
Stock Volume and Price Divergence (disagreement) When you have decreased volume pushing prices higher (or lower) the message here is "usually" that there is little support for the current price movement, and the trend has a low likelihood of continuing. For our example above the stock is trading higher on low volume.
What is volume in stock trading?
What is Volume in Stock Trading? Volume refers to the number of shares traded in a given time period. A stock's volume refers to the number of shares that are sold, or traded, over a certain period of time (usually daily).
What does it mean when the volume of a stock falls?
One the other hand, if the price of a stock with a high trading volume is falling, it means more investors are selling their shares. Tip: Volume is the number of shares of a stock that have been transacted over a certain period of time. Volume is usually quoted for a single trading day.
What does low volume mean on a stock?
Low volume means that the stock is less liquid. Usually, these stocks aren't trading because few investors want them. The lack of liquidity makes low-volume stocks difficult to sell even though the...
What does it mean when a stock drops on large volume?
A price drop (or rise) on large volume is a stronger signal that something in the stock has fundamentally changed. 2. Exhaustion Moves and Volume In a rising or falling market, we can see exhaustion moves.

What does the volume of a stock tell you?
Key Takeaways Volume measures the number of shares traded in a stock or contracts traded in futures or options. Volume can indicate market strength, as rising markets on increasing volume are typically viewed as strong and healthy. When prices fall on increasing volume, the trend is gathering strength to the downside.
Is it better to buy stocks with high volume or low volume?
If you see a stock that's appreciating on high volume, it's more likely to be a sustainable move. If you see a stock that's appreciating on low volume, it could be a dead cat bounce. Logically, when more money is moving a stock price, it means there is more demand for that stock.
How much volume is good volume for a stock?
Thin, Low-Priced Stocks = Higher Investment Risk To reduce such risk, it's best to stick with stocks that have a minimum dollar volume of $20 million to $25 million. In fact, the more, the better. Institutions tend to get more involved in a stock with daily dollar volume in the hundreds of millions or more.
What does it mean for a stock to have a lot of volume?
The term volume means how much of a given stock was traded in a particular period of time. Higher volume stocks are those where there's more investor interest in buying and selling them, which sometimes results from a news event.
Should I buy stocks with low volume?
The reality is that low-volume stocks are usually not trading for a very good reason—few people want them. Their lack of liquidity makes them hard to sell even if the stock appreciates. They are also susceptible to price manipulation and attractive to scammers.
Is it good to buy a stock when the volume is low?
More opportunity: Stocks that trade at low volumes may offer more opportunities for investors. Such stocks simply create less demand. Value investors, for example, may capitalize on undervalued stocks. Those stocks may increase in value over the long-term.
Is high trading volume good or bad?
If a stock with a high trading volume is rising, it means there is buying pressure, as investor demand pushes the stock to higher and higher prices. One the other hand, if the price of a stock with a high trading volume is falling, it means more investors are selling their shares.
What is the best volume indicator?
The 6+ Best Volume Indicators in Day TradingVWAP.Volume-Weighted Moving Average (VWMA)Money Flow Index (MFI)Accumulation and distribution indicator.Klinger Oscillator.On Balance Volume (OBV)Other volume indicators.
What is a good P E ratio?
A “good” P/E ratio isn't necessarily a high ratio or a low ratio on its own. The market average P/E ratio currently ranges from 20-25, so a higher PE above that could be considered bad, while a lower PE ratio could be considered better.
How do you read a stock?
How to read stock market charts patternsIdentify the chart: Identify the charts and look at the top where you will find a ticker designation or symbol which is a short alphabetic identifier of a company. ... Choose a time window: ... Note the summary key: ... Track the prices: ... Note the volume traded: ... Look at the moving averages:
What happens if volume is higher than market cap?
Key Takeaways When a stock's trading volume exceeds the number of outstanding shares, it often means a trading catalyst has occurred that is spurring increased buying and selling activity.
How do you know if buying or selling volume?
Key Takeaways You can distinguish buying volume from selling volume based on whether a transaction occurs at the bid price or the ask price. Changes in volume can give traders short-term indications of where the price might go next.
What does volume mean in stock?
Volume is the lifeblood of any stock. It represents the interest in the trading activity of said shares. Heavier volume indicates heavier interest and vice versa or lighter volume. A rise in volume tends to kick off significant price moves in many cases, however it is not a requirement. Despite conventional thinking, ...
What is volume in stock trading?
Volume is counted as the total number of shares that are actually traded (bought and sold) during the trading day or specified set period of time. It is a measure of the total turnover of shares. Each ticket represents a trade and counted towards the total trading volume.
Why do money managers use dollar volume?
Money managers use dollar volume metrics to determine whether a stock has enough liquidity to support a position. Dollar volume can also be used to get an idea of money flow when scanning for stocks breaking out or breaking down that are generating the highest dollar volume during the day.
How to tell if a stock is trading heavier or lighter than normal?
To determine if the volume is trading heavier or lighter than normal, traders can refer to the relative volume figure. Higher Relative Volume can bring volatility to a stock and make it easier to move.
What color is a volume bar?
Volume bars are usually colored green or red. Green represents net buying volume while red represents net selling volume. Some traders prefer to measure the volume with a moving average to spot when volume is relatively heavy or thin.
What does volume mean in stocks?
So, what is volume in stocks? Volume is the total number of shares that are traded between buyers and sellers during a specific period, such as a day, week or month.
High volume vs. low volume
One of the easiest ways to identify volume is on a bar chart, which is a chart made up of bars showing trading volume over a specific period of time. When the bars move higher than the average, it can indicate high trading volume at a specific price for that particular time frame.
How does volume affect stock price?
When a stock’s trading volume rises, it can signify that investor demand is high, and stock prices may go up as well. One approach traders use to evaluate a stock is technical analysis. This trading method analyzes trends such as price shifts and volume to help investors assess stocks and identify opportunities to trade.
How to use volume in stocks
When using volume as part of a trading plan, having some strategies for analyzing the strengths or weaknesses of a move can be beneficial, as they can provide insight into an entry or exit point. A few things to identify include:
Helpful volume indicators
We’ve seen that volume can be an important signal for evaluating stock trends, and several indicators may offer some value when making investment decisions. Although there are a variety of volume indicators available, they may not all be relevant for you, as each investor differs in their approach.
The Bottom Line
Trading volume is a valuable tool in evaluating the strength or weakness of a stock at any given time. It offers information about and can assist in confirming price moves and breakouts that can identify price changes and reversals in the stock market, which can help determine trading strategies.
What is volume in stock?
Volume refers to the number of shares traded in a given time period. A stock's volume refers to the number of shares that are sold, or traded, over a certain period of time (usually daily).
What is volume in investing?
Broadly speaking, volume in investing means the total amount of a security that changes hands over a given period of time. This can refer to shares of an individual stock, the number of options contracts traded, or the total number of shares exchanged within an index or an entire stock market.
Why does volume increase when the stock price changes?
Certain events, such as the company's earnings report or a major news release, can cause volume to spike and can lead to a large move in either the positive or negative direction.
What is a high daily volume?
A high daily volume is common when stock-specific news items are released or when the market moves significantly, while a low daily volume can occur on light-news days and calm days for the stock market.
Why do technical analysts use volume?
In addition, technical analysts use a stock's volume in order to determine the best entry and exit points for a trade.
How often is a buy/sell counted?
It's important to note that when counting volume, each buy/sell transaction is counted only once. In other words, if one investor sells 1,000 shares and another investor buys those 1,000 shares, ...
What is volume in stock?
Volume is the number of shares of a stock that have changed hands over a certain period of time. Stocks with higher volumes have more investors interested in buying or selling them.
What does it mean when a stock has a high volume?
When a stock has an unusually high volume, it means something is going on with the company that investors should probably know about.
What does it mean when a stock is rising?
When a stock is rising, it indicates strength. Investors can make an assessment of how convicted traders are about a particular stock, or the market in general. High volumes indicate a strong conviction with the direction in which the stock or market is moving.
Why does the price of a stock fall when everyone buys it?
However, when everyone has bought a stock, the price stagnates and then falls because the market has exhausted all buyers interested in the stock. On the other hand, when a stock has bottomed out, many investors have been forced out by the falling price, causing high volumes and increased volatility.
What is volume price trend indicator?
The volume price trend indicator helps investors figure out the direction of a stock and the strength of changes in the price.
Why do investors use volume information?
Investors can use volume information to assist in their determination of whether a stock would be good for their portfolio.
Why are low volume stocks volatile?
Additionally, low-volume stocks can be quite volatile because the spread between the ask price and the bid price tends to be wider. When considering volume while evaluating a particular stock, investors might want to assess how difficult it could be to dispose of their shares if they decide to sell.
How does volume affect a stock?
Volume can be used to find the momentum of a stock. In fact, it also affects support and resistance. If a stock you’re watching is at resistance and volume is coming in and it breaks resistance and holds, price has a high probability of continuing to climb.
Why is volume important in the stock market?
Volume is an important indicator as it confirms the strength of a trend. Many traders use volume daily in timing their day trading entries and exits.
Why is it important to have a lot of volume moving in and out of a security?
It’s important to have a lot of volume moving in and out of a security because it makes it easier to enter and exit a position as well as makes the bid/ask spread tighter. Supply and Demand with Stock Volume.
Why do traders use volume?
Many traders use volume daily in timing their day trading entries and exits. Also they watch it for swing trades. When volume is used as confirmation of a trade , it becomes a helpful tool. Studies you might use to monitor volume are called Volume profile, Volume by price, and On balance Volume, to name a few good ones.
What happens when volume is low?
If volume is generally low in a given stock, sudden spikes in demand or supply can cause very rapid changes in price. If you enter a limit order and set a specific price to sell shares of a stock and your order isn’t getting filled, it means that no one wants to buy your shares at that price.
How is the price of a stock determined?
The price of a stock is determined by Supply and demand. Sellers provide supply, and when there is an imbalance in the market where there is more supply than demand – which is provided by buyers – price will move down. Conversely, if there is greater demand for a stock than supply, price will move up.
Is volume important in penny stock?
You’re going to want to try several different technical indicators in addition to volume. Volume is especially important when penny stock trading.
High, Low, And Relative Volume
In fact, volume plays an important role in technical analysis and features prominently among some key technical indicators. A stock’s volume refers to the number of shares that are sold, or traded, over a certain period of time . In a public stock exchange such as the New York, London or Frankfurt, transactions are recorded and publicly displayed.
Trading Support
The total number of all shares that changed hands in a market such as the NYSE figure is known as the total market volume. Stock trading volume refers to the amount of shares traded in a particular stock over a period of time. The term volume means how much of a given stock was traded in a particular period of time.
Options And Futures
Money managers use dollar volume metrics to determine whether a stock has enough liquidity to support a position. Dollar volume can also be used to get an idea of money flow when scanning for stocks breaking out or breaking down that are generating the highest dollar volume during the day.
Trading Volume As A Measure Of Investor Sentiment
There was a $500,000 market impact or slippage to liquidate the position. This is why professional funds and money managers assign large transactions to market makers to ‘work’ the orders to incur the least amount of slippage costs from market impact.
How To Read A Stock Market Value
The trading volume is a measure of the total shares that have changed hands for a specific time period. Dollar volume is calculated by trading volume multiplied by price. For example, if XYZ has a total trading volume of 100,000 shares at $5, then the dollar volume is $500,000.
Volume Indicator In Stocks
Volume is counted as the total number of shares that are actually traded during the trading day or specified set period of time. Each ticket represents a trade and counted towards the total trading volume. While the same shares may be traded back and forth multiple times, the volume is counted on each transaction.
Nasdaq Trading Insights
For instance, some websites offer an average of trading volume over a period of 10 days. Whenever traders around the world buy and sell shares of a stock, this creates volume. Volume is important on all time frames such as the daily, 5 min, 1 min, weekly, and monthly charts.
What does tick volume tell you?
Volume tells investors about the market's activity and liquidity.
Why is volume important in technical analysis?
Volume is an important indicator in technical analysis because it is used to measure the relative significance of any market move. If the market makes moves a large amount during a given period, then the strength of that movement either gains credibility or is viewed with skepticism based on the volume for that period.
What does it mean when the bar is higher than the average?
When the bars on a bar chart are higher than average, it's a sign of high volume or strength at a particular market price. By examining bar charts, analysts can use volume as a way to confirm a price movement. If volume increases when the price moves up or down, it is considered a price movement with strength.
When does futures volume increase?
When investors feel hesitant about the direction of the stock market, futures trading volume tends to increase, which often causes options and futures on specified securities to trade more actively. Volume overall tends to be higher near the market's opening and closing times, and on Mondays and Fridays.
What does it mean when a buyer and seller become particularly active at a certain price?
From an auction perspective, when buyers and sellers become particularly active at a certain price, it means there is a high volume. Analysts use bar charts to quickly determine the level of volume. Bar charts also make it easier to identify trends in volume.
What does volume mean in stock market?
In stock markets, volume denotes how many shares are actually traded over a certain period of time. It includes every stock that's bought or sold. When a share is less active, its volume will be lower. If you look at the volume leaders for a particular trading day, you will usually find Apple.
What does low volume mean in stocks?
Low volume means that the stock is less liquid. Usually, these stocks aren't trading because few investors want them. The lack of liquidity makes low-volume stocks difficult to sell even though the share price appreciates. Low-volume stocks can lead to price manipulation and are attractive to scammers.
Why are high volume stocks less volatile?
The stock is less likely to witness huge swings in stock prices on a trading day. High-volume stocks can reduce your risk factor because they are liquid. You can easily convert your investments into cash.
Why is it good for a stock to have high volume?
It's good for a stock to have high volume if the stock price also appreciated because it will likely be a sustained move. Meanwhile, if a stock price is increasing on a low trading volume, it could mean a temporary recovery in the stock price. Article continues below advertisement.
Is a stock high volume or low volume?
Stocks can be classified as high volume or low volume depending on their trading activity. Low-volume stocks are thinly traded, while high-volume stocks trade often. There isn’t a clear dividing line between the two.

Appearance
Purpose
- The trading volume is a measure of the total shares that have changed hands for a specific time period. The dollar volume is the total value of the shares traded. Dollar volume is calculated by trading volume multiplied by price. For example, if XYZ has a total trading volume of 100,000 shares at $5, then the dollar volume is $500,000. Money managers use dollar volume metrics to …
Significance
- Volume is the lifeblood of any stock. It represents the interest in the trading activity of said shares. Heavier volume indicates heavier interest and vice versa or lighter volume.
Effects
- A rise in volume tends to kick off significant price moves in many cases, however it is not a requirement. Despite conventional thinking, breakouts or breakdowns dont always require heavy volume especially in this age of algorithms that know precisely what price levels will efficiently trigger significant movement. Many traders have gone bust shorting light volume breakouts tha…
Use
- The cliché Never short a dull market. plays right into this. Often times, the heaviest volume bar forms at the peak of the move. It indicates the last of the chasers. This is why heavy volume hammer and shooting star candlesticks can form highly effective reversal signals. Volume analysis should be used in the context of the trading market environment with other supporting t…
Definition
- Liquidity refers to how much the market can absorb either buying or selling without making a market impact. How many shares can you buy or sell without moving the price of the stock? Liquidity overrides price. This is especially true for large stock traders and fund managers. High frequency trading programs and smart algorithms detects large orders and can possibly front ru…
Example
- For example, If you own 100,000 shares of a stock currently trading at $8 with an average daily volume 1 million shares, you may cause the stock to fall to $7 when selling the shares in a single session, resulting in an average selling price of $7.50. So while the value of the position is worth $8 million, the actual value of the position is $7.5 million. There was a $500,000 market impact o…