Trading halt

A trading halt occurs in the U.S. when a stock exchange stops trading on a specific security for a certain time period. The halt, which can happen a few times a day per security if FINRA deems it, usually lasts for one hour, but is not limited to that. Trading halts can happen any time of day. The listed company is supposed to call the exchange where it is listed, 10 minutes prior to any material news that they are releasing, in order for the exchange to halt the stock before the news is released. The first 5 minutes of a halt is for "news pending" before any information is released that could affect a stock significantly, also known as the "5 minute window".