What stock should I trade today

Screening Filters

1. Market Cap ≥ $1,000,000,000

   • Purpose: Focus on larger, more established companies (mid- and large-cap).
   • Rationale:
     • Bigger companies tend to have tighter spreads, better liquidity, and more analyst coverage.
     • This reduces the risk of getting stuck in an illiquid small-cap where a single trade can move the price a lot.
     • For someone asking “What should I trade today?”, this steers you toward names that are active and generally more suitable for short-term trading.

2. Price between $5 and $100

   • Purpose: Exclude very low-priced “penny stocks” and very expensive names.
   • Rationale:
     • Stocks under $5 are often highly speculative, more easily manipulated, and can have wide bid–ask spreads.
     • Ultra-high-priced stocks can be harder to trade size with smaller accounts and sometimes move in larger dollar increments.
     • The $5–$100 range strikes a balance: tradable for most retail accounts and generally more liquid and stable than microcaps.

3. Beta: HighRisk (High Beta)

   • Purpose: Target more volatile stocks that move more than the overall market.
   • Rationale:
     • If you’re asking what to “trade today,” you usually need movement—stocks that actually swing enough intraday to offer trading opportunities.
     • High beta stocks (e.g., beta > 1.2 or so) typically react more strongly to market moves, which can create both more risk and more opportunity for traders.
     • This filter intentionally focuses on “higher risk / higher volatility” names suitable for active trading, not slow, defensive stocks.

4. Monthly Average Dollar Volume ≥ $2,000,000

   • Purpose: Ensure sufficient liquidity (enough money traded daily) so you can enter and exit positions more easily.
   • Rationale:
     • Dollar volume (price × volume) is a better liquidity measure than share volume alone.
     • A minimum of $2M per month (and typically much higher on active days) filters out thinly traded stocks where your orders could move the market or get poor fills.
     • This is crucial for intraday or short-term trading, where execution quality is a big part of P&L.

5. Price Change % ≥ 3% (recent/1-day move)

   • Purpose: Focus on stocks that are already moving significantly.
   • Rationale:
     • A 3%+ price move indicates unusual activity, news, or strong buying/selling pressure.
     • Traders usually look for stocks “in play” — showing momentum or volatility — rather than flat, quiet names.
     • This filter tries to surface tickers that are active today, aligning directly with your desire to find something to trade now.

6. Exchange: XNYS, XNAS, XASE (NYSE, NASDAQ, AMEX)

   • Purpose: Limit to major U.S. exchanges.
   • Rationale:
     • Major exchanges generally have better regulation, transparency, and liquidity than OTC or foreign markets.
     • This reduces additional risks like poor reporting standards or extreme illiquidity.
     • For most retail and many professional traders, NYSE/NASDAQ/AMEX are the primary hunting grounds for day and swing trades.

Why These Results Match Your Request

• You asked: “What stock should I trade today?”
  The filters are designed to:
  • Highlight liquid, tradable U.S. stocks (market cap, dollar volume, and exchange filters).
  • Focus on stocks that are actually moving today (price change ≥ 3%).
  • Emphasize volatility and opportunity suitable for active trading (high beta).
  • Avoid extreme ends of the market like penny stocks or illiquid microcaps (price and market cap constraints).

In short, the screen doesn’t claim to pick the “best” trade or guarantee profit, but it narrows the universe to a practical watchlist of liquid, volatile U.S. stocks that are actively moving today, which is exactly the type of universe traders typically scan when deciding what to trade.