This morning's optimistic article on MEMC Electronic Materials, Inc. (WFR) is worth discussing as part of an overall trend. My colleague Elizabeth Harrow recently discussed how shares of WFR had underperformed but were still the subject of optimism. Today's article adds to her argument and offers another sign of concern for the stock when you look at the charts below.

Chart Courtesy of Thomson Financial

Here we see the sideways malaise that has been in place for the last six months. Keep that in mind and check out the longer-term view...

Chart Courtesy of Thomson Financial

It seems that WFR is at a critical juncture here. The shares were in a steady uptrend until the end of last year. The stock then staged a pullback to test former resistance near 60 as support. The bounce off that support, however, was short and we once again find support being tested.

It is here that expectations come into play. Elizabeth noted optimism in option players. The article this morning showed optimism. A check of data from Zacks shows analysts are firmly enthusiastic with 11 of 14 (79 percent) ranking the stock with a "buy" rating.

In other words, it seems that many are betting on the stock to bounce back to its up-trending ways. To a contrarian, the question to ponder then is what happens if they are disappointed?