> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://support.backpack.exchange/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://support.backpack.exchange/exchange/backpack-securities/finding-and-researching-stocks.md).

# Finding & Researching Stocks

Use the Stocks section in Backpack to discover stocks and ETFs, research them, and decide what to trade.

You can:

* Browse market activity
* Search for stocks and ETFs
* View charts, financials, and news
* Research companies and funds before placing a trade

To place an order, see [**How to Buy & Sell Stocks on Web**.](/exchange/backpack-securities/how-to-buy-and-sell-stocks-on-web.md)

***

### Find a Stock

The Stocks home page helps you discover stocks and ETFs available on Backpack.

#### Market Status

At the top of the page, you'll see the current market session.

Possible statuses include:

| Status        | Description                       |
| ------------- | --------------------------------- |
| Market Open   | Regular U.S. trading hours        |
| Pre-market    | Before regular trading hours      |
| After-hours   | After the regular close           |
| Overnight     | Overnight session                 |
| Market Closed | Weekends and U.S. market holidays |

When a session is active, the indicator pulses.

Hover over the indicator to view the full session timeline in your local timezone.

When markets are closed, a countdown shows when the next session begins.

<figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2FknnQUV9GPUXcJIGAFoNi%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=67206157-f940-4eea-8a99-57ca653d08d1" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

> Fractional shares are only available during regular market hours. For details, see [Trading Hours & Fees.](/exchange/backpack-securities/trading-hours-and-fees.md)

***

#### Index cards

Below the status indicator are **market index cards** that give you a quick read on how the broad market is doing. Each card shows a live price and the intraday percentage change:

| Card         | Tracks                      |
| ------------ | --------------------------- |
| **S\&P 500** | Broad U.S. large-cap stocks |
| **Nasdaq**   | Tech-heavy U.S. market      |
| **Dow 30**   | 30 large U.S. companies     |
| **Gold**     | Gold                        |
| **Oil**      | Oil                         |
| **Bitcoin**  | Bitcoin                     |

<div align="left"><figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2FL6SiNvX5e930HmhFBDtP%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=b363721b-5fbd-4355-9cd9-f6a7a7f11399" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

***

#### Movers

The home page highlights actively traded stocks and ETFs.

| List         | Description            |
| ------------ | ---------------------- |
| Most active  | Highest trading volume |
| Top gainers  | Largest gains today    |
| Top losers   | Largest declines today |
| Popular ETFs | Widely traded ETFs     |

Select any row to open its detail page.

<figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2FqAvduSEn9FDPwO7t3ps9%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=5634d425-b16d-425f-9071-2e3d3592dcef" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

***

#### Search and Screener

Already know what you want? Use the **search bar** at the top of the page. Type a company name or ticker — for example `AAPL` or "Apple" — and pick the result to jump straight to its detail page.

<div align="left"><figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2FioYl5jmkEI3YJ8Pg4qUw%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=c06af9a7-fca5-47ad-9286-74005843e84d" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

Next to the search bar is the **Screener** button. Screener opens a fuller browsing view where you can scroll the wider list of supported stocks and ETFs and find names that aren't featured in the movers lists.

<div align="left"><figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2FoHlCAEzHtghLPBgn8y41%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=346a4231-1c3a-4143-89fe-4a57085d2fc4" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

{% hint style="info" %}
You'll always see the bare ticker for U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs — `AAPL`, `MSFT`, `SPY`, and so on.
{% endhint %}

***

### Open a Stock

To move from browsing to a specific stock or ETF, click its row anywhere it appears — an index card, a movers list, a search result, or Screener. That takes you to the **detail page**, where you'll find the price chart, company or fund information, news, and the order form to place a trade.

<figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2FQfPESpAtV5uCrdpFHGWV%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=9c41f325-6a44-461b-8ab2-fe99c5811e31" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

***

### Research a Stock

When you open any ticker, you land on its detail page. The same page works for individual stocks and for ETFs, with a few sections that change depending on which one you're looking at. This section walks through each part of the page.

#### Price Header

The header displays:

* Company logo and ticker
* Company name
* Current price
* Daily price change
* Market status
* Favorites button

Outside regular trading hours, additional session pricing may be shown.

<figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2Fnox9LZzLXvgG1SYeRL4H%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=1620491d-98d7-4c01-bb62-ebf426740169" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

***

#### Chart

The Chart tab is open by default and displays an interactive candlestick chart.

Available intervals include:

* 1D
* 1W
* 1M
* 6M
* YTD
* 1Y
* All

Each interval displays the price change for that period, making it easy to compare performance across different timeframes.

**Hover over** the chart to view the price, time, and trading session for any point in the chart. The price header updates to match your selection and returns to the live price when you move your cursor away.

<figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2FEwrq19nBH2xUiH4adLbX%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=11184352-5e86-41ae-8803-d41a4682833a" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

***

#### Financials (Stocks Only)

The Financials tab provides recent company performance data.

Available metrics include:

* Revenue
* Net income
* EPS
* Earnings beats and misses

<figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2FUeWA9Vz2iLpl06tJkLjy%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=98a84306-be17-4137-af93-153ab003c95a" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

{% hint style="info" %}
The Financials tab is for individual companies. ETFs don't report company earnings, so this tab doesn't appear on an ETF's page — look at the **Holdings** tab instead to see what an ETF contains.
{% endhint %}

***

#### News

The News tab contains recent articles related to the stock.

Each article displays:

* Headline
* Summary
* Sentiment indicator
* Author
* Publication time

Select an article to read the full story.

<figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2F16fpHyu40oFRBqusyGee%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=2e191834-8413-428f-8f77-fe2fcbc22fbc" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

***

#### About

The About tab provides background information.

For stocks:

* Company description
* Website
* Key company metrics

For ETFs:

* Fund description
* Fund metrics

<figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2FPopJ38FmufTSVCPf1ov5%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=428eb4c3-36c2-42fb-b0bb-9de4e5ac5c60" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

***

#### Holdings (ETFs Only)

ETF pages include a Holdings tab.

The tab lists:

* Underlying holdings
* Current values
* Portfolio weights

If a holding is supported on Backpack, you can open its detail page directly.

<figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2FkjpQN2RbbsBeimfHVX06%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=55eae6b4-f25f-47d4-802e-953a8eea40a2" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

***

### Your Position

The right side of the page is where you trade and track what you own.

* The **order form** sits at the top — use the **Buy / Sell** toggle to start a trade. See How to Buy & Sell Stocks on Web for the full walkthrough.
* If you already hold the stock, a **Your Position** card shows your **Market Value** and the number of **Shares** you hold (for example, "0.5 AAPL"). Your stock balances live in the same portfolio as your crypto — there's no separate stocks account.
* **Related tickers** suggest similar stocks or ETFs you might want to look at next.
* If you have an order being processed, a **pending order** card appears here so you can check its status.

<div align="left"><figure><img src="https://1790800155-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F3kiM6CAFBZoTCJcZ8X7k%2Fuploads%2F3ijawk2FIe3vmZ8eKStk%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=c0f191a7-6cb8-4375-abf3-cfb474552c46" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

***

### Unsupported Tickers

If a stock isn't supported, you'll see a **Stock not found** message.

Backpack currently supports:

* A broad range of major U.S.-listed stocks
* U.S.-listed ETFs

Coverage keeps expanding over time. Non-U.S. securities are not supported.


---

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