Ticker

A ticker, or ticker symbol, is the short combination of letters used to identify a specific stock on an exchange, a unique shorthand that replaces typing out a company's full legal name every time it's quoted, traded, or discussed.

Most US-listed stocks use between one and five letters, chosen by the company itself when it lists, sometimes to spell something memorable rather than simply abbreviating the company name. The same underlying company can trade under different tickers on different exchanges around the world.

A ticker only identifies which stock is being referred to. It says nothing about the price, size, or quality of the business behind it.