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Shares, the price of a single company.

What a company share is, what moves share prices, and how shares are quoted and traded.

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What a share is

A share is a unit of ownership in a company. Companies sell shares to raise money, and once the shares are listed on a stock exchange, investors buy and sell them among themselves at prices set by supply and demand.

Owning shares can bring a part of the company’s profits, paid as dividends, and usually a vote at shareholder meetings. Trading a share’s price through a contract for difference brings neither: the position follows the price, and dividends are handled as a cash adjustment.

A share price reflects what investors expect the company to earn in future, so it moves with news about the company, its industry and the economy.

Explore selected shares

Five widely followed companies listed in the United States, one each from technology, banking, healthcare, energy and consumer goods. Choose a company to chart its share price. Prices are in US dollars. The companies are examples chosen for market context, not a catalogue of instruments.

What moves share prices

  • Company results

    Listed companies report their sales and profits at regular intervals, and a share can move sharply when results differ from what investors expected.

  • Company news

    New products, changes of management, takeovers and legal disputes all change what a company is expected to earn.

  • Interest rates and the economy

    Rates, growth and inflation affect every company’s costs and customers, some industries more than others.

  • The wider market

    When the whole market falls, it can pull down even companies with good news of their own.

How shares trade

Spread

Every share has a buy price and a slightly lower sell price. The gap between them is the spread, a cost paid on every trade. It tends to be narrower for shares that trade in large volumes.

Position size

A position is counted in shares, so what a price move gains or costs depends on how many shares it covers. The trade sizes Noryn Markets offers are confirmed on request.

Trading hours and gaps

A share trades while its exchange is open, usually during the working day where the exchange is based. Results and other news often come out outside those hours, so a share can open well away from its previous close, jumping past any orders set in between. That jump is called a gap. The exchanges and hours Noryn Markets offers are confirmed on request.

Leverage and margin

Leverage lets you hold a position larger than the money you set aside for it, and the money set aside is the margin. Leverage magnifies losses as much as gains. If losses take the money in an account below the margin its positions need, positions can be closed automatically, at a loss. How much leverage is available differs by account type and by market, and the figures that apply to an account are confirmed on request through the contact form.

Dividends

When a company pays a dividend, its share price usually falls by about the amount paid, on the first day the shares no longer carry the right to it. Positions that follow the price receive or pay an adjustment to match: a buyer usually receives one, and a seller usually pays one.

Swaps

A position held open overnight usually has a swap applied: a small charge or credit for financing the position.

Currency

A share is priced in the currency of its exchange. If that is not the currency of your account, changes in the exchange rate add to or reduce what a position gains or loses.

How shares are grouped

Shares can be considered by sector and company. Any companies shown on this page are a small selection of examples for market context, not a complete catalogue of instruments. Which shares Noryn Markets offers is confirmed on request.

  • By company size

    The largest companies by market value, the share price multiplied by the number of shares, tend to trade in large volumes. Smaller companies’ shares can move further.

  • By industry

    Technology, banks, energy, healthcare and consumer goods each respond to the economy in their own way: banks to interest rates, energy companies to the price of oil.

  • Growth and income

    Growth companies put most of their profits back into the business to expand. Income companies pay out more of their profits as dividends, and their prices tend to move less.

  • By country

    Shares listed in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and Asia each trade in their own currency and during their own exchange’s hours.

The risks

  • Leverage magnifies losses

    A small move in a share price can cause a loss larger than the margin set aside for a position.

  • Gaps on results

    Results and news released while the exchange is closed can open a share well away from its last price, past any orders set in between.

  • One company, one story

    Bad news about a single company can move its shares far more than an index, which spreads its weight across many companies.

  • Costs add up

    Spreads, commissions and swaps are paid whether a trade gains or loses, and they add up over many trades or long-held positions.

Questions about shares

Do I own the shares when I trade their price?

Not with a contract for difference. The position follows the share price, but brings no ownership of the company and no vote at its meetings.

Why can a share fall after good results?

The price already reflects what investors expected. If results are good but less good than expected, or the company is cautious about what comes next, the share can still fall.

What is a share split?

A company divides each of its shares into several, each priced lower. The total value does not change, and positions that follow the price are usually adjusted to the new number of shares.

Which shares does Noryn Markets offer?

Any company named on this page is an example used to explain the market, not a catalogue. Which shares Noryn Markets offers is confirmed on request through the contact form.

What are the trading hours for shares?

A share trades while its exchange is open, usually during the working day where that exchange is based, which is why a share can open well away from its previous close. The hours that apply to an account are confirmed on request through the contact form.

Other markets

  • Forex

    Currency pairs, where one currency is priced against another.

  • Indices

    A single price that follows a basket of company shares.

  • Commodities

    Raw materials, from energy to agricultural products.

  • Precious metals

    Metals valued for their scarcity and long history as a store of value.

  • ETFs

    Funds that trade on an exchange in the same way as a single share.

Interested in shares?

Register your interest, and say which kinds of share you would like to hear about.

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Important information

Trading forex and contracts for difference involves a high level of risk, and it is not suitable for every investor. These products use leverage, which means a position can be held with only part of its value set aside as margin, and leverage magnifies gains and losses alike. A position may be closed when margin requirements are not met. Markets can move quickly, and at times a market can be difficult to trade at all. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. Nothing on this website is investment advice or a recommendation, and nothing here takes account of your objectives, your experience or your circumstances. Consider your own circumstances, and seek independent advice before you act.

This page explains a market in general terms, for people deciding whether they want to learn more about it. It is not advice about that market or about any instrument in it, and naming something here does not mean it can be traded through Noryn Markets.