Profile Reader

Lessons › Module 2: Building a TPO Profile › Lesson 2.3

Lesson 2.3 · about 5 minutes

Collapsing Bars into a Profile

ObjectiveAfter this lesson you can turn a column-by-column TPO chart into a profile and explain what the profile's shape shows.

Concept

A profile is built by sliding every letter to the left along its own price row, as far as it will go. The letters keep their time order, so each row still reads A, B, C and so on from left to right. The columns from lesson 2.2 disappear and a sideways histogram appears: long rows where the market spent a lot of time, short rows where it barely traded. Nothing is lost. Every letter is still on its price row, so you can still see when each price traded. You swap the time-ordered view for a picture of where time built up, and that picture is what profile readers read.

A collapsed TPO profile from 103 to 109. Row 106 is the longest with nine letters, row 105 has eight, and the rows thin out to one letter at 109 and two at 103. A B F G H A B C E F G H I A B C D E F H I J A C D E I J B G C D D 109 108 107 106 105 104 103 longest row: 9 TPOs 1 TPO (D) 2 TPOs (B, G) XYZ (hypothetical): the lesson 2.2 session, collapsed Hypothetical data
XYZ (hypothetical): the lesson 2.2 session, collapsed. Hypothetical, synthetic data generated from code. A collapsed TPO profile from 103 to 109. Row 106 is the longest with nine letters, row 105 has eight, and the rows thin out to one letter at 109 and two at 103.

Worked example

Take the hypothetical XYZ session from lesson 2.2 and collapse its ten columns. Row 106 collects nine letters: A, B, C, D, E, F, H, I and J. Row 105 collects eight (every period except D and J) and row 107 six (A, C, D, E, I and J). Near the top, 108 has two letters (C and D) and 109 just one (D). Near the bottom, 104 has five (A, B, F, G and H) and 103 two (B and G). The total is still 33 TPOs: the same letters as the column view, rearranged.

Key takeaway

Collapsing slides each letter left on its price row. The profile shows where the session spent its time.

Check yourself

Pick an answer to see instantly why it is right or wrong.

Question 1 of 3

When you collapse a TPO chart into a profile, what happens to each letter?

Question 2 of 3

After collapsing, how many letters are on the 105 row in the XYZ example?

Question 3 of 3

Why can you still tell when a price traded after collapsing the chart?

Not financial advice. Educational content only, not financial advice. All tickers and prices are hypothetical, synthetic data. Market Profile is an organizing tool, not a trading system or a prediction. Trading involves substantial risk of loss.