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Market Structure & Flow
Dark pools, short interest, insider filings, gamma and who is on the other side.
- Block tradeA very large order, typically 10,000 shares or more, arranged away from the regular order book.
- Congressional tradesStock trades by members of the US Congress, disclosed under the STOCK Act.
- Dark poolA private trading venue where orders are not shown to the public before they execute.
- Days to coverHow many days of average trading volume it would take short sellers to buy back all their shorted shares.
- Form 13F (institutional holdings)A quarterly report of the US stock holdings of large institutional managers.
- Gamma exposure (GEX)An estimate of how options dealers' hedging could push a stock up or down as its price moves.
- Gamma squeezeA rapid price rise driven by dealers buying shares to hedge a surge of call options.
- Insider filings (Form 4)Reports in which company officers, directors and large owners disclose their trades in their own stock.
- Institutional ownershipThe share of a company held by funds, pension plans and other large institutions.
- Market makerA firm that continuously quotes buy and sell prices to provide liquidity.
- Options sweepAn options order split across several exchanges so it fills immediately.
- Short interestThe number of a stock's shares that have been sold short and not yet bought back.
- Short squeezeA sharp rise that forces short sellers to buy back shares, adding to the buying.
- Smart moneyAn informal term for professional and institutional investors.
- Unusual options activityOptions trading far above normal volume or open interest for a particular contract.
Other topics
Market BasicsBulls, bears, market caps, ETFs and the words everyone assumes you already know.Orders & TradingHow trades are placed, filled, funded and settled.FundamentalsEarnings, valuation and the financial health of a business.Technical AnalysisTrends, support and resistance, volume and the common indicators.CandlesticksWhat single candles and short candle groups show about buyers and sellers.Chart PatternsMulti-bar shapes traders watch for continuation or reversal.Market TheoriesFibonacci, Elliott Wave, Wyckoff and Dow Theory, with their limits.OptionsContracts, the Greeks, volatility and common structures.Macro & RatesInflation, jobs, central banks, yields and the cycle behind the market.CryptoBitcoin, on-chain data, DeFi and how crypto markets work.Risk & PsychologySizing, stops, drawdowns and the habits that decide outcomes.Canadian InvestingTFSA, RRSP, FHSA, the TSX and cross-border basics for Canadian investors.ETFs & PortfolioFunds, diversification, allocation, income and rebalancing.
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