What is After-hours?
In short
Trading after the regular session (typically 16:00–20:00 ET). Many companies release earnings during this window.
Also known as: post-market, extended hours
After-hours is the trading that follows the close of the regular session, typically 16:00–20:00 ET (in Tashkent 01:00–05:00 in summer, 02:00–06:00 in winter). Together with pre-market, it is known as extended-hours trading.
Why after-hours matters
Many companies release their earnings reports right after the close — shortly after 16:00. That is why the biggest reactions often start after-hours: a stock can rise or fall 5–15% within minutes.
Features and risks
- Low liquidity. Volume is thin, spreads are wide and prices jump around.
- Limit orders only. Many brokers accept only limit orders in extended hours, and they must be specifically flagged.
- Stops do not trigger. Stop orders usually activate only in the regular session. If a bad report comes out after-hours, the price at the next open can be far below your stop.
- Tomorrow's open will differ. The after-hours price does not have to equal the next day's opening price.
How to use it
If you hold a position into earnings, plan in advance for the report coming out after-hours and for a possible large gap. Size the position for that risk, or reduce it before the report. Use after-hours prices as information for planning the next day.
Regular session is 09:30–16:00 ET. When the US changes its clocks, Tashkent times shift by an hour.
The report came out after the close — the next day opened 11% higher with no trades in between. A stop cannot help here: price jumps over it.
Example
A fictional stock closed at $80.00. You hold 50 shares with a stop-loss at $76 (planned maximum loss: 50 × $4 = $200).
At 16:05 ET the company releases a worse-than-expected report. After-hours the price drops to $72 (−10%). Your stop does not trigger, because it is active only in the regular session.
The next day the stock opens at $74.00 and the stop fills at the open. Actual loss: (80 − 74) × 50 = $300 — $100 more than planned. That difference is the cost of the gap and slippage.
Mistakes and tips
Know the next earnings date of every stock you hold, and note whether it reports before the open or after the close.
If you hold through earnings, size smaller to allow for the chance that your stop will not protect you.
Check the spread before rushing to buy or sell after-hours — it can be several times wider than usual.
Frequently asked questions
- If a stock falls after-hours, will it open lower tomorrow?
- Not necessarily. The open depends on overnight and morning news, pre-market trading and the general market mood; the after-hours move can extend or partly reverse.
- What do I need to trade after-hours?
- Your broker must support extended hours, and you must send the order as a limit order flagged for extended-hours trading.
Learn it in the Academy
This term is covered with hands-on examples and a quiz in these lessons of the interactive course.
- How the US market worksExchanges and brokers, sessions in Tashkent time, spread and liquidity, five order types with examples, T+1, costs and fractional shares.Open lesson · 12 min
- Earnings seasonCompanies report every quarter: the calendar, consensus, beats and misses, guidance, the conference call, the expected move, gaps and drift, and managing a position into a report.Open lesson · 13 min
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