Hammer

A Hammer is a single-candle bullish reversal pattern characterized by a small real body near the top of the range and a long lower wick at least twice the body's length. The pattern visualizes rejection: sellers pushed price down during the session but buyers absorbed them and closed price back near the open. The bearish equivalent, the Shooting Star, has the opposite geometry. Small body near the bottom, long upper wick.

Quality hammers form at established demand zones, prior swing lows, or after extended downtrends (not in the middle of ranges). Volume should be elevated on the hammer itself, confirming active participation rather than thin trading. Entry is typically the close above the hammer's high; stop goes below the hammer's low. Hammers are a subset of the broader pin bar category used extensively in price-action strategies, and they're the most frequently-cited single-candle reversal signal in classical technical analysis.