Introduction

MarketXero Volume Profile Pro is a professional-grade volume profile indicator for NinjaTrader 8 that provides institutional-level market structure analysis. Unlike traditional indicators that focus solely on price and time, Volume Profile reveals where trading activity occurs, helping you identify key support/resistance levels, high-probability trade entries, and institutional zones of interest.

Key Features

• Value Area Analysis: Automatic POC, VAH, and VAL calculation with user-defined value area
• Low Volume Node Detection: AI-powered identification of supply/demand imbalances with 5 sensitivity presets
• Delta Profile: Integrated bid/ask analysis showing directional pressure at each price level
• Previous Day Extensions: Carry forward key levels (POC, VAH, VAL, LVNs) from prior sessions
• Market Regime Classification: Real-time trend identification (Trending, Balanced, Choppy, Developing)
• Session Management: RTH vs Full Session modes with intelligent time-based profiling
• Universal Chart Support: Works on ANY chart type (volumetric, minute, range, tick, Renko, etc.)

What is Volume Profile?

Volume Profile is a charting technique that displays trading activity (volume) distributed across price levels rather than time.

Core Components

1. Point of Control (POC)

• The price level with the highest volume during the session
• Represents maximum acceptance – where most traders agreed on value
• Often acts as strong support/resistance in future sessions
• Institutional reference point for fair value

2. Value Area (VA)

• Contains user defined % (68% default) of the session’s total volume
• Value Area High (VAH): Upper boundary of accepted value
• Value Area Low (VAL): Lower boundary of accepted value
• Prices outside the VA are considered overvalued (above VAH) or undervalued (below VAL)

3. Low Volume Nodes (LVNs)

• Price levels with minimal trading activity
• Indicate supply/demand imbalances or rejection zones
• Price tends to move quickly out of LVNs (thin liquidity)
• Often serve as breakout, reversal, or target levels

4. High Volume Nodes (HVNs)

• Price levels with concentrated trading activity
• Strong support/resistance zones
• Areas where institutions accumulated/distributed positions
• Price tends to consolidate at HVNs

Why Volume Profile Matters

Traditional Time-Based Charts Show:

• When price moved
• How far price moved
• Price action patterns

Volume Profile Reveals:

• Where the majority of trading occurred
• Price levels institutions defend or attack
• Zones of acceptance vs. rejection
• Supply/demand imbalances that fuel momentum

Installation & Setup

License Activation

1. Purchase subscription at portal.marketxero.com
2. Add NinjaTrader username to your portal account settings
3. Install indicator via downloaded ZIP file from portal
4. Restart NinjaTrader – license validates automatically on first load

Adding to Chart

1. Right-click chart → Indicators
2. Locate “MarketXero Volume Profile Pro”
3. Click Add → Configure settings → OK
4. Current day Volume Profile renders on right side of chart, previous day volume profile pinned to the left-hand side of the chart.

Quick Start Settings

For ES/NQ Day Trading (RTH):

• Session Time Mode: RTH
• Session Start Time: 930 (9:30 AM ET)
• Session End Time: 1600 (4:00 PM ET)
• Profile Scope: Current Day
• LVN Sensitivity: Moderate (4)

For 24-Hour Futures:

• Session Time Mode: Full Session
• Profile Scope: Show All Previous Days
• Extend Previous Day POC: Enabled
• Show Previous Day LVNs: Enabled

Core Concepts

Volume Distribution Logic

The indicator analyzes every tick that occurs during the session and builds a histogram showing volume at each price level. This reveals:

• Acceptance Zones: High volume areas where buyers and sellers reached equilibrium
• Rejection Zones: Low volume areas (LVNs) where price was quickly rejected
• Fair Value: The POC represents institutional consensus on value

Session-Based Profiling

Volume Profile is calculated per trading session, not continuously:

• RTH Mode: Profiles only regular trading hours (e.g., 9:30 AM – 4:00 PM ET)
• Full Session Mode: Includes overnight and extended hours
• Each new session starts a fresh volume distribution
• Previous sessions remain visible for context

Non-Volumetric Chart Support

Volume Profile Pro works on ANY chart type through intelligent volume distribution:

• Volumetric Charts (Tick/Volume): Uses actual tick-level volume data
• Time-Based Charts (Minute/Range/Renko): Pulls in actual tick-level volume data
• Seamless experience regardless of chart type
• No configuration changes needed – automatic detection

General Settings

Show Volume Profile

• Purpose: Master toggle for volume profile visualization
• Use Case: Disable temporarily to focus only on delta profile or for performance

Volume Profile Width (%)

• Range: 10% – 50%
• Purpose: Controls how much horizontal chart space the profile occupies
• Tip: Use 15-20% for clean charts, 30-40% for detailed analysis

Volume Profile Color

• Purpose: Color for volume bars within the Value Area
• Visual Strategy: Use contrasting colors for inside/outside VA for quick recognition

Value Area Opacity (%)

• Range: 0% – 100%
• Purpose: Transparency of volume bars within Value Area
• Tip: 40-60% allows price bars to show through for context

Show Volume Labels

• Purpose: Display volume numbers on bars
• Use Case: Enable for precise volume analysis, disable for cleaner charts

Volume Label Font Size

• Range: 6 – 24
• Tip: Use 8-10 for standard monitors, 12-14 for 4K displays

Show Trend Label

• Purpose: Display market regime classification on chart
• Values: TRENDING, BALANCED, CHOPPY, DEVELOPING
• Use Case: Quick visual confirmation of current market structure

Session Time Configuration

Session Time Mode

• Options: RTH (Regular Trading Hours) or Full Session

RTH Mode:

• Uses custom start/end times (configured below)
• Typical for equity index futures: 9:30 AM – 4:00 PM ET
• Excludes overnight and extended hours
• Most common for day traders

Full Session Mode:

• Uses NinjaTrader’s SessionIterator
• Automatically includes pre-market, RTH, and after-hours
• Best for swing traders and 24-hour markets

Session Start Time (RTH Mode Only)

• Format: HHMM (24-hour time)
• Examples: 930 = 9:30 AM, 1400 = 2:00 PM, 2130 = 9:30 PM

Common Session Start Times:

• ES/NQ/YM: 930 (9:30 AM ET RTH start)
• GC: 930 (9:30 AM ET RTH start)
• CL: 930 (9:30 AM ET RTH start)
• 6E: 200 (2:00 AM ET RTH start)

Session End Time (RTH Mode Only)

Common Session End Times:

• ES/NQ/YM: 1600 (4:00 PM ET RTH end)
• GC: 1300 (1:00 PM ET RTH end)
• CL: 1400 (2:00 PM ET RTH end)
• 6E: 1600 (4:00 PM ET RTH end)

Important: If end time is before start time, the system assumes end time is next day (for overnight sessions).

Profile Scope

• Options: Current Day or Show All Previous Days

Current Day:

• Shows only current trading day’s volume profile
• Prevents unexpected multi-day displays
• Best for active day trading

Show All Previous Days:

• Shows all previous session profiles available in chart data
• Handles weekends intelligently
• Essential for historical analysis and context

Delta Profile

Delta Profile shows the difference between buying pressure (ask volume) and selling pressure (bid volume) at each price level. An excellent tool to find trapped participants or participants that will support pullbacks and continue moving price in a favorable direction.

Show Delta Profile

• Purpose: Toggle delta profile visualization
• Strategy: Combine with volume profile to see both acceptance AND directional bias

Delta Layout

• Options: Overlay, Total|Delta, Delta|Total

Overlay:

• Delta renders on top of volume profile
• Compact, single-column display
• Best for identifying directional pressure within high-volume zones

Total|Delta:

• Volume profile on left, delta profile on right with gap
• Side-by-side comparison
• Easier to distinguish volume vs. delta independently

Delta Profile Width (%)

• Range: 10% – 50%
• Tip: Match volume profile width for balanced appearance

Bid Color (Negative Delta)

• Interpretation: Negative delta = more contracts sold at bid

Ask Color (Positive Delta)

• Interpretation: Positive delta = more contracts bought at ask

Show Delta Labels

• Purpose: Display delta values on bars
• Use Case: Enable to see exact directional imbalance magnitude

Minimum Delta for Labels

• Formula: Uses absolute value |delta| regardless of positive/negative
• Strategy: Set to 50-100 contracts on ES to focus on significant imbalances

Value Area & POC

Value Area Percentage

• Purpose: Percentage of total session volume to include in Value Area
• Standard: 70% is industry standard (represents “fair value”)
• Alternative: 68% (one standard deviation) or 80% (wider acceptance)

Show All POCs

• Purpose: Highlight Point of Control with horizontal line
• Trading Use: POC is key support/resistance for day

POC Color

• Tip: Use bright color (yellow, cyan) for maximum visibility

POC Line Width

• Range: 1 – 5

Show All VAH/VAL Lines

• Purpose: Display Value Area High and Value Area Low lines
• Trading Use: Price above VAH = overvalued, below VAL = undervalued

VAH/VAL Line Color

• Tip: Use neutral color (white, gray) to distinguish from POC

Extend Previous Day POC

• Purpose: Project previous session POC as horizontal line into current day
• Behavior: Extension terminates when current session trades through the level
• Strategy: Yesterday’s POC often becomes today’s support/resistance

Extend Previous Day VAH/VAL

• Purpose: Project previous session Value Area boundaries into current day
• Behavior: Extensions terminate when price trades through levels
• Strategy: Prior day VA often defines today’s breakout/breakdown zones

Outside Value Area Color

• Purpose: Color for volume bars outside the Value Area
• Interpretation: Outside VA = overvalued (above VAH) or undervalued (below VAL)

Outside Value Area Opacity (%)

• Range: 0% – 100%
• Strategy: Use lower opacity than inside VA to highlight rejection zones

Low Volume Nodes (LVN)

Low Volume Nodes represent supply/demand imbalances – price levels with minimal trading activity that often fuel rapid price movement.

Show Low Volume Nodes

• Default: Enabled
• Purpose: Toggle LVN zone detection and visualization
• Trading Use: LVNs act as breakout levels, targets, and rotation boundaries

LVN Sensitivity

• Options: 1 (Defensive) through 5 (Aggressive)
• Default: 4 (Moderate)

Sensitivity Levels Explained:

1. Defensive:

• Marks only the most obvious LVNs
• Broadest filters, fewest zones identified
• Lowest detection sensitivity – safest but may miss opportunities

2. Selective:

• Identifies clear LVNs, ignores weaker ones
• More opportunities than Defensive without much noise

3. Conservative:

• Balanced toward caution but allows more LVNs than Selective
• Good middle-low setting for more levels without clutter

4. Moderate (RECOMMENDED):

• Even balance between filtering and signal density
• Suitable baseline for most traders

5. Aggressive:

• Maximum sensitivity, captures nearly all LVNs
• Most levels but can add noise

Choosing Your Sensitivity:

• New traders: Start with Selective (2) to learn key levels
• Experienced traders: Moderate (4) for balanced analysis
• Scalpers/High-frequency: Aggressive (5) for maximum granularity
• Swing traders: Conservative (3) for major levels only

Ignore Session High/Low LVNs

• Purpose: Exclude LVN zones that touch session high or low price
• Rationale: Session extremes often have low volume due to rejection, not true imbalance
• Recommendation: Enable to filter false LVNs at range boundaries

Current LVN Color

• Purpose: Color for current day LVN zones

Current Day LVN Opacity (%)

• Range: 0% – 100%
• Tip: 20-30% provides visibility without overwhelming chart

Previous Day Extensions

Carry forward key levels from previous trading sessions to provide context for current day price action.

Show Previous Day LVNs

• Purpose: Extend LVN zones from previous sessions as horizontal bands
• Behavior: Extensions terminate when current session trades through the level
• Use Case: Identify historical supply/demand imbalances that may still influence price

Previous Day LVN Color

• Tip: Use darker/muted version of current day color for visual hierarchy

Previous Day LVN Opacity (%)

• Range: 0% – 100%
• Recommendation: Lower than current day (15-20%) to keep focus on today

Show Previous Day LVN Date

• Purpose: Display date labels (MM/DD/YY) on previous day LVN extensions
• Use Case: Track which historical session each LVN originated from

Advanced Features

Market Regime Classification

The indicator automatically classifies current market structure into four categories:

TRENDING

• Strong directional movement
• Price making sustained progress in one direction
• Value Area migrating with price
• Strategy: Follow the trend, avoid counter-trend trades

BALANCED

• Price oscillating within defined range
• Value Area stable, POC relatively unchanged
• Buyers and sellers in equilibrium
• Strategy: Range trading, fade extremes, buy VAL, sell VAH

CHOPPY

• Erratic price movement without clear direction
• Multiple failed breakouts
• Value Area fragmented
• Strategy: Reduce position size, wait for clarity

DEVELOPING

• Session still building, insufficient data
• Occurs early in session until volume accumulates
• Regime classification pending
• Strategy: Wait for structure to develop, avoid early trades

Session Comparison Analysis

Compare Current Session to Previous:

1. Enable Show All Previous Days (Profile Scope)
2. Enable Extend Previous Day POC and Extend Previous Day VAH/VAL
3. Enable Show Previous Day LVNs

Analysis Questions:

• Is today’s POC aligning with yesterday’s POC? (acceptance continuation)
• Is price respecting previous day VAH/VAL? (reference levels holding)
• Are previous LVNs acting as support/resistance? (structure validation)
• Is today’s Value Area wider or narrower than yesterday? (volatility change)

Troubleshooting

Volume Profile Not Displaying

Possible Causes & Solutions:

1. Insufficient Data: Load more historical bars (Data Series → Days to load)
2. Session Time Mismatch: Check Session Start/End times match your instrument’s trading hours. Use Full Session mode if unsure.
3. Master Toggle Disabled: Check Show Volume Profile is enabled in settings
4. Chart Type Issue: Indicator works on all chart types – try reloading chart

LVNs Not Showing or Too Many

Too Few LVNs:

• Increase LVN Sensitivity (try Moderate or Aggressive)
• Disable Ignore Session High/Low LVNs if enabled
• Ensure session has sufficient volume data

Too Many LVNs:

• Decrease LVN Sensitivity (try Conservative or Selective)
• Enable Ignore Session High/Low LVNs
• Check if session is unusually low volume

Previous Day Extensions Not Appearing

Checklist:

1. Extend Previous Day POC is enabled (for POC extensions)
2. Extend Previous Day VAH/VAL is enabled (for VA extensions)
3. Show Previous Day LVNs is enabled (for LVN extensions)
4. Sufficient historical data loaded (need at least 2 sessions)
5. Check Profile Scope – may need Show All Previous Days

Termination Behavior: Extensions disappear once current session trades through the level. This is intentional – level has been “tested” and is no longer a reference.

Performance Issues / Slow Rendering

Optimization Steps:

1. Reduce Days loaded: Set Number of Days to 7 or fewer
2. Limit Profile Scope: Use Current Day instead of Show All Previous Days
3. Disable Labels: Set Show Volume Labels and Show Delta Labels to False
4. Reduce Profile Width: Lower Volume Profile Width (%) to 15-20%

License Validation Issues

Error: “License validation failed”

1. Check NinjaTrader Username: Go to portal.marketxero.com and verify your NT username is saved in account settings
2. Verify Subscription: Check portal for active “Volume Profile Pro” subscription
3. Internet Connection: Indicator requires internet for validation
4. Concurrent Usage: Only one active session permitted per license. Close indicator on other machine and wait 5 minutes.

Pro Tips

Tip 1: Layer Multiple Timeframes

Use multiple charts with Volume Profile on different timeframes:

• Daily Chart: Identify major POC and Value Area for big picture
• 60-Minute Chart: Find intraday structure and key levels
• 5-Minute Chart: Precise entry timing

Strategy: Enter trades on lower timeframe when price aligns with higher timeframe POC/VAH/VAL.

Tip 2: Combine with Price Action

Volume Profile shows where institutions traded, price action shows how they traded:

• Bullish POC Test: Price approaches POC from above → bullish pin bar → high probability long
• LVN Breakout: Price breaks through LVN → strong momentum bar → continuation expected
• VAH Resistance: Price reaches VAH → bearish engulfing → rejection of overvaluation

Tip 3: Use Delta for Confirmation

Never trade volume profile alone – confirm with delta:

• Bullish Setup at VAL: Look for positive delta (green) showing buying pressure
• Bearish Setup at VAH: Look for negative delta (red) showing selling pressure
• POC Breakout: Confirm with delta in direction of break

Example: Price breaks above VAH (bullish), but delta is red (sellers aggressive) = failed breakout likely.

Tip 4: Monitor POC Migration

Watch how POC moves throughout the session:

• POC Rising: Buyers in control, accepting higher prices
• POC Falling: Sellers in control, accepting lower prices
• POC Stable: Balance, waiting for catalyst

Strategy: Trade in direction of POC migration when combined with trend regime.

Tip 5: Value Area Width Analysis

Compare today’s Value Area to previous days:

• Narrowing VA: Decreasing volatility, compression, breakout imminent
• Widening VA: Increasing volatility, trending environment
• Stable VA: Balanced market, range-bound conditions

Application: Adjust position sizing based on VA width (smaller positions in wider VA = higher volatility).

Tip 6: LVN as Trade Targets

Use LVN zones as profit targets:

• Price tends to move quickly through LVNs (thin liquidity)
• Scale out partial position at each LVN
• Move stop to breakeven after first LVN reached

Example: Long from VAL → first target: LVN midway to POC → second target: POC → final target: VAH.

Tip 7: Session Open Analysis

First 30 minutes reveals institutional intent:

1. Check where POC forms in opening range:
   • POC in lower third = bullish bias (accepting higher prices)
   • POC in upper third = bearish bias (accepting lower prices)
   • POC in middle = balanced, wait for direction
2. Compare opening POC to previous day POC:
   • Opening above prior POC = bullish continuation
   • Opening below prior POC = bearish continuation

Tip 8: Previous Day LVN Strategy

Historical LVNs often remain relevant:

1. Enable Show Previous Day LVNs
2. Enable Show Previous Day LVN Date to track origin
3. Identify previous LVNs that haven’t been retested
4. Watch for price approaching these levels

Strategy: If price approaches unfilled previous LVN, expect rapid movement through the zone or strong rejection.

Tip 9: Export for Quantitative Edge

Build a database of volume profile characteristics:

1. Enable Auto Export Sessions
2. Collect 30-60 days of data
3. Analyze patterns: Average POC distance from open, Value Area width correlation with next day range, LVN count vs. volatility

Edge: Quantify what most traders only observe subjectively.

Tip 10: Regime-Based Strategy Selection

Adapt your approach based on market regime:

• TRENDING: Trade only in trend direction, use pullbacks to POC as entries
• BALANCED: Fade VAH/VAL extremes, trade mean reversion to POC
• CHOPPY: Reduce size or sit out, wait for regime change
• DEVELOPING: Wait for structure clarity, avoid trades until regime emerges