1. How to Read a Stock Quote: The Numbers on Your Screen

How to Read Stocks – 10 posts for beginners | Post 1 of 10

When you open a stock in your trading app, a page full of numbers appears. Each one tells you something about the stock. Here is what the most important ones mean.

LTP (Last Traded Price)

The price at which the most recent trade took place. This is the "price" you see in headlines. It is not necessarily the price you will get, because that depends on orders currently waiting in the market.

Reading a stock quote

Bid and Ask

  • Bid – the highest price a buyer is currently willing to pay, along with the quantity.
  • Ask (or Offer) – the lowest price a seller is currently willing to accept.

The difference between the two is the spread. Liquid stocks have a very small spread; thinly traded stocks can have a large one.

Market depth

Indian trading apps show the best five bid and ask prices with their quantities. This "order book" tells you how much demand and supply is waiting near the current price.

Market depth (order book)

Change and % Change

How much the price has moved compared with the previous day's closing price, in rupees and in percentage.

Open, High, Low, Previous Close

  • Open – the first price of the day, discovered in the pre-open session.
  • High / Low – the highest and lowest prices traded today.
  • Previous close – the official closing price of the last trading day. On the NSE, this is calculated as the volume-weighted average price of the last 30 minutes, not just the last trade.
Open, High, Low, Close

Average Price (VWAP)

The volume-weighted average price for the day. Traders use it to judge whether the current price is above or below the day's typical traded price.

Volume and Value

The number of shares traded today and their total rupee value. Higher volume generally means better liquidity.

52-week High and Low

The highest and lowest prices over the past year. Comparing the current price with this range shows where the stock stands relative to its recent history.

Upper and Lower Circuit

The maximum and minimum prices allowed for the day, set by the exchange's price band (for example 5%, 10% or 20%). Some stocks, especially those in the F&O segment, have dynamic limits instead.

Putting today's price in context

Fundamentals on the quote page

Many apps also show market cap, P/E ratio, EPS, dividend yield, book value and beta. We explain these in the next post.

Key takeaways

  • LTP is the last trade; bid and ask show where you can actually trade now.
  • Market depth reveals waiting demand and supply.
  • 52-week range and circuit limits put today's price in context.

Practise it: try these ideas risk-free with virtual money on GPS-AUTOTRADE India paper trading.

Disclaimer: This post is for education only. It is not investment advice or a recommendation to trade any security. Investments in the securities market are subject to market risks; read all related documents carefully and do your own research.

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