What’s a good buy for day trading

Screening Filters

1. Price: min $2, max $200

   • Purpose: Focus on stocks that are practical and efficient for day trading with a small account (under ~$1,000) and that typically have tighter spreads and better liquidity than penny stocks or ultra‑high‑priced names.
   • Rationale:
     • Min $2: Excludes very low‑priced “penny stocks,” which often have wide bid–ask spreads, low liquidity, and are more prone to manipulation. These are usually poor fits for disciplined intraday trading.
     • Max $200: Keeps out very high‑priced stocks (e.g., $500+), where a $1,000 account can only buy 1–2 shares. With so few shares, it’s harder to scale in/out and manage risk or capture small intraday moves. In the $2–$200 range, the user can take meaningful position sizes and still manage risk properly across multiple trades.

2. Volume: min 200,000 shares (per day)

   • Purpose: Ensure all candidates are highly liquid, which is critical for day trading.
   • Rationale:
     • Day traders need to enter and exit quickly without significantly moving the price.
     • A minimum of 200k shares traded helps:
       • Keep bid–ask spreads tighter (lower trading friction).
       • Reduce slippage when placing market or stop orders.
       • Increase the odds that patterns on the chart (breakouts, pullbacks) actually follow through because there are enough participants.
     • Very low volume stocks can “freeze” or move erratically, which is dangerous for intraday strategies.

3. Exchanges: ['XNYS', 'XNAS', 'XASE'] (NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX)

   • Purpose: Limit results to major, well‑regulated U.S. exchanges where intraday trading conditions are generally more favorable.
   • Rationale:
     • NYSE, NASDAQ, and AMEX host the bulk of actively traded, institutionally followed names.
     • These exchanges typically offer:
       • Better liquidity and tighter spreads.
       • Higher quality and more timely data (price, volume, news).
       • More stable trading halts and circuit breaker rules than many OTC or foreign venues.
     • This aligns with the needs of a day trader looking for clean price action and reliable execution.

4. Region: ['US']

   • Purpose: Focus on U.S.‑listed stocks to match typical trading hours, data availability, and regulatory environment that most retail day traders operate in.
   • Rationale:
     • U.S. markets have clear, well‑known intraday trading windows (regular session, pre‑market, after‑hours) that many day trading strategies are built around.
     • News, options flow, and technical data are most widely and quickly available for U.S. names, which supports fast intraday decision making.
     • Avoids complications like different time zones, trading calendars, and liquidity profiles in foreign markets.

Why Results Match the User’s Request

• The user wants “good stocks for day trading today” and has limited capital (below $1,000) from the prior context.
• These filters collectively:
  • Focus on liquid, actively traded U.S. stocks where intraday moves are tradeable and execution is reliable.
  • Exclude illiquid penny stocks and very expensive shares that are impractical for a small account and harder to trade intraday.
  • Restrict to major U.S. exchanges, which is where most day traders find the best volatility/liquidity combination.

So, the screener is tuned to surface stocks that are practically tradable intraday with a small account, rather than just any volatile names, making the results aligned with your day‑trading objective.