Dark Pool FAQ
How to read dark pool prints and levels, what each tab shows, and how fresh the data is.
The basics
What is a dark pool?
A dark pool is a private trading venue where large orders are matched away from the public exchanges. Institutions use them to buy or sell big blocks of stock without showing the order to the market first, so the order does not move the price against them.
What is a dark pool print?
A print is the public report of a trade after it executes. Dark pool trades are not shown before they happen, but they still have to be reported, and each report shows the price, the number of shares and the time.
Which prints does StreetAlpha show?
Only large ones: blocks of $500,000 or more in premium, or 25,000 shares or more. Smaller prints are left out so the page shows institutional size, not everyday trading.
Is the data real time?
Close to it. Dark pool trades are reported after they execute, so prints reach the page about 15 minutes after the trade. The page checks for new prints every minute during market hours.
Levels
What does the Levels tab show?
Dark pool premium by price for one ticker. Pick a window of 1, 5 or 30 days and a bin size of $0.25, $1 or $5, and each row shows how much premium traded in that price band, how many prints made it up and how it split between the ask and bid side. Click a level to see the prints behind it.
Why do dark pool levels matter?
When a large amount of stock changes hands at one price, that price is where institutions were willing to transact in size. Traders watch those levels as possible support when price is above them and possible resistance when price is below them.
How are key levels chosen?
The Key Levels panel ranks price levels by how much volume traded there, how recently it traded and how close the level is to the current price. Levels below the current price are labelled support, levels above it resistance, and a level right at the price is marked at spot.
Which bin size should I use?
Smaller bins suit lower priced stocks and short windows, where a few cents matter. Larger bins suit high priced stocks and the 30 day window, where prints spread across a wider range and need grouping to form clear levels.
Why does a ticker say there is not enough activity?
Key levels need a minimum amount of large prints. Quieter tickers, or a short window early in the session, may not have enough yet. Try a longer window or check back later in the day.
Buy and sell side
Does a dark pool print tell you if it was a buy or a sell?
Not directly. Every print has a buyer and a seller. The side shown is inferred from where the print executed relative to the bid and ask at the time: near the ask leans toward buying, near the bid leans toward selling, and in between is shown as mid. Treat it as a lean, not a fact.
Is a big print a signal to buy or sell?
No. A print shows that size traded at a price, not why. It could be a new position, a position being closed, a hedge or one side of a larger trade. Prints are most useful as context, such as levels where size has traded before.
Live Tape and Sector Flow
What does the Live Tape show?
Large prints across the market as they are reported, with the ticker, price, size, premium and side. Filter by a minimum premium of $500K, $1M, $5M or $10M and up, or by ticker. The cards at the top total the prints that match your filters.
What does Sector Flow show?
The day's dark pool premium grouped by sector, with the top 5, 10 or 20 tickers in each. It shows which sectors and names are drawing the most institutional size today, and which sector leads.
Which tickers are covered?
The Live Tape and Sector Flow cover large prints across the market. The Levels tab covers a tracked list of tickers that you can browse in the ticker box. During market hours you can request a ticker that is not on the list, up to five of your own at a time, and its levels fill in as prints arrive.
Access
Who can use the Dark Pool page?
The live page is part of AI Pro. Signed out visitors see a sample of the SPY levels with the most premium from recent completed sessions. See AI Pro pricing.
Is this financial advice?
No. The page shows reported trades for information only. It is not a recommendation to buy or sell anything.
Related: the Whale Alert Tracker for large options trades, and the Options Flow Heatmap FAQ for flow, gamma and max pain.
Watch institutional blocks, live
Levels, the Live Tape and Sector Flow are part of AI Pro.
For information only, not investment advice. Options and off-exchange data show what traders did, not what a stock will do. Trading involves substantial risk of loss.