Quote
What it is:
A quote is an estimate of price or a price at which one party is willing to buy or sell from the other. In the trading markets, a quote is the bid and ask price for a security.
How it works/Example:
Why it matters:
Quotes are necessary to inform investors about the prices of securities. The information contained in a quote is sometimes limited; for example, it may not disclose which market makers are bidding for or offering the security, whether there are limit orders on the security, or the size of potential trades at a particular price. In other words, quotes do not give the viewer access to the "order book" showing who has an interest in a security and at what price. But quotes do give traders and investors a basic idea of how a security is doing.