MACD Indicator — Live Moving Average Convergence Divergence

Search any NSE stock to see its live MACD (12,26,9) — the MACD line, signal line and histogram — with a chart, price history and company profile.

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What is MACD?

MACD (Moving Average Convergence Divergence) is a trend-following momentum indicator built from two exponential moving averages (EMAs). It shows how a stock’s short-term momentum compares to its longer-term trend. The standard settings are 12, 26 and 9, which this tool uses on one year of daily closes.

The three parts of MACD — and how to read each

ComponentHow it is builtWhat it tells you
MACD line12-period EMA − 26-period EMAThe core momentum line. Above zero = short-term trend stronger than long-term (bullish); below zero = bearish.
Signal line9-period EMA of the MACD lineA smoothed trigger. Crossovers with the MACD line generate signals.
HistogramMACD line − Signal lineThe gap between the two. Growing bars = strengthening momentum; shrinking bars = momentum fading.

The crossover is the key event

When the MACD line crosses ABOVE the signal line it is a bullish signal; crossing BELOW is bearish. The histogram flips sign at the exact crossover, so watch it turn from red to green (or vice-versa).

How traders use MACD

Signal-line crossovers: MACD crossing above its signal line is a common buy trigger; crossing below is a sell trigger.
Zero-line crossovers: MACD moving above zero confirms bullish momentum; below zero confirms bearish momentum.
Histogram momentum: rising bars show accelerating momentum; a shrinking histogram warns the current move is tiring before the lines even cross.
Divergence: price making new highs while MACD makes lower highs signals weakening momentum.

MACD lags in choppy markets

Because MACD is built from moving averages it can whipsaw in sideways markets. It works best in trending stocks — confirm with RSI and the moving-average verdict.

Frequently Asked Questions

A bullish crossover happens when the MACD line crosses above the slower signal line, and the histogram turns positive. It suggests short-term momentum is turning up relative to the longer trend — a common entry signal, especially when it happens above the zero line.

12 and 26 are the periods of the two EMAs used to build the MACD line (12-EMA minus 26-EMA); 9 is the EMA period of the signal line. These are the standard default settings used across trading platforms.

The histogram plots the difference between the MACD line and the signal line as bars. It grows as the two lines move apart (momentum building) and shrinks toward zero as they converge (momentum fading), flipping sign at each crossover.

They measure different things — MACD tracks trend and momentum via moving averages, RSI measures how overbought or oversold price is. They are complementary: many traders use RSI for stretch and MACD for trend/crossover timing together.

We compute the standard 12/26/9 MACD from one year of the searched stock’s daily closing prices, so the MACD line, signal line and histogram update instantly when you search a new stock.

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