A catalyst is any event that changes the supply/demand balance for a stock and causes a significant price move. Without a catalyst, stocks tend to drift. With one, they can move 10-50% in a day.
Common catalysts: earnings surprises (company beats or misses revenue and EPS estimates), analyst upgrades or downgrades, FDA drug approvals or rejections, contract wins, merger or acquisition news, sector news that affects an entire group.
Understanding the type of catalyst helps you assess the quality of a swing trade setup. An earnings beat is a one-time event. An analyst upgrade might have follow-through over days as funds reposition.
TuraTrade labels movers with their detected catalyst: analyst activity, float squeeze, earnings proximity, and general momentum. These labels come from the enrichment data pulled daily from FMP.
Not all catalysts sustain moves. Sometimes a stock gaps up 20% on earnings and immediately gives back all gains intraday. The quality of the underlying business and the broader market environment matter.