The letter Q used to be part of the ticker symbols for a stock trading on the Nasdaq, specifying that a particular company was in bankruptcy proceedings. If the letter Q appeared as the final letter of a Nasdaq symbol, it meant "bankrupt: issuer has filed for bankruptcy," as the Nasdaq put it.The system was changed in 2009 when new rules were enacted by FINRA, and now bankrupt companies are no longer traded on NASDAQ. This is good news for investors, as it eliminates some risk from their portfolios.