When checking out the closing price of a NYSE stock, the info gave an even higher price AFTER closing!!! How is this possible? Is that the opening price come the next business day? And, can it be THE purchase price, or a projected price, perhaps?
IIRC, there are after-hours trading using electronic networks.
electronic trading or trading NY stocks on other stock exchanges, or trading futures on the NYSE. These are “indications” as the volume is usally quite low. In other words, say NYSE daily trading is $10b and the electronic trading overnight is $100m, even if the price goes up or down overnight, it’s only indicative of what the “real” price will be when trading starts.
If a piece of good news comes out after the close, people will start flooding the electronic exchanges to buy it up after hours. I think most of the online brokerages allows this.
For a great example do a Google search on “The Cramer Effect”. When Jim Cramer on his TV show mentions that he loves a stock, the after hours trading usually goes through the roof. The volumes are usually so low that the price spikes to unbelievable heights. I watch the show only to see if he mentions a stock I own so I can sell it after hours. Then I can buy it back the next morning when the hysteria subsides.