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Investing 101: What is a ticker symbol (ticker)?

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Business and Finance 101 Examiner

(AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Earning their name from the ticker tape machines once widely used in stock exchanges, a ticker symbol is a mnemonic used to represent companies traded on a stock market. Mutual funds can also be represented by ticker symbols.

Symbols with up to three letters represent stocks that are listed and are traded on an exchange. Symbols with four letters represent stocks listed on the NASDAQ. Symbols with five letters represent NASDAQ stocks other than single issues of common stock. Symbols with five letters ending in X represent mutual funds.

The word ticker symbol is synonymous with stock symbol. 

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, Business and Finance 101 Examiner

Andy Samuels is an Examiner.com intern and Cherry Creek High School (Denver) student who's won a state award for his opinion writing on business and financial matters. He is the Editor-in-Chief of his high school paper which recently won first place for the 5A division of high school newspapers...

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