| glider 59 posts
 msg #43654
 - Ignore glider
 | 5/12/2006 2:25:36 AM 
 I sometimes put in an overnight buy or sell for a stock. The prices can be way out of whack. For example, a stock closed at $2.30, but the ask is $11. There are many examples like this. Is it safe to put in an overnight buy in this case. I know they correct themselves at open but I'm wondering if anyone ever got caught paying an exorbitant price in such a situation.
 Thanks,
 
 Glider
 
 
 
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| heyen 124 posts
 msg #43655
 - Ignore heyen
 | 5/12/2006 2:42:01 AM 
 sure, if you place a market order price might be a little hefty.
 in pre and aftermarket always use limit orders!
 if a price is way out of scope (like more than 100% above close) and there is no volume - your broker might bust a trade to protect you. but trading in pre and after market is usually very illiquid and therefore something risky.
 
 so just place limit orders GTC at your desired price.
 
 
 
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| glider 59 posts
 msg #43660
 - Ignore glider
 | 5/12/2006 10:12:13 AM 
 heyen,
 
 Thanks for your comments. That's where I'm a little confused. I'm putting my order in pre-market to trade at the open. At least that's my intention. I don't want to trade pre-market. But there's no OPEN choice when I put the trade in the night before, only a MARKET choice. I've done it a few times and even though the bid/ask prices have been skewed overnight, I've always got the proper opening price. Just wondering if it's ever possible that it would go through at the inflated price.
 Thanks,
 glider
 
 
 
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| JohnyYuma 60 posts
 msg #43663
 - Ignore JohnyYuma
 | 5/12/2006 10:47:34 AM 
 Glider
 There is a possibility, albeit remote, that your Market Order entered previous night may get filled at a price deterimental to you if your broker or the MM wants to stick it to you
 therefore
 Although I never enter this type of order, Interactive Brokers has a functionality whereby you can specify the order to be at Limit Marker Open - i.e. you can specify a limt and if the regular open is within that limit, your order will get filled at the Open, otherwise not - this way you are safe (althoug you run the risk of not getting your oder filled if the open is couple of cents away from your limit) - you have to review the trade-off
 
 As far as Pre-Market or After Market orders are concerned, there is a rule (don't know if it SEC/Exchange/or Broker enforced but you can only enter limit orders)
 
 Hope this helps
 
 Thanks
 
 
 
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| heyen 124 posts
 msg #43664
 - Ignore heyen
 | 5/12/2006 10:50:52 AM 
 Glider,
 
 please check your trading software. There is somewhere an option for orders Market on Open and Market on Close. Otherwise just place a Market order for regular trading hours only. But illiquid stocks have fluctuous prices on opens. This can be good or bad. I'm seeing spreads of up to $ .15 per share at $2 or $3. Depending on your strategy and time it might be safer to work with Limit orders.
 
 Thomas
 
 
 
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| heyen 124 posts
 msg #43665
 - Ignore heyen
 | 5/12/2006 10:53:19 AM 
 Well, JohnyYuma was faster in typing... (and thinking too?)
 
 
 
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| glider 59 posts
 msg #43678
 - Ignore glider
 | 5/12/2006 4:31:44 PM 
 Thank you both for your comments.
 Speaking of interactive brokers, I just opened an account with them. Waiting for the funds to be accepted. I like the flexibility & choices they offer for trading. I think it may solve this problem.
 A really good example of the problem is the following:
 Last night I put in a buy on Etrade for a stock which closed at $2.30. The bid was tiny and the ask was over $11. It executed at very close to the open but it's scary. I did a test buy on Ameritrade and the same bid/ask was quoted. The difference between both companies was that Etrade showed the total cost of the trade was the number of shares X close price. Ameritrade's total cost was number of shares X inflated ask price, about five times as much.
 
 Glider
 
 
 
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