Level II Quotes Capture Stock Prices
A number of online brokers now offer stock investors Nasdaq Level II price screens as part of their service.
Depending on your account size and/or trading volume, you may receive the Level II service free or at a reduced cost.
Others not meeting the account size or volume threshold will have to pay for the service, which can run up to $60 per month depending on the provider.
Level II quotes are live and not delayed as are other quotes you may see on the Web.
The free quotes you find on the majority of Web sites are Level I quotes and are delayed up to 20 minutes depending on the stock exchange.
Level II prices give you a look at what is going on behind the scenes and this information can be very helpful to some investors and is vital to traders.
Level II quotes show you pending orders to buy and sell the stock at the various price points. This information helps you see if there are more buyers than sellers, for example.
Among other things, this information lets you watch the ratio of buyers and sellers by the number and size of order. Along with other information, this gives you a clue about the direction the stock’s price may be headed.
While Level II is an important source of information, it can also be used for tricks. Large orders can be broken up to hide a big buy or sale. Professional traders may enter large orders to trick inexperienced traders into certain positions.
For many investors, the answer is no. Long-term investors are generally unconcerned with intra-day pricing of stocks.
However, if that same investor wants to sell the stock, he may be more interested in intra-day pricing, especially if the stock trades in a broad range.
By watching the Level II quotes, an investor can see whether support is building on the buy side or the sell side. This information may help him time the sell order for a bigger gain.
However, unless you receive Level II quotes free or at a greatly reduced price, a small savings on a single trade is not likely to pay for the expense.
If you trade frequently and would like access to the most up-to-date price information, Level II quotes are what you need.
Depending on your account size and/or trading volume, you may receive the Level II service free or at a reduced cost.
Others not meeting the account size or volume threshold will have to pay for the service, which can run up to $60 per month depending on the provider.
Level II quotes are live and not delayed as are other quotes you may see on the Web.
The free quotes you find on the majority of Web sites are Level I quotes and are delayed up to 20 minutes depending on the stock exchange.
For all Stocks
Despite the name, Nasdaq Level II prices cover all listed stocks regardless of the exchange the stock trades on.Level II prices give you a look at what is going on behind the scenes and this information can be very helpful to some investors and is vital to traders.
Level II quotes show you pending orders to buy and sell the stock at the various price points. This information helps you see if there are more buyers than sellers, for example.
More than Latest Stock Quotes
You get more that just the latest quotes – you see all the orders that are away from the market on the bid and ask side. Level II quotes tell you who is entering the quote and for how many shares.Among other things, this information lets you watch the ratio of buyers and sellers by the number and size of order. Along with other information, this gives you a clue about the direction the stock’s price may be headed.
While Level II is an important source of information, it can also be used for tricks. Large orders can be broken up to hide a big buy or sale. Professional traders may enter large orders to trick inexperienced traders into certain positions.
Is Stock Data Needed?
Is this detailed information really necessary?For many investors, the answer is no. Long-term investors are generally unconcerned with intra-day pricing of stocks.
However, if that same investor wants to sell the stock, he may be more interested in intra-day pricing, especially if the stock trades in a broad range.
By watching the Level II quotes, an investor can see whether support is building on the buy side or the sell side. This information may help him time the sell order for a bigger gain.
However, unless you receive Level II quotes free or at a greatly reduced price, a small savings on a single trade is not likely to pay for the expense.
If you trade frequently and would like access to the most up-to-date price information, Level II quotes are what you need.