The stock market has historically been a critical building block in the growth of household wealth and corporate funding. Stocks are bought and sold during specified hours on exchanges.
Many Americans are familiar with the major exchanges in the U.S.: the New York Stock Exchange, or NYSE, and the Nasdaq, which originally was an acronym for the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations. Here’s what you need to know about stock market hours, holidays and how the exchanges operate.
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U.S. Stock Market Holidays in 2024 and 2025
The NYSE and Nasdaq will be closed on Dec. 25 in observance of Christmas and will close at 1 p.m. Eastern time on Tuesday, Dec. 24. The markets will also be closed Wednesday, Jan. 1.
| Holiday | 2024 | 2025 |
| New Year’s Day | Monday, Jan. 1 | Wednesday, Jan. 1 |
| Martin Luther King Jr. Day | Monday, Jan. 15 | Monday, Jan. 20 |
| Washington’s Birthday | Monday, Feb. 19 | Monday, Feb. 17 |
| Good Friday | Friday, March 29 | Friday, April 18 |
| Memorial Day | Monday, May 27 | Monday, May 26 |
| Juneteenth | Wednesday, June 19 | Thursday, June 19 |
| Independence Day* | Thursday, July 4 | Friday, July 4 |
| Labor Day | Monday, Sept. 2 | Monday, Sept. 1 |
| Thanksgiving Day* | Thursday, Nov. 28 | Thursday, Nov. 27 |
| Christmas Day* | Wednesday, Dec. 25 | Thursday, Dec. 25 |
*Both exchanges close early at 1 p.m. Eastern time the day before Independence Day, the day before Christmas Day and the day after Thanksgiving.
More about trading hours and market holidays:
— Stock market hours.
— Stock market after hours.
— What does it mean for the stock market to be open?
— How to find earnings reports this week.
— How investors trade stocks on exchanges.
Stock Market Hours
In the U.S., most exchanges are open on weekdays from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern time.
Stock Market After Hours
You can still trade shares on the stock market outside normal trading hours on a platform known as an electronic communication network, or ECN. The ECN matches buyers and sellers, and it takes a fee or commission for transactions. Such “after hours” trading happens between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. Eastern time. You can also trade before the market opens during premarket trading from 4 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
Extended-hours trading can benefit traders who find it more convenient for their schedules or who want to trade on news that might influence share values. However, extended-hours trading also comes with risk due to lower trade volumes, so traders can only use “limit” orders when trading after hours. Limit orders allow you to either transact securities at a predesignated price or not trade at all if your conditions aren’t met.
See the NYSE’s hours calendar for details on pre-opening and early trading sessions.
What Does It Mean for the Stock Market to Be Open?
The stock market is open when regular trading can start on an exchange. Furthermore, the stock market has holidays, so if today is not on the list of stock market holidays, the stock market is open. The holidays on which different stock exchanges are closed vary, and overseas markets like the London Stock Exchange, or LSE, may have “bank holidays” that are not followed in the U.S.
How to Find Earnings Reports This Week
Earnings reports can provide helpful information for investors about the financial health of a business. Reports often provide broad information by management on the drivers of company performance, risks, litigation and other important factors. They also provide financial statements, which can be helpful for investors who want to analyze the performance of a company and make projections for the future.
The simplest way to find earnings reports is to use the term “earnings calendar” in a search engine.
If you want to search a company’s earnings history, the SEC’s Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval (EDGAR) system provides more comprehensive access to earnings reports for a variety of companies.
How Investors Trade Stocks on Exchanges
Stock exchanges facilitate transactions between traders. They host companies’ shares, which increases those companies’ access to public capital. In return, the companies must pay a listing fee and annual fees. Exchanges also bolster their top line with transaction fees, market data fees, software offerings and a slew of other fees. Notably, stocks can be listed on any number of exchanges as long as they qualify for listing on said exchanges.
Stocks listed on exchanges are often incorporated into indexes that represent different parts of the stock market. Some major indexes are the S&P 500, the Nasdaq Composite and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
Major stock exchanges overseas include the LSE, the Tokyo Stock Exchange and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
Stocks do not necessarily need to be traded on exchanges to be part of the stock market and can instead trade over-the-counter, or OTC, as is the case with pink sheet listings.
A form of security that is both listed on exchanges and OTC is American depositary receipts, or ADRs, which are available when U.S. banks purchase a foreign stock and then sell an ADR as a proxy for the foreign stock. ADRs are helpful for investors who want to gain access to foreign investments, which can provide portfolio diversification.
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Is the Stock Market Open on Christmas and New Year’s? Holiday Closings in 2024 and 2025 originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 12/23/24: This story was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
