#78 - Dave Keller, President and Chief Strategist at Sierra Alpha Research: Technical Analysis, Investor Behavior, and Navigating Market Rotations (recorded 07/29/26)

In this episode of The Bull of Wall Street, Jim Worden and Talley Leger sit down with Dave Keller, President and Chief Strategist at Sierra Alpha Research, to explore how technical analysis, behavioral finance, fundamentals, and macroeconomic research can work together to improve investment decisions.

Dave explains why he thinks technical analysis has gained broader acceptance across institutional investing and how charts can help investors navigate the gap between current prices and long-term fundamental value. The conversation examines the divergence between weakening technology leadership and improving market breadth, why relative strength remains one of Dave’s most valuable indicators, and how advisors can distinguish a short-term correction from a more meaningful change in trend.

The group also discusses confirmation bias, emotional attachment to investments, risk management, AI’s role in investment research, and why consistent routines can help advisors avoid reactive decisions.

Key Takeaways

• Technical analysis can complement fundamental, macroeconomic, quantitative, and behavioral research.
• Relative strength can help identify leadership as capital rotates between sectors and investment themes.
• Strong market breadth may create opportunities even when capitalization-weighted indexes appear weak.
• Technical analysis can be especially valuable as a risk-management and sell-discipline tool.
• AI may improve research efficiency, but investors still need judgment, context, and a disciplined process.
• Reviewing markets across multiple timeframes could reduce overreaction to short-term volatility.

Chapters

01:39 – Why technical analysis has gained institutional acceptance

06:49 – Reconciling positive fundamentals with deteriorating technicals

10:31 – Identifying corrections versus broken trends

15:16 – Combining fundamental, technical, macro, and behavioral research

18:47 – Confirmation bias and the endowment effect

22:28 – Sentiment, market leadership, and active management

28:41 – Price corrections versus time corrections

30:34 – Market breadth versus index performance

33:36 – Technical analysis as a risk-management tool

38:27 – Valuation, momentum, and timing investment decisions

42:04 – How technical analysis has evolved

44:41 – AI’s role in investment research and decision-making

49:55 – Dave’s favorite and most overrated indicators

55:17 – Building a consistent market-review routine

56:16 – The first chart Dave reviews each morning

Guest

Dave Keller, President and Chief Strategist, Sierra Alpha Research

Hosts

Jim Worden, Chief Investment Officer, The Wealth Consulting Group

Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist, The Wealth Consulting Group

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