How much money did Gann make?

Gann's students have stated that he left a fortune of $50 million (equivalent to $569 million in 2023) that he built by following his methods, but evidence of such a fortune is lacking. Alexander Elder, in his book Trading for a Living, said "I interviewed W.D. Gann's son, an analyst for a Boston bank.

Who invented the Gann theory?

The inventor of the Gann Theory, William D. Gann , believed stock prices tend to change with angles. As per his observations, price changes are related to prevalent geometric shapes, and studying them can help you predict the future movements of a stock.

How accurate is the Gann theory?

Gann trading strategy can still be used and, if applied correctly, can predict the movement of an asset up to 90% accuracy. W. D. Gann believed that the market follows a natural time cycle.

Was W.D. Gann a good trader?

WD Gann was among the most successful and accurate traders in the history of Wall Street . More importantly, he would share his knowledge with other market participants.

What is the GANN time cycle?

WD Gann Time Cycles: the method is used to trade on the basis of Time factor and he was very accurate to the time and price in market, we will try to get the closest to the reversal dates and price for reversals.

What is the Gann formula?

Gann's equation goes as follows: 1 x 8 = 82.5 degrees, 1 x 4 = 75 degrees, 1 x 3 = 71.25 degrees, 1 x 2 = 63.75 degrees, 1 x 1 = 45 degrees, 2 x 1 = 26.25 degrees, 3 x 1 = 18.75 degrees, 4 x 1 = 15 degrees, 8 x 1 = 7.5 degrees .

Gann angles are useful to us for finding momentum and trends . We particularly like these angles for swing trading and longer-term trend trading. You can use Gann angles on any chart time frame. However, they are more effective on longer-term charts.

What are the major Gann levels?

Gann theory distinguishes four major levels of support: G1, G2, G3, and G4 . G1 is the level of 50% retracement from the all-time High, which might be indicative of future upward movement renewal. If that doesn't hold, look for G2 level which is the midpoint between the all-time High and all-time Low.

What is the most important Gann angle?

The most important angel angle in the Gann theory is 1:1 . A 1:1 angle is considered to have a slope of 45 degrees. It represents a line that moves a unit vertically for every unit change in the horizontal direction, indicating the relationship between the price and time of the asset on the chart.

What is the most accurate trading theory?

Trend trading strategy. This strategy describes when a trader uses technical analysis to define a trend, and only enters trades in the direction of the pre-determined trend. The above is a famous trading motto and one of the most accurate in the markets.

Who is the number 1 trader in the world?

George Soros He is one of the most popular and famous traders worldwide. In England, Soros worked as a waiter or railway porter before he graduated from the London School of Economics. This finally led him to the banking world when he became a merchant banker at Singer and Friedlander.

Who is the best day trader of all time?

Who is the most successful day trader? There are a lot of successful traders but Jesse Livermore is often regarded as the most successful day trader. His success came from trading on the capital earned by himself and by trading on setups made by himself.

Who is the billionaire trader?

George Soros , the legendary investor and philanthropist, is widely recognized as one of the most successful forex traders in history. In 1992, Soros famously "broke the Bank of England" by shorting the British pound, earning an estimated $1 billion in a single day.

Who Was W.D. Gann? (2024)

W.D. Gann is remembered for using geometry, astrology, and ancient mathematics to predict events in the financial markets. He developed the technical analysis methods of Gann angles, indicators, and master charts.

Gann is the author of How to Make Profits in Commodities and 45 Years in Wall Street. W.D. Gann died on June 18, 1955.

Key Takeaways

W.D. Gann created trading strategies using geometry, astrology, and ancient mathematics.
His techniques, known as Gann indicators, are used in predicting the top, bottom, and future price moves of commodities.
Gann developed and sold trading courses including The W. D. Gann Master Commodity Course: Original Commodity Market Trading Course.

Early Life and Education

W.D. Gann was born on June 6, 1878, in Lufkin, Texas. With limited education, Gann was a self-taught investor who began trading in the early 1900s. In 1908 he moved to New York City to open his brokerage firm, W.D. Gann & Company.

Publications

In 1919,W.D. Gann began publishing the daily market letter, The Supply and Demand Newsletter, which reported on stocks and commodities and made yearly forecasts. Gann's second publicationin 1923, The Busy Man’s Service, provided detailed trading recommendations.

Throughout his career, W.D. Gann developed and sold trading courses including The W. D. Gann Master Commodity Course: Original Commodity Market Trading Course.

Gann Angles

Gann angles are one of Gann's indicators and are trading tools used to measure key elements, such as pattern, price, and time. Gann described the use of angles in The Basis of My Forecasting Method, in 1935. By superimposing nine angles over a price chart, Gann shows potential support and resistance levels where each of the nine Gann angles represents a price movement.

Based on the 45-degree angle on a price chart, known as the 1:1 angle, Gann marked trends above it as strong and trends below it as weaker, with any change in angle representing a price change.

Support and Resistance

Support is the level at which demand is strong enough to stop the stock from falling.

Resistance is the level at which supply is strong enough to stop the stock from moving higher.

Cycles and Numbers

W.D. Gann argued that all market activity hashistorical reference points. By studying ancient geometry and astrology, he found that market events and specific numbers repeated across time cycles, and Gann's indicators are based on his findings.

By counting days and trending specific calendar dates, Gann argued that the majority of trends occur in periods of three days, three weeks, or three months.

Gann also saw the calendar year of 365 days as an important cycle, one which creates a circle of 360 degrees. The circle on a price chart creates angles of 45, 90, 120, 135, 180, 225, 240, 270, 315, and 360 on which to plot and predict trends.

He also followed trends in a 60-year cycle and a 90-year cycle. He noted that the war period which ended in 1869 created panic, and was followed by 60 years of the greatest bull market and another panic in 1929. In November 1928, Gann reportedly issued an "Annual Forecast for 1929" which predicted the end of the great bull market of the 1920s on September 3, 1929.

Why Is W.D. Gann Considered Controversial?

It is unclear how wealthy W.D. Gann became from his trading analysis. In his 1993 book Trading for a Living, Alexander Elder, argues that Gann and his followers sold books and investment courses to earn money and did not profit from investments in the market. Elder's book claims that when W.D. Gann died in the 1950s his estate was valued at slightly over $100,000.

What Evidence Exists of W.D. Gann's Success?

In 1909, Richard Wyckoff a reporter for Ticker and Investment Digest detailed Gann's activity during October 1909. Gann made 286 transactions in various stocks, on both the long and short side of the market of which 264 of these transactions resulted in profits.

What Are the Tenets of W.D. Gann's Trading Philosophy?

Gann encouraged his students to avoid overtrading and evaluate if a trade is based on hope or logic. He also taught followers to develop a different strategy for each of the four market situations: bull market; bull to bear market phase; bear market; and bear to bull market phase.

The Bottom Line

While the scope of W.D. Gann’s trading achievements remain unclear, Gann's legacy and trading strategies and Gann indicators, using geometry, astrology, and ancient mathematics, continue to influence investors.