This TXN trade review and URI trade review looks at two of the cleanest post-earnings momentum setups I traded this year. Both stocks combined strong earnings catalysts with multi-timeframe breakouts, creating high-probability A+ setups… but while the trade ideas were similar, the lessons around execution, position sizing, and risk management were very different.
Some setups are good. Some are great.
And then there are the rare A+ setups where fundamentals, price action, momentum, and risk management all align almost perfectly. That was the case with both Texas Instruments (TXN) and United Rentals (URI).
Both trades fit my post-earnings momentum framework: a clear fundamental catalyst, a significant earnings-driven price move, and a multi-timeframe break of structure.
In both cases, the setups were obvious in hindsight… but more importantly, they were recognizable in real time.
That matters, because repeatable recognition is what turns a trade into a process.
TXN Trade Review
TXN was one of the cleanest post-earnings momentum setups I have seen in a while.
Fundamentally, the setup checked every box.
Texas Instruments beat on both revenue and earnings, delivered strong year-over-year growth, and raised forward guidance. That combination alone suggested improving sentiment.
But what elevated this into an A+ setup was how the market responded.
The stock surged roughly 10% on earnings, immediately triggering breakouts on the hourly and 4-hour charts.
But when I zoomed out, I realized this was much bigger than a short-term momentum move. TXN was breaking out on the hourly, 4-hour, daily, and weekly charts… effectively pushing into all-time high territory.
That kind of four-timeframe confluence is rare.
An all-time high breakout after strong earnings often creates a powerful feedback loop and cause cause short squeezes to happen.
Momentum traders see the breakout. Institutions may chase improving fundamentals. And short sellers, now underwater, can become forced buyers. That combination can create explosive continuation.
What made the trade even cleaner was the entry.
Rather than chasing the initial earnings spike, I recognized the pullback to the 9 EMA as the ideal spot to get involved. The stock pulled back, kissed the moving average almost perfectly, then reclaimed the pre-market high and pushed higher. That was textbook.
This is where I did something right… and something wrong.
What I did right was identifying the setup before the opening range break and using the pullback as an entry rather than chasing strength.
What I did wrong was position sizing.
I had already built what should have been a full-sized position… roughly $1,000, which is the maximum size I prefer on these setups. But then I added 21 more shares, pushing the position value to roughly $6,500… more than six times my preferred risk tolerance.
The trade worked. I made money. But that does not make the oversizing correct.
In fact, this may be the biggest lesson from TXN. A good setup does not justify abandoning risk discipline. If the trade had reversed, hundreds of dollars could have disappeared in minutes.
The entry was A+. The execution was good. The sizing was not.
That distinction matters.
URI Trade Review
URI was different from TXN… but only slightly.
Fundamentally, it had many of the same ingredients: top and bottom line beats, revenue growth, and raised guidance. That gave the stock a legitimate catalyst.
Technically, the setup showed strong confluence as well, though not quite as perfect as TXN. URI broke out on the hourly and 4-hour charts, while the daily and higher timeframes looked somewhat choppier. That made it slightly lower quality in my framework… but still clearly high probability.
During the earnings hour, the stock surged roughly 15% and held those gains. That alone was important. Stocks that hold earnings gaps often matter more than stocks that simply gap.
I entered long around the $925 level and anchored risk around a 3% stop.
What I liked most about this trade was not the setup itself… it was the process.
I read the tape well.
Watching time and sales, I kept seeing prints go through on upticks, suggesting buyers were lifting offers. I also noticed several larger blocks moving through, which supported the idea that accumulation was taking place.
Tape reading is not magic. It is not predictive in isolation. But when you can spot large orders going through at the ask, that’s often a bullish signal, especially when it aligns with a strong fundamental catalyst and a multi-timeframe breakout… that reinforces conviction.
And in this case, it did.
I also executed the trade much closer to how I want to trade.
I bought one share… roughly a $1,000 position. I kept my risk predefined. And once the trade moved in my favor, I set a trailing stop and walked away.
Eventually I was stopped out for a 5.8% gain. That may not sound extraordinary, but the process was.
I recognized the setup. I managed risk properly. I exited systematically. And I walked away satisfied.
Honestly, that may be more valuable than the percentage return itself.
Comparing the Two Trades
Both trades were A+ quality… but for slightly different reasons.
TXN was the stronger setup structurally because it had four-timeframe confluence and an all-time high breakout. Those factors can create outsized upside when combined with earnings momentum.
URI was slightly less explosive structurally, but the risk management and execution were arguably cleaner.
That contrast is interesting. The better setup had worse sizing. The slightly lower quality setup had better discipline.
That tells me the edge is not just in finding A+ setups. It is in applying the same discipline to every A+ setup.
Key Lessons
A few takeaways stand out:
First, multi-timeframe confluence remains one of the strongest signals in this strategy. When earnings, momentum, and structural breakouts align, those setups deserve attention.
Second, pullbacks into support… especially the 9 EMA in strong momentum environments… can offer far better entries than chasing initial spikes.
Third, oversized positions remain one of my biggest risks. Even when the thesis is correct, violating position size rules introduces unnecessary downside.
And fourth, URI reinforced that smaller, properly managed trades can feel better than bigger wins taken with excessive risk.
That is a lesson worth repeating.
Final Verdict
Both TXN and URI were textbook examples of why post-earnings momentum can produce some of the highest quality setups in the market.
TXN had nearly everything I look for in an elite setup: strong fundamentals, a 10% earnings move, four-timeframe breakout confluence, and an all-time high breakout. It was an A+ trade… weakened only by poor sizing discipline.
URI offered similar fundamental strength, a 15% earnings-driven move, and solid two-timeframe confluence. While structurally slightly lower quality than TXN, the trade execution was arguably superior.
If I see these setups again, the goal is simple:
Trade them exactly the same way I traded URI… but with the structural selectivity of TXN.
That is the real edge I want to build.
If you want to go deeper:
- Explore the Trading Statistics Hub to understand how different sectors behave across market cycles
- Study real setups inside the Trade Reviews section
- Learn the framework behind high-probability setups in the Post-Earnings Momentum Strategy
This is how you turn raw market data into repeatable trading edge.
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