Ticker symbol

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Interpreting the symbol

Stock symbols are unique identifiers assigned to each security traded on a particular market. For example, AAPL is for Apple Inc.; OODH is for Orion DHC, Inc., and HD is for Home Depot, Inc. A stock symbol can consist of letters, numbers, or a combination of both and is a way to uniquely identify that stock. The symbols were kept as short as possible to reduce the number of characters that had to be printed on the ticker tape and to make it easy to recognize by traders and investors.

The allocation of symbols and formatting convention is specific to each stock exchange. In the US for example stock tickers are typically between 1 and 4 letters and represent the company name where possible. For example, US based computer company stock Apple Inc. traded on the NASDAQ exchange has the symbol AAPL, while the motor company Ford's stock that is traded on the New York Stock Exchange has the single letter ticker F. In Europe most exchanges use three letter codes, for example Dutch consumer goods company Unilever traded on the Amsterdam Euronext exchange has the symbol UNA. While in Asia numbers are often used as stock tickers to avoid issues for international investors when using non Latin-scripts. For example, the bank HSBC's stocks traded on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange have the ticker symbol 0005.


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Other identifiers

Although stock tickers identify a security, they are exchange dependent, generally limited to stocks and can change. These limitation has led to the development of other codes in financial markets to identify securities for settlement purposes. The most prevalent of these is the International Securities Identifying Number (ISIN).[2] An ISIN uniquely identifies a security and its structure is defined in ISO 6166. Securities for which ISINs are issued include bonds, commercial paper, stocks and warrants. The ISIN code is a 12-character alpha-numerical code that does not contain information characterizing financial instruments but serves for uniform identification of a security at trading and settlement.

The ISIN identifies the security, not the exchange (if any) on which it trades; it is therefore not a replacement for the ticker symbol. For instance, Daimler AG stock trades on twenty-two different stock exchanges worldwide, and is priced in five different currencies; it has the same ISIN on each (DE0007100000), though not the same ticker symbol. ISIN cannot specify a particular trade in this case, and another identifier, typically the three or four letter exchange code such as the Market Identifier Code will have to be specified in addition to the ISIN.

Symbols by Country



TSX "behind the dot" extensions and other special codes[3]
E – equity dividend PR – preferred UN – units
H – NEX market R – subscription receipts W – when issued
IR – installment receipts RT – rights WT – warrants

United Kingdom


United States






Some examples of US Stock symbols include:


C – Continuance – or Nasdaq exception M – fourth class – preferred shares W – Warrants
G – first convertible bond Q – In bankruptcy Special codes

Single-letter ticker symbols

Unassigned letters:

Other countries

In countries where Arabic script is used, and in East Asia, transliterated Latin-script versions of company names may be confusing to an unpracticed Western reader; stock symbols provide a simple means of clear communication in the workplace. Many Asian countries use numerical or alphanumerical ticker symbols instead of characters to facilitate international trade.

  • HSBC – 00005 [Hong Kong]
  • DBS Bank – D05 [Singapore]
  • Jardine C&C – C07 [Singapore]
  • TonenGeneral Sekiyu KK – 5012 [Japan]
  • Toshiba Corp – 6502 [Japan]
  • ASUSTeK – 2357 [Taiwan]
  • Chunghwa Telecom Co Ltd – 2412 [Taiwan]

See also


  1. 1.0 1.1 Mantell, Ruth (3 August 2006). "Vivendi voluntarily delists from NYSE, ends ADR program". Marketwatch. Retrieved 14 January 2013.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
  2. http://isin.com
  3. "Stock Market Terms, Stock Symbol Extension". TMX Money. Retrieved 2010-01-11.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
  4. Preferred Ticker Symbols and Names – QuantumOnline.com
  5. "Tricon announces name change to Yum! Brands Inc | Yum Brands". AMEinfo.com. Retrieved 2012-11-13.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
  6. UPDATE 1-SEC allows Nasdaq to list 3-letter ticker symbols
  7. CA Announces Move to NASDAQ
  8. 8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 8.10 8.11 "Trivia - One-Letter Ticker Symbols on NYSE". The Investment FAQ. Retrieved 2 June 2011.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
  9. "Intelsat IPO Gets $347.8 Million as Stock Priced Below Range". Bloomberg.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 Wilson, David. "Zillow With a Z Will Break NYSE Grip on One-Letter Tickers". BusinessWeek. Retrieved 2 June 2011.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
  11. "Loews Scores Coveted One-Letter Ticker". The New York Times. June 17, 2008. Retrieved May 25, 2010.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
  • Eckett, Stephen (ed.) (2004). The UK Stock Market Almanac 2005. Petersfield: Harriman House. ISBN 1-897597-46-0. <templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>