Message Format

All messages from the Benzinga TCP stream are delivered as JSON objects. Each message represents a piece of financial content such as news, option alerts, or market events.

Message Structure

{
  "id": 49917328,
  "title": "Option Alert: GOOG $210 Calls",
  "body": "",
  "authors": [{"name": "Benzinga Newsdesk"}],
  "published": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:47:30 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "updated": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:47:30 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "channels": ["Options"],
  "tickers": [{"name": "GOOG", "primary": false, "sentiment": 0}],
  "status": "Published",
  "link": null
}

Field Reference

Field	Type	Description
id	Integer	Unique identifier for the content item
title	String	Headline or title of the content
body	String	Full body content (HTML formatted when present)
authors	Array	List of author objects with name property
published	String	Original publication timestamp (UTC)
updated	String	Last update timestamp (UTC)
channels	Array	Content categories (e.g., “Options”, “Press Releases”)
tickers	Array	Associated stock symbols with metadata
status	String	Publication status (typically “Published”)
link	String/null	URL to full article on Benzinga (if available)

Ticker Object

{
  "name": "GOOG",
  "primary": false,
  "sentiment": 0
}

Field	Type	Description
name	String	Stock ticker symbol
primary	Boolean	Whether this is the primary ticker for the content
sentiment	Integer	Sentiment indicator (0 = neutral)

Example Messages

Option Alert

{
  "id": 49917328,
  "title": "Alphabet Option Alert: Fri $210 Calls at the Ask: 5 @ $125.0 vs 7017 OI; Earnings 2/4 After Close Ref=$334.37",
  "body": "",
  "authors": [{"name": "Benzinga Newsdesk"}],
  "published": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:47:30 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "updated": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:47:30 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "channels": ["Options"],
  "tickers": [{"name": "GOOG", "primary": false, "sentiment": 0}],
  "status": "Published",
  "link": null
}

Block Trade

{
  "id": 49917330,
  "title": "Block Trade: TOGI 1.1M @ $0.044 at the bid",
  "body": "",
  "authors": [{"name": "Benzinga Newsdesk"}],
  "published": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:47:33 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "updated": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:47:33 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "channels": [],
  "tickers": [{"name": "TOGI", "primary": false, "sentiment": 0}],
  "status": "Published",
  "link": null
}

Press Release

{
  "id": 49917339,
  "title": "MediCapture Launches aiScope™ Pilot for Veterinary Sciences at VMX 2026",
  "body": "<p>Medical AI Made Easy—From Lab to Real-World Training...</p>",
  "authors": [{"name": "PRNewswire"}],
  "published": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:47:00 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "updated": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:48:02 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "channels": ["Press Releases"],
  "tickers": [],
  "status": "Published",
  "link": "http://www.benzinga.com/node/49917339"
}

Trading Halt

{
  "id": 49917388,
  "title": "Trading Halt: Halted at 1:49:45 p.m. ET - Trading Halt on NASDAQ only: Volatility Trading Pause; Trading Expected to Resume at 1:54:45 p.m. ET",
  "body": "",
  "authors": [{"name": "Benzinga Newsdesk"}],
  "published": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:49:45 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "updated": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:49:45 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "channels": [],
  "tickers": [{"name": "WSHP", "primary": false, "sentiment": 0}],
  "status": "Published",
  "link": null
}

Analyst Rating

{
  "id": 49917389,
  "title": "UBS Maintains Buy on Procter & Gamble, Lowers Price Target to $161",
  "body": "UBS analyst Peter Grom maintains Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) with a Buy...",
  "authors": [{"name": "Benzinga Newsdesk"}],
  "published": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:49:49 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "updated": "Wed Jan 14 2026 18:49:50 GMT+0000 (UTC)",
  "channels": ["News", "Price Target", "Hot", "Analyst Ratings"],
  "tickers": [{"name": "PG", "primary": true, "sentiment": 0}],
  "status": "Published",
  "link": null
}

Common Channels

Channel	Description
Options	Options activity alerts
Press Releases	Corporate press releases
News	General news
Price Target	Analyst price target updates
Analyst Ratings	Rating changes
Hot	Trending/notable content
General	General market content
Opinion	Opinion pieces and analysis

Processing Tips

Messages are delivered as newline-delimited JSON. Each line contains a complete JSON object.

Best Practices

1. Parse Each Line: Each newline represents a complete JSON message
2. Handle HTML in Body: The body field may contain HTML entities and tags
3. Check for Updates: Compare published and updated timestamps to identify edits
4. Filter by Channel: Use the channels array to filter for specific content types
5. Track by ID: Use the id field as a unique identifier for deduplication