Closing Prices: Definition & Meaning | Bondfish
Closing prices are the last recorded prices at which a bond traded at the end of a trading session, used as the official daily reference value for valuations and performance tracking.
What it means
Every trading day, an exchange or trading venue records the final price at which each security changed hands — or an official end-of-session reference price derived from late trades and quotes. For bonds, closing prices are published as a percentage of face value, just like intraday quotes.
Because bonds trade less frequently than stocks — many issues do not trade at all on a given day — a bond’s published closing price may be an evaluated price: an estimate based on the last available trade, dealer quotes, and prices of comparable bonds. That makes it a reference point rather than a guaranteed executable price.
Why it matters for bond investors
Closing prices are what you see in your portfolio statement: brokers and fund administrators use them to value holdings, calculate daily gains and losses, and compute fund NAVs. When you compare a bond’s market price today against yesterday’s close, remember that thin trading can make day-to-day moves look sharper or flatter than the prices actually available in the market.
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This definition is for general information only and is not investment advice. Bond investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal.