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Online Share Trading

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Stop loss (Maybe Simon can answer this)

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Runbird
Contributor
If I place a trade for say 50c (my cost) and then place a stop loss on that for 10% (which will trigger at 45c) and then, for arguments sake, I decide I would be happy with a 10% gain and also place a sell order for 55c, would my stop loss actually trigger as I already have a offer on the market, or would it calculate that I can't sell those shares/warrants as I have already placed a sell order? Hope that makes sense... :)
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5 REPLIES 5
Mic
Super Contributor
Place your stop loss before your sell order and it will work
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Mic
Super Contributor
Let me first say that you cant do anything until you own the shares
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Tango
Super Contributor
no it won't work. When the stop is triggered, the system will try to create a sell order, but this order will fail because the number of shares you are trying to sell exceeds the number you have available (because there is already a sell order for the same shares in the market at your exit target). You can't place multiple sell orders for the same shares at the same time. What you can do is place multiple stop orders - the first one to trigger will place the sell in the market, the others will fail if they are hit. So set up a stop order to sell at a specific price (for your target trade), and set up a second stop on a percentage move (your safety stop). Also, use percentages for number of shares/warrants to trade rather than an absolute number. Use 100% to sell all that you have available. But make sure you don't place any actual sell orders, or the stops will fail to execute properly when they are hit.
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Runbird
Contributor
Tango, correct me if I didn't understand you correctly, but I see a flaw in your argument. You can't actually place a stop loss for your target trade at a fixed price (ie above your current level) as the stop loss will trigger for a ruling price BELOW the level you set. So any trade, up or down, will trigger the stop loss...
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Tango
Super Contributor
It should work. Just not very well. The stops are triggered by a trade at your price, not any trade below your price. One of the reasons automated stops don't work too well. Go to portfolio. Click Stop Loss. Select Fixed Price. Enter fixed price (any figure, above or below). Set total number or %. Set minimum below (I don't use automated stops anymore, but used to use 2-3c below to make sure that I would cross the spread. When at trade executes at your level, your trade will execute. Much better to set alerts on the underlying and then either get to a screen or call SB to execute the trade for you.
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