The quote of a share is the price at which it changes owners. The price is formed when there is demand for the share and also supply. When demand is high, the price goes up. When supply is high, i.e. there are lots of people selling the share, the price goes down. The current price is not the exact price you will pay or receive for the share. For that, you have to look at the bid price and the offer price. These two figures tell you at what price you can sell or buy a share:
Bid price: this is the highest price that someone is willing to pay for a share at a specific point in time and at which you can sell the share. Given that there are often large numbers of sellers and buyers operating on the market at the same time, the bid price is subject to constant change.
Offer price: this is the lowest price at which someone is willing to sell a share. It is the price at which you will then be able to buy the share. Again, given that there are often large numbers of sellers and buyers operating on the market at the same time, the offer price is also subject to constant change.
Spread: the difference between the bid price and the offer price is referred to as the ‘spread’. Shares that are traded on numerous occasions on a trading day tend to have a tight spread, while shares that change owners less frequently are likely to have a wider spread.