the article, a dot plotted above price means a bearish environment, and represents a bearish signal. Traders therefore look to go short on the first bearish dot after a bullish signal, having in mind that the trade is short-term oriented. The chart above shows no less than six possible short trades if we count the one when the main bearish trend resumes, and they represent a way of making a profit when the market is in a range.

Using the Parabolic SAR to Trail Stops

Exiting a trade is as important as entering one, as  traders often exit a trade only to find out that the price starts moving even more aggressively in the right direction. One way to avoid this is to trail your stops with the Parabolic SAR indicator. To do that, it is assumed that there is already a trade that is well into profit. This trade may have been taken by considering some other indicators or trading theories, and now the question is when to exit it. For that, the Parabolic SAR is applied on a shorter timeframe, ideally not shorter than the hourly chart. If the trade is a long one, meaning the trend is a bullish one, the Parabolic SAR indicator will show the dots below the price. The idea behind trailing the stop is to raise it with each and every dot that is also rising, as this means the overall price is still moving to the upside. When the dots move above the price, that is a signal that the trade should be closed. In this way, the risk of a sudden trend reversal is avoided, and if the Parabolic SAR dots move above the price it means the overall trend might end, so it is safe to exit the trade. Even though it is considered to be a trend indicator, the Parabolic SAR is mainly used as an extra tool in a trending environment. This doesn’t change the fact that it represents a valuable tool for profitable trading.