Immediate definition — A diamond below price records a trough assigned to one cycle component. A stack means that the same low area has been associated with components of several durations.
In the phasing analysis described by David Hickson, results are annotated by placing diamonds below price. The taller the stack, the longer the component included in the assignment.
Height does not measure the strength, probability, or magnitude of the subsequent move. Nor does it make the trough an objective fact: the mark preserves an analytical interpretation and may change if phasing is revised.
How to read it
One diamond indicates one component. Several vertically aligned marks record components whose troughs have been placed in the same time area. Cycle synchronization helps interpret the stack, while underlying trend reminds the reader that no component acts in isolation.
The complete operational explanation, including the diagram and limits, is in How to read diamond notation.
Source limitation
The original J. M. Hurst Cycles Course is not available in the Cyclepedia corpus. Attribution of the system to Hurst therefore rests on Hickson's post-Hurst account. The 1970 edition of Profit Magic was checked directly and does not document this notation.
The convention described here marks troughs. Automatic indicators, peak markings, and forecasting functions belong to later extensions and are not part of this definition.
Sources
- J. M. Hurst, The Profit Magic of Stock Transaction Timing, Prentice-Hall, 1970 — checked directly to delimit the book's content.
- David Hickson, “Phasing Analysis”, Hurst Cycles Notes, 16 September 2022 — indirect source for attribution, troughs, and stack height.