Only those who suitable stocks for day trading can hope for success. Securities with high volatility and very good liquidity are considered particularly suitable for this.
We have used current and historical data to find such stocks and compared them with market information. The result is a list of companies that are frequently used for fast trading.
The most important in a nutshell
- The use of shares for day trading is very popular. However, unsuitable stocks are often used, which reduces the chances of success.
- Day trading shares should have high liquidity and high, but not too extreme, volatility.
- The best stocks for day trading are among the technology stocks. However, there are also some non-technology stocks that can be worthwhile.
How can shares be used for day trading?
At Day trading retailers rely on Short holding timesto achieve profits. With this strategy, positions are closed at the end of a trading day at the latest in order to avoid the particularly dangerous phase until the next opening of the stock markets.
Because Overnight (for some exchanges also during the day due to the time difference) prices can fluctuate strongly. At the start of trading the next day, this effect hits your own positions and often causes considerable damage.
This phenomenon occurs when you use securities, as these can only be traded during stock exchange opening hours. However, it also affects other assets, such as options.
Many traders avoid this disadvantage and rely on markets that are open around the clock. Above all, trading with Foreign exchange (Forex currency pairs) or Cryptocurrencies enjoys great popularity in this context.
Should you therefore automatically refrain from trading in company shares? Absolutely not! The Day trading with shares is a proven and very lucrative approach. Retailers appreciate the ideal framework conditions offered by company shares.
If you opt for this form of handle, you benefit from a huge selection of titles. This allows you to, any Day trading strategy without any problems. Comprehensive data, instructions and information make it easier for you to get started or help you to optimize your success.
However, please note: whether shares are worthwhile for day trading, depends heavily on the broker - even more so than with other asset classes.
Make sure you have a sufficient selection of leveraged products and access to professional trading software. Your broker must also be able to provide you with real-time data on the shares you wish to use for day trading.
CapTrader can do that:
More than one million securities, free professional software and share trading from $ 0.01 order fee have made us one of the leading brokers for anyone who wants to use shares for day trading.
Despite all the positive aspects of securities trading, the risk should not be underestimated! The majority of people who opt for active trading make losses. We therefore strongly recommend that you first test your strategy in the safe environment of a Demo account with CapTrader.
This is what the ideal titles look like
You can theoretically use all available shares for day tradingbut some are much more suitable than others. The ideal securities have two characteristics: excellent liquidity and the right level of volatility.
The Liquidity of a security is easy to understand: You want to make sure that your order is executed immediately. If trading is delayed by even a few seconds, price changes are already possible. As a result, you may miss out on profits that you would have made if you had entered the market earlier.
Traders are therefore particularly interested in Assets that are traded in large quantities - they have a high level of liquidity. As a result, there is no risk of unpleasant waiting times when executing our orders.
This only applies to large ones, well-known names with high market capitalization ("Large Caps") and some medium-sized companies ("Mid-Cap").
Unknown niche stocks and stocks with only a few million dollars of capital in circulation, on the other hand, are not suitable for this form of trading. In the worst case, it can take hours or days before an order can be filled. Effective day trading is therefore virtually impossible.
The Liquidity is also largely dependent on the chosen trading venue. The trading volume is generally higher on the "parent exchanges" on which such securities are listed. If you buy locally, you benefit from better liquidity.
If you decide to trade company shares quickly, you should use a suitable broker choose. The better and cheaper the Access to third-party wallets the easier it is for you to benefit from high liquidity.
CapTrader can do that:
With access to 80 stock exchanges in 33 countries, CapTrader is ideal for day trading stocks. The execution price from 0.01 dollars per share is also second to none!
The second important aspect is the Volatility, i.e. the fluctuation range of prices. The larger it is, the more the prices of an asset move up and down.
They are only those securities that show sufficient price changes are suitable. We amplify these movements through the use of leveraged products. Higher volatility results in greater changes and allows us to achieve higher profits.
Good to know:
The volatility of share prices is calculated on the basis of relative changes. It is therefore in contrast to implied volatility, which is used, for example, in the Trading with the VIX index is used.
Warning: too much of a good thing!
When it comes to the Liquidity of an asset it can be said quite clearly: Jhe more, the better! The higher the trading volume of a share, the more suitable it is for intra-day trading.
Something The situation is different when it comes to volatilityHigh values are desirable here, but there can also be "too much of a good thing". Some assets have The volatility of these shares is so high that it is difficult to trade them successfully.
These include, for example numerous cryptocurrencies. Digital assets have a growing fan base among traders. Generally speaking, there is nothing wrong with them - even CapTrader offers you the opportunity to use Bitcoin and Co.
However, it becomes problematic for some extremely volatile "altcoins". They entice retailers with the prospect of Price changes of several thousand percent in seconds - usually end in disaster.
This is because the incredibly high volatility and purely speculative nature of such assets means that a rational, data-based day trading is virtually impossible. The only option here is to act blindly on good luck. Not a suitable basis for long-term success!
Liquidity and volatility: how to find suitable securities
For a share to be suitable for day trading, it must have a High trading volume/liquidity and sufficiently volatile prices have. With this knowledge, we can easily identify suitable titles.
Because Both key figures are available to all market participants. For example, after you have completed a free Depot opened with Captrader have access to this information. CapTrader offers you various trading programs, from simple to professional, which you can use for this purpose.
Also the data is available in many places on the InternetYou can retrieve them from various news portals or search engines. Depending on the source you choose, you can also sort them to find the most volatile, liquid stocks for day trading.
As you are reading this article, you probably already have some knowledge of the market. It will therefore come as no surprise to you that the most popular stocks for daily trading among US technology stocks are to be found!
Companies that are active in the production and development of software, consumer electronics, semiconductors and similar technologies have Ideal framework conditions on.
Among them we find the Shares with the highest liquidity of allas the companies have huge market capitalizations and are extremely popular among traders and investors.
Also the Volatility is enormous in many cases! One of the reasons for this is the strong competition within the industry. In addition, companies are very susceptible to current developments, political decisions and similar influences.
A new law on the use of artificial intelligence, a gross violation of the General Data Protection Regulation or delayed chip deliveries from China ... often a brief news item is enough to cause share prices to fluctuate by five percent or more.
What can cause long-term investors to break out in a sweat is Ideal for traders: high volatility with excellent liquidity makes such securities ideal for day trading! At the same time, day traders are also responsible for a large proportion of the daily transactions themselves.
Top 5 popular stocks for day trading
Our list of the five most popular stocks for day trading could consist exclusively of technology stocks - however, we have decided to include some To bring variety to the list and also other companies.
Decisive criteria are first of all the Volatility and liquidity of the respective asset. In addition, we also have the Popularity of the individual companies among the day traders.
The fourth criterion was the Practical usability of the shares for day trading. This very subjective factor describes how easy or difficult it is to trade successfully with the respective security.
This is due, among other things, to the Predictability (e.g. due to the news situation). However, the most important factor here is the interest of the "smart money": hedge funds, investment bankers and other "professionals" use the popular stocks specifically for their profits.
They play with the "dumb money", i.e. private investors and day traders. They set traps (bull trap and bear trap) and pursue complex strategies that they can implement thanks to their enormous capital.
More than 90 percent of private day traders lose money with their activities. The majority of these sums end up with professional market participants. The greater their interest in a share, the less suitable it is for day trading.
Notice: Our top 5 list does not constitute investment advice. It is merely a list of securities that are frequently used for intraday trading.
The fattest fish
Apple with a market capitalization of just under three trillion dollars (as of summer 2023) the most valuable company in the world. Together with Coca-Cola, the appliances and their apple logo are also among the best-known symbols and products of all.
As Share for day trading the company from California is also extremely popular on the markets. This is partly due to its enormous trading volume: More than 55 million securities change hands every day!
Apple is sufficiently volatile, but not excessively so, making the shares suitable for day trading. Traders particularly appreciate the enormously high trading volume and predictability.
You can therefore rest assured, Buy or sell Apple shares at any time to be able to! Due to the enormous awareness the prices are considered to be easily assessable - and are therefore popular for short-term trading.
The enormous market capitalization and high trading volume make manipulation attempts difficult. Even very large hedge funds with their huge capital reserves find it difficult to significantly influence prices.
As a result, retailers also appear to be prepared Rather low volatility to overlook. Information and liquidity have made Apple a particularly popular stock among day trading beginners. But of course professionals can also make solid profits here!
The freshest chips
The next position in our top 5 most popular shares for day trading is shared by the two companies Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and NVIDIA. They are active in the computer chip sector and almost completely dominate this enormously lucrative market.
The Demand for processors, especially graphics cards, rose sharply during the pandemic: Millions of people had to pass the time at home and turned to video game consoles and the like.
But the last few years were also without COVID Very strong sales. Both cryptocurrency mining and computer games constantly require new graphics cards. The chips are also used in all types of computers and smartphones. This has led to a gigantic growth of the two industry giants led.
Also the Bottlenecks in chip production The international tensions did nothing to dampen its success. However, due to the fierce competition, there have been repeated strong price changes between the two providersWith fluctuations of up to ten percent per day, day traders are rubbing their hands in glee!
Nvidia's share prices are very volatile and are therefore ideal for day trading.
The fluctuations in AMD are even more apparent. The high volatility is particularly interesting for day traders.
Thanks to their high liquidity, the shares are suitable for day trading. Also the Volatility is very good - is even slightly higher with AMD than with NVIDIA.
Due to their enormous popularity the securities are also considered to be highly predictableWhen using these shares, traders have access to extensive analyses, news, etc.
It is therefore hardly surprising that intraday traders frequently use these two stocks.
The donors
In order to bring some variety to the list of stocks for day trading, we want to focus on some popular bank shares refer to: JP Morgan and Bank of America are the two largest US banks by market capitalization.
They are not suitable for active trading due to special factors that determine their prices, popular: Especially the Developments in the key interest rate have a massive influence on the price of such securities.
JPMorgan Chase has shown attractive volatility over the last 12 months and remains an interesting stock for day trading.
Bank of America is also showing interesting movements that qualify the share for day trading.
For banks that are active in the investment sector, the General volatility an important factor. The more the markets move, the more the financial institutions benefit - share prices rise! Other aspects, such as the Housing market situation (lending!) also play a role.
As a result, bank shares offer an interesting new dimension: They react to completely different messages than the typical technology stocks. Apart from this difference, however, trading is pretty much the same.
As shares for day trading, you can of course also use other banks use. Even the German financial institutions offer high liquidity and volatility. However, the US stocks mentioned are particularly popular - but cannot match the importance of technology stocks for intraday trading!
The jokers
A relatively new concept on the financial markets is the so-called "Meme-Stocks": Shares in companies that do not justify an investment from a financial point of view. Private investors buy these titles out of emotional attachment or simply for fun.
The Phenomenon began with GameStopa chain of video game stores that millions of people in the USA had grown to love in their youth. When the company was on the brink of bankruptcy, people joined forces online and bought large quantities of the securities, even though there was no economic justification for doing so.
Since then, it has become a real Trend developed, buying shares for emotional reasons - or simply out of boredom. Although this approach contradicts all the teachings of the financial markets, day traders have recognized the trend and take advantage of it whenever it occurs.
All they have to do is follow the latest developments on social media. New campaigns to save popular companies can be quickly discovered here. Currently (as of summer 2023), for example, there is a Great interest in Blackberrythe former pioneer in the smartphone sector.
Due to the rather low liquidity retailers have to be aware that Blackberry and similar However, meme stocks often make concessions to accept. However, the strong movements and unusual influences make these stocks interesting for some day traders.
The company alson Tesla is considered a meme stock by many analystsThe company's share price is extremely dependent on the more than controversial CEO Elon Musk. His media presence often influences Tesla's price more than the actual products and business results.
Musk's tirades and Reports on vehicle problems (deaths due to spontaneous combustion and autopilots running amok, eavesdropping on vehicle occupants, quality problems) the excellent sales figures opposite.
Tesla is a company of extremes. For many, this already fulfills the definition of a meme stock.
However, the high demand from fans has prompted Tesla to popular share for day trading made. A single tweet from the CEO can move share prices by several percent - and traders profit from this.
Transactions with meme stocks are generally considered to be very risky: The movements are hardly predictable as they do not follow any rational, economic criteria. Nevertheless, some traders hope to generate high profits by keeping their finger on the pulse.
The network
The selection of technology shares that are used for day trading is large. We have decided to do so, META to be included in the list, as his earnings model differs from other IT companies.
The US company formerly known as Facebook has helped shape social media like no other. The Ecosystem consisting of Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp attracts billions of active users every day.
The Profits (recently an impressive 20 percent per quarter) however, is achieved by trading in user data and advertisingTogether with Google, they control almost the entire online advertising market.
The second (planned) pillar is the Development of the metaverse. According to those involved, this virtual universe is set to become the center of life for modern people in the future. Although the metaverse is still in its infancy, there is no question that META plays a leading role in its development.
As a share for day trading, the company is therefore popular for several reasons: the focus on the metaverse and the advertising market as a source of income set Meta apart from other tech stocks.
The Prices often react violently to the latest news and lead to enormous volatility. New laws on data protection or AI, the publication of business figures or product announcements ... there are many reasons for price fluctuations at META.
At the same time, retailers benefit from a very high liquidity. As a share for day trading, META is therefore certainly not an insider tip - the stock has enjoyed great popularity among day traders for years.
Conclusion: It doesn't always have to be tech stocks for day trading!
If you want to use shares for day trading, you should pay attention to volatility and liquidity. This brings the Technology stocks such as Apple, Tesla or Meta inevitably take center stage.
In this category we find some of the largest (and with Apple even the largest) Company. Your shares change securities accounts many millions of times a day, so that every order is executed immediately.
However, it is not necessary to put all your eggs in one basket: You can also find popular shares for fast trading in other areas! The advantages of banks and financial service providers, for example, appeal to many active traders.
They also offer excellent framework conditions, but react to other aspects (key interest rate, market volatility ...) than the technology giants. Traders who want to bet on completely different influencing factors can even try their luck with the somewhat absurd meme stocks!
The securities presented are not to be understood as recommendations. We have merely shown you some securities that are used in large numbers by numerous traders.
However, the majority of day traders lose money with this activity. It is therefore questionable whether one should follow the example of other traders.
Ultimately so the choice depends on your own expertise and portfolioFor example, if you have particular expertise in technology but no knowledge of financial companies, you should not switch to bank shares.
If, on the other hand, you want to add more variety to your day trading stocks and avoid dependencies, there are various areas open to you. Although nothing speaks against the popular technology stocks at first, a Diversification is also possible and sensible in day trading.
If you would like to find out more about day trading, we recommend the following blog posts: Start-up capital for day trading, Earn money with day trading and Day trading tips.
