what is the difference between a hammer candlestick and a shooting star 
while a hammer candlestick pattern signals a bullish reversal a shooting star pattern indicates a bearish price trend shooting star patterns occur after a stock uptrend illustrating an upper shadow essentially the opposite of a hammer candlestick the shooting star rises after opening but closes roughly at the same level of the trading period a shooting star pattern signals the top of a price trend the bottom linea hammer candlestick pattern occurs when a security trades significantly lower than its opening but then rallies to close near its opening price the hammer shaped candlestick that appears on the chart has a lower shadow at least twice the size of the real body the pattern suggests that sellers have attempted to push the price lower but buyers have eventually regained control and returned the price near its opening level the pattern indicates a potential price reversal to the upside 