Stock Terms: Stock Ahead

Learning as many stock terms as possible can help you invest in the market. One term that you need to understand is referred to as "stock ahead." Here are the basics of what the term "stock ahead" means and how it can affect you as an investor.

Timing

The term "stock ahead" has everything to do with the timing of orders. When orders come in from investors that want to purchase a security, the brokerage or trader has to try and match that order to someone is willing to sell at a certain price. When two orders come in at exactly the same time at exactly the same price, this creates an issue for the trader. They have a limited quantity of securities at that price and therefore, have to make a decision as to which order to fill.

Size Matters

In this situation, the size of the order is what prevails. Although the two orders might be requesting the exact same security at the exact same price at the same time, the larger order is the one that gets filled. This is basically like saying that there is a "stock ahead" of the smaller one in order.