Understanding Nasdaq: Market Capitalization & Key Information

The Nasdaq is a U.S. stock market that organizes companies by their market capitalization, i.e. the market value of a publicly traded company’s outstanding shares. Market capitalization tracks how many shares are currently in existence at the most recent share price. Market capitalization can be a good way to evaluate a company’s market worth, and it also determines how they’re ranked and traded on the Nasdaq stock exchange. Although Nasdaq is usually known for listing global electronics and tech companies, it also features mid- and small-cap businesses.

Wealthsimple Invest is an automated way to grow your money like the world's most sophisticated investors. Get started and we'll build you a personalized investment portfolio in a matter of minutes.

Let’s say you’ve got your eyes set on a couple shares of a tech company you’ve seen slowly but surely grow throughout the past year, and you feel like now, as in this very day, is the time to buy. Well, you can, if the market’s open. And sometimes it isn’t, like on nights and weekends. And certain holidays.

Here’s a list of holidays the Nasdaq observes.

Observed datesHolidayStatusJanuary 1stNew Year’s DayClosedThird Monday of JanuaryMartin Luther King, Jr. DayClosedThird Monday of FebruaryPresident’s DayClosedFriday before Easter (late March/early April)Good FridayClosedLast Monday of MayMemorial DayClosedJuly 3rdPre-Independence DayOpen from 9:30 am to 1 pmJuly 4thIndependence DayClosedFirst Monday in SeptemberLabor DayClosedLast Thursday in NovemberThanksgiving DayClosedLast Friday in November2nd Thanksgiving DayOpen from 9:30 am to 1 pmDecember 24thChristmas EveOpen from 9:30 am to 1 pmDecember 25thChristmas DayClosed

Outside of these holidays, Nasdaq is open Monday to Friday and usually trades from 9:30 am to 4 pm. For a more up-to-date list of individual years, you can check out Nasdaq’s calendar here.