Thank you for your reply. This is the type of solution I've been looking for
but it evaluates incorrectly to 2 rather than 3 (using my example).

"T. Valko" wrote:

Try this array formula** :

=MAX(FREQUENCY(IF(A1:A11<0,ROW(A1:A11)),IF(A1:A11 =0,IF(A1:A11<"",ROW(A1:A11)))))

** array formulas need to be entered using the key combination of
CTRL,SHIFT,ENTER (not just ENTER). Hold down both the CTRL key and the SHIFT
key then hit ENTER.

--
Biff
Microsoft Excel MVP


"JP" wrote in message
...
I need to determine the maximum number of consecutive negative numbers in a
column. The column contains formulas that evaluate to a positive number,
a
negative number, zero or "" (blank). I cannot add an additional column.
The
following are the results of formulas in cells A1:A11 that need a formula
in
A12 that evaluates to 3, the maximum number of consecutive negative
numbers
counting cells A2, A6 and A7.

1
-2
""
""
""
-6
-7
8
-9
""
-11



.