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Key Takeaways
- Time and sales records reported executions by time, price and quantity.
- Venue and sale-condition fields show where a trade printed and how it was reported, which separates regular trades from special prints.
- A print at the offer points to a buyer paying up, and a print at the bid to a seller hitting it; match each print to the quote at that moment.
- The example contains 25,000 shares and exactly $1,003,140 of traded value.
- Read the sequence’s size, pace and price progression together.
What is time and sales?
Time and sales is the chronological record of reported trades, also called the tape. Each row supplies a price and quantity with timing information. Feed-specific fields add the venue, trade identifier and sale condition, so traders can see what traded, where and under which reporting treatment.
Time and sales vs the order book
The order book shows displayed interest. The tape shows reported executions. Use both: the book shows where liquidity waits, and the tape shows where it got taken.
Formula
Equity transaction value = execution price × reported shares; option gross premium = option price × contracts × contract multiplier- Transaction value is the dollars that changed hands: the example’s three prints move $1,003,140 in two seconds.
- The standard option premium multiplier is 100; adjusted contracts can differ, and the exercise deliverable is a separate contract term.
Time and sales example: a two-second sequence
XYZ prints 5,000 shares at $40.10, 12,000 at $40.12, and 8,000 at $40.15 within two seconds while offers update upward.
- First execution: 5,000 × $40.10 = $200,500
- Second execution: 12,000 × $40.12 = $481,440
- Third execution: 8,000 × $40.15 = $321,200
- Total: 25,000 shares and $1,003,140
- Volume-weighted execution price: $1,003,140 / 25,000 = $40.13
- Elapsed time: 2 seconds
The three executions total 25,000 shares and $1,003,140 in two seconds. Prices climb from $40.10 to $40.15 as the offers move up, the signature of buyers paying up. Match each print to the offer at that second to confirm it.
Read it as buyers paying up: each print is higher than the last, the sizes run well beyond a single small print, and it all happens in two seconds while the offers move up. Compare the 25,000 shares with the stock's ordinary pace to judge how heavy the burst is.
How to read time and sales fields
Execution time is when the trade happened, and receipt time is when the report reached the feed, so a gap between them flags a late print. Sale conditions set regular trades apart from special ones, and corrections and cancellations rewrite earlier rows.
Quote-side colors follow the platform’s rule; check a print against the bid, ask and midpoint at that moment to see why it is colored. For options, combine strike, expiration, premium, quantity and related legs.
How traders read the tape at key levels
Read sequences around prior highs, opening ranges and other defined price levels. Compare price progression with the number and size of executions, then follow the market’s response. For options, options flow is the contract-level tape, with each print’s size, premium and fill side, and the options profit calculator turns your entry premium into payoff and breakeven.
Limitations of time and sales
- Check timestamps and conditions before you read the order. Reports can arrive late, out of sequence, corrected or under a special condition, so the screen order and the execution order can differ.
- Read green and red as the likely aggressor side under the vendor’s rule. Whether a print opened a position, and whose it is, takes other evidence: open interest for options, related legs and the next prints.
- Pair the tape with the order book. The tape records completed trades; resting orders, canceled interest and untouched liquidity live in the book.
- Read runs of prints and scale them to the stock. The example’s three prints carry 25,000 shares in two seconds, and that pace means something only against the security’s normal liquidity.
Bottom line
Time and sales is the record of what actually traded: the time, price, size, venue and condition of each reported execution. Read sequences rather than single prints, align them with the quote and the stock’s normal volume, and check timestamps and conditions before drawing conclusions.
Clear answers
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources and Further Reading
- Cboe: U.S. Equities Last Sale Specification
- Cboe: U.S. Equities Market Data Services
- FINRA: Trade Reporting Frequently Asked Questions
How entries are sourced, calculated and updated: editorial methodology.