How to read a stock chart without predicting the future

One candle is one period

A candle summarises four prices: open, high, low, and close. On a daily chart, each candle represents one regular US trading session. The body spans the open and close. The thin wicks show the high and low. A green body means the close was above the open; a red body means the close was below it.

The timeframe changes the story

A 15-minute chart shows short swings. A weekly chart compresses months into a few candles. Neither is more true than the other; they answer different questions. TickerLevels starts with the daily chart because it matches the daily read and the after-close update schedule.

• Use the daily chart to understand the last completed session.
• Use the weekly chart for a slower view of trend and range.
• Use intraday charts for context, not for a different recommendation.

Completed sessions versus the live candle

The current candle is still changing while the market is open. TickerLevels displays it, but signals and the written read use completed sessions only. That is why the read does not flicker every few minutes, and why the page can show a live quote next to a close-based analysis.

Volume adds participation

Volume is the number of shares or units traded in the period. A move on unusually high volume had more participation than the same move on quiet volume. It still does not say what happens next. Treat volume as context for how notable a session was, not as a buy or sell instruction.