An Indicator is a mathematical formula that is useful in detecting, recognizing, and/or predicting market trends. Indicators may be plotted on your chart or just calculated for use as an input to another indicator, prediction, or trading strategy.
One common example of an indicator is a simple moving average. The five day simple moving average of the close (Annotated: Avg(Close, 5)) calculates the average of the last five days closing price. When trying to evaluate trends of an instrument, indicators like the simple moving average might be valuable because they incorporate more than one day’s prices.
For more information on any particular indicator: Select the Indicator Help button.
Topic of Interest:
What are Custom Indicators?