WHAT IS THE NASDAQ STOCK MARKET?
When most Americans talk about the ups and down of the “stock market,” they are discussing the Nasdaq, which is the nation’s largest all-electronic stock market. Formerly an acronym (NASDAQ) that stood for “National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations,” Nasdaq is now a proper name. The Nasdaq is located in New York City and with approximately 5,366+ listings just in North America, it has more trading volume than any other stock exchange in the world.
For a corporation to qualify to be listed on the Nasdaq, they must be registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), have at least three market makers (financial firms that act as brokers or dealers for specific securities). Each corporation must and meet minimum requirements for:
- Assets
- Capital
- Public Shares
- Shareholders
The Nasdaq has three regular trading sessions: Pre-Market, Market, and After-Market.
(All trading hours listed are Eastern time.)
Nasdaq quotes are available at three different levels.
- Level 1: Shows the highest bid and lowers offer (the inside quote).
- Level 2: Shows all public quotes of market makers together with information of to sell/buy stock and recently executed orders.
- Level 3: Used by the market makers and allows them to enter their quotes and execute orders.
The following is a random list of five companies traded daily on the Nasdaq. Also listed with each company is the subsector the company operates under.
- Abercrombie & Fitch Company (Clothing/Shoe/Accessory Stores)
eBay Inc. (Business Services)
Franklin Covey Company (Publishing)
Overstock.com (Catalog/Specialty Distribution)
Sunoco, Inc. (Integrated Oil Companies)
The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (Restaurants)
U.S. Bancorp (Major Banks)
If you’d like to learn more about Nasdaq, visit their website: nasdaq.com.