Stock Market Ticker In Depth

What is a Stock Market Ticker?

A stock market ticker is a common and fundamental information system that is often seen in business offices or on financial television shows. A stock market ticker can be displayed in numerous, but all are constructed in a similar fashion. A stock market ticker will provide a scrolling view of all stock prices listed on a given exchange as well as their share prices and their intraday fluctuations.

More advanced or detailed stock market tickers will also include the particular trading volume of the stock, along with the net change of the stock’s price from the previous day. Additionally, the stock market ticker will indicate the price fluctuation, more specifically whether the stock went up or down in a green day, by attaching a color to the particular stock—‘green’ is used for stocks that rose in prices while ‘red’ is used for stocks that experienced a decrease in price.

A stock market ticker may be organized by using a single scrolling line, that will list all stocks on a given exchange by using their symbols, or it may encompass multiple lines.

Stock market tickers are used to express the prices changes and express the trading volumes of all stocks in a particular marketplace. Due to the large number of stocks that are traded in the world, the stock market ticker is an effective resources, which enables investors or individuals aligned with the market to view all price changes in an expedited and effective manner.

History of the Stock Market Ticker:

The first stock market ticker appeared in the late 1860s and was originally designed using telegraph technology. The first stock market ticker used a ticker tape that was tangibly printed from data and subsequently transmitted over wires.

The stock market ticker evolved through mechanical developments instituted by Thomas Edison. When new technologies arose, the stock market ticker developed to become the predominant source for relaying information in regards to stock prices. When the electronic stock market ticker was introduced, brokerage firms were able to evaluate real-time ticker tapes rather than rely on updates from individuals who literally ran to and from the exchange and the brokerage houses.

Advanced Stock Tickers:

Although the stock market ticker is traditionally viewed as a tool that is seen on television shows, more advanced forms of the resource exist inside of trading software. These forms of stock market tickers provide detailed information regarding the auction process and up-to-the second changes in prices and volumes of stocks.

The majority of traders rely on such equipment to evaluate information regarding the purchase or sale of a particular stock. These trading platforms provide not only the most recent transactions that have occurred for a given stock, but also those transactions that are set to occur in the future. By viewing these pending stock orders, a trader can evaluate and gauge how supply and demand of a particular stock might shift in the future.