Reading a stock quote

In simple terms

A stock quote is a dashboard of numbers about a share's trading today and over the past year. Brokers' apps, financial websites and the exchanges' own websites all show similar fields, though names and layouts differ. Each number answers a specific question, and none of them, on its own, tells you whether the business is worth owning.

A sample quote

Price and change

The last traded price (LTP) is the price at which the most recent trade happened. It is not a quote you can necessarily trade at: the price you get depends on the waiting orders, as the market and limit orders lesson explains.

The change compares the LTP with the previous close, yesterday's closing price. Here, 512.40 − 500 = ₹12.40, or 12.40 ÷ 500 = 2.48%. The open is the first price of the day, and the day's high and low show the range of trades so far.

Volume, value and VWAP

Volume is the number of shares that changed hands today; traded value is the money that changed hands. Comparing today's volume with the share's usual volume tells you whether something unusual is happening. Very low volume means few people are trading, so prices can jump on small orders.

The VWAP (volume-weighted average price) is the average price of all trades today, weighted by how many shares traded at each price. Large buyers often compare their own buying price with VWAP to judge how well they traded.

Some screens also show the deliverable quantity: the share of today's volume that was bought for delivery into demat accounts rather than traded within the day. A high share suggests more of the trading came from people holding the shares.

The 52-week range

The 52-week high and low are the highest and lowest prices in the past year. They are a quick way to see where today's price sits in recent history: Sagar Textiles is about 20% below its high and about 25% above its low.

They are not targets or floors. A share near its 52-week low may be cheap, or it may be falling for good reasons and keep falling. A share near its high may be expensive, or the business may genuinely be improving.

Price band and series

The price band shows today's upper and lower limits, set by the exchange from the previous close; shares with futures and options are usually handled differently. Some screens also show a series code, which tells you how the share is settled. Most shares allow intraday trading, but a share can be placed in a trade-for-trade series, where every trade must be settled by delivery. Exchanges sometimes do this as a surveillance measure for shares with unusual trading.

The circuit breakers and price bands lesson explains what happens at the limits.

Market depth

Market depth shows the best waiting buy orders (bids) and sell orders (asks), usually the top five on each side, with the quantity at each price.

Here the spread between the best bid and the best ask is just 10 paise, and there are thousands of shares on each side, so buying or selling a few hundred shares would barely move the price. In a thinly traded share, the depth might show a few dozen shares on each side and gaps of several rupees between prices. The bid-ask spread and liquidity lesson goes into this in detail.

Depth shows only the orders traders choose to display, and it changes every second, so treat it as a snapshot.

Ratios on quote screens

Many apps also show market capitalisation, a price-to-earnings ratio, a dividend yield and face value. These come from the company's financial results and are covered in other lessons, starting with market capitalisation. Check which period's profit a quoted P/E uses, because data providers differ.

Why it matters

Quote screens are where most beginners meet the market, and their colours and percentages invite quick reactions. Knowing what each number measures lets you read them calmly: a green "+2.48%" is one day's move, a share near its 52-week low is not a bargain sign by itself, and thin market depth is a warning that trading will be expensive.

Limitations

• Quotes on free websites and apps can be delayed. Check whether a screen shows live or delayed data.
• Fields and definitions vary between apps and data providers, especially for ratios.
• Nothing on a quote screen tells you about the business, its management or its value.

Common mistakes

• Treating LTP as your price. Your order trades against the waiting orders, not the last trade.
• Reading the 52-week low as a floor or the high as a ceiling.
• Ignoring volume and depth, then finding a share hard to sell.
• Reacting to the day's percentage change as if it said something about long-term value.

Try it yourself

1. Open the quote page for any share on the NSE or BSE website, or in your broker's app.
2. Note the LTP, previous close, change, day's range, volume, VWAP, 52-week range and price band, and check the change percentage yourself.
3. Look at market depth. What is the spread between the best bid and best ask, and how many shares are available at each?
4. Repeat for a small, little-traded company and compare the depth.