Last Traded Price (LTP)
The Last Traded Price (LTP) is the price at which the most recent confirmed transaction in a security was executed on a stock exchange, and it serves as the real-time reference price displayed on trading terminals during market hours.
The LTP is arguably the most watched number on any trading screen. It updates with every trade that takes place, making it a live pulse of market activity. In a highly liquid security like Nifty 50 futures or a large-cap equity, the LTP refreshes dozens or hundreds of times per second during active trading hours. In illiquid securities, the LTP may remain unchanged for minutes or longer.
On Indian exchanges, the LTP is disseminated through the exchange's data feed and forms the basis for most price calculations displayed on broking platforms. The tick data underlying LTP movements is also used by technical analysts to construct candlestick charts, calculate intraday indicators, and set stop-loss triggers.
An important distinction exists between the LTP and the closing price. During trading hours, the LTP reflects the price of the last executed trade. However, the official closing price of a security on NSE is not simply the last trade before 3:30 PM; rather, NSE uses a weighted average price of all trades executed in the last 30 minutes (3:00 PM to 3:30 PM) of the regular trading session for equity scrips. This methodology was designed to reduce the vulnerability of the closing price to last-minute manipulation or thin trading. The closing price is important because it determines the settlement price, margin requirements, and the basis for calculating circuit-breaker limits for the next trading day.
For derivatives, the LTP of the underlying stock is critical because it determines the moneyness of options (whether they are in-the-money, at-the-money, or out-of-the-money) and is used to mark futures positions to market daily.
Retail investors using LTP to assess portfolio value should be aware that in illiquid holdings, the LTP may not reflect the price at which the investor could actually transact in any meaningful quantity. The bid-ask spread and market depth provide a more accurate picture of realisable value in such cases.