Excel Error Codes

Fix Excel Ticker Symbols Showing #UNKNOWN After Reopening

Maira Mehtab Sep 22, 2026 868 views

Question details

Users need to resolve an issue where linked Stocks and Currency ticker symbols turn into #UNKNOWN or #NAME? errors after saving, closing, and reopening an Excel workbook.

Product: Microsoft Excel
Device & OS: Mac (Excel version 16.95 noted)
Scenario: Reopening a saved Excel workbook that contains linked Stocks or Currency data types.
Observed behavior: The linked ticker symbols fail to update and instead display #UNKNOWN! or #NAME? error codes, even in older versions of the workbook.

Before you start

Ensure you have a stable internet connection, as linked data types like Stocks and Currency require active communication with Microsoft's online services to refresh correctly.

Solution 1Recommended

Sign Out and Sign Back Into Microsoft 365

Refreshing your account authentication can sometimes restore the connection to Microsoft's linked data services and resolve the error codes.

Because Stocks and Currency data rely on a backend Microsoft service, authentication glitches can prevent Excel from recognizing the data types, resulting in the #UNKNOWN! error.

Sign out of Excel

Open Microsoft Excel on your Mac, click on your profile picture or initials in the application window, and select 'Sign Out'.

Restart the application

Completely close the Excel application, then launch it again to clear any cached session data.

Sign back in

Click 'Sign In' and enter your Microsoft 365 account credentials to reconnect to the data services.

Test the workbook

Open the affected workbook and attempt to refresh the linked data to see if the ticker symbols display correctly.

Persistent Errors: Some users report the error persists even after signing out. If this happens, the issue is likely a bug in the specific Excel update (e.g., version 16.95) requiring a patch from Microsoft.

Solution 2

Report the Bug to Microsoft Support

Since this is a known bug affecting specific versions involving backend data services, Microsoft Support needs to be engaged for further troubleshooting.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why does Excel show #UNKNOWN! for my stock data?

This error typically occurs when Excel cannot recognize the linked data type, often due to an authentication glitch with Microsoft 365 services or a known software bug in specific Excel updates (like version 16.95 for Mac).

Can I recover the #UNKNOWN data without re-entering it?

Sometimes signing out of your Microsoft account and signing back in will force Excel to re-authenticate and fetch the missing data. If the bug is on Microsoft's server side, you may have to wait for an official update to fix the online data link.

Does this issue only affect Excel for Mac?

While it is frequently reported on Excel for Mac, linked data service interruptions can occasionally affect other platforms like Windows if Microsoft's backend financial data services experience temporary downtime.

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