I was hoping someone might have some insights/answers concerning a Virtual Trade option Put order I made today. I had a Sell to Open order SPY 3Q12 145 Put filled on Sept 20. I placed an order in the VT to Buy To Close the option today (I was experimenting) - I placed the order and 20 seconds later, I decided to modify the order. So I clicked the Modify tab on the order, changed the limit amount and re-submitted the order. When I viewed the order status, two different BTC orders had been filled.
The Options Industry Council was not able to help me with the problem, except to tell me to reset my entire account, which I did not want to do. I eventually decided to try a SELL TO CLOSE SPY 3Q12 145 Put to see if it would cancel out the extra BTC order. Looking at my current positions, I think it fixed the problem (but did cost me virtual dollars to fix). I don't know how or when to use Sell to Close (or what it does), but I tried it since it was just the simulator. Does anyone have any advice for how I could have handled this issue? If this happened in real life, I would not want to spend real money fixing this unexpected problem. Thanks for any suggestions.
09/21/2012
O
STC
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.37
$14.95
$58.99
09/21/2012
O
BTC
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.34
$14.95
($83.00)
09/21/2012
O
BTC
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.35
$14.95
($85.00)
09/20/2012
O
STO
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.72
$14.95
$128.99
Theresa
Sharon McAllister on
Hi Theresa, something tells me that Paul is having fun, and I hope he is. <grin>
Here is what I do in my real money account because I noticed that the exchange fees increase when I edit an order to modify it. If memory serves me right, one of my accounts eats the fee and the other passes it along. Your brokerage firm will disclose how they manage exchange fees for modified orders. I know these exchange fees may be a tiny amount, but when I am selling options, overall expenses eat into the total return. So, what I do when I want to modify an order is to cancel the order first, wait for a confirmation that the order has been cancelled, and then I place a new order.
SPY options are highly liquid and most often trade at bid-ask spreads of a penny. Some options trade with larger bid-ask spreads, and you may want to experiment with a 'fishing' technique. To do this, you can enter the order in at an ask price that is higher than the bid price and wait. Then, you may consider taking that bait away and submitting the order at a slightly lower asking price, which is still greater than the bid price to see if the market maker will come to your price. If the bid rises, you may want to take the second order away and see just how far you can tempt the market maker into following your bait. This will not work with SPY, but can work with stocks that have a sizable bid-ask spread. There are some different ways you can try to catch fish and fishing strategies depend on how swift the price of the underlying stock or ETF is moving at the time.
I'm delighted you are getting in, trying things, and sharing your experiences with the Cool Club! I know I did not address your question directly, because I suggested to avoid being set-up. Maybe someone else on the list has another approach.
I was hoping someone might have some insights/answers concerning a Virtual Trade option Put order I made today. I had a Sell to Open order SPY 3Q12 145 Put filled on Sept 20. I placed an order in the VT to Buy To Close the option today (I was experimenting) - I placed the order and 20 seconds later, I decided to modify the order. So I clicked the Modify tab on the order, changed the limit amount and re-submitted the order. When I viewed the order status, two different BTC orders had been filled.
The Options Industry Council was not able to help me with the problem, except to tell me to reset my entire account, which I did not want to do. I eventually decided to try a SELL TO CLOSE SPY 3Q12 145 Put to see if it would cancel out the extra BTC order. Looking at my current positions, I think it fixed the problem (but did cost me virtual dollars to fix). I don't know how or when to use Sell to Close (or what it does), but I tried it since it was just the simulator. Does anyone have any advice for how I could have handled this issue? If this happened in real life, I would not want to spend real money fixing this unexpected problem. Thanks for any suggestions.
09/21/2012
O
STC
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.37
$14.95
$58.99
09/21/2012
O
BTC
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.34
$14.95
($83.00)
09/21/2012
O
BTC
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.35
$14.95
($85.00)
09/20/2012
O
STO
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.72
$14.95
$128.99
Theresa
Theresa H on
Sharon,
Thank you for your advice!!! I LOVED all your tips & can't wait to try them. I will definitely cancel an order from now on & then place a new order. I'm actually glad unusual things happen in the Virtual Trader so I can learn how to deal with them before trying in real life.
Thanks again & I can't wait to go fishing!
Theresa
On Sep 22, 2012, at 5:11 PM, Sharon McAllister wrote:
Hi Theresa, something tells me that Paul is having fun, and I hope he is. <grin>
Here is what I do in my real money account because I noticed that the exchange fees increase when I edit an order to modify it. If memory serves me right, one of my accounts eats the fee and the other passes it along. Your brokerage firm will disclose how they manage exchange fees for modified orders. I know these exchange fees may be a tiny amount, but when I am selling options, overall expenses eat into the total return. So, what I do when I want to modify an order is to cancel the order first, wait for a confirmation that the order has been cancelled, and then I place a new order.
SPY options are highly liquid and most often trade at bid-ask spreads of a penny. Some options trade with larger bid-ask spreads, and you may want to experiment with a 'fishing' technique. To do this, you can enter the order in at an ask price that is higher than the bid price and wait. Then, you may consider taking that bait away and submitting the order at a slightly lower asking price, which is still greater than the bid price to see if the market maker will come to your price. If the bid rises, you may want to take the second order away and see just how far you can tempt the market maker into following your bait. This will not work with SPY, but can work with stocks that have a sizable bid-ask spread. There are some different ways you can try to catch fish and fishing strategies depend on how swift the price of the underlying stock or ETF is moving at the time.
I'm delighted you are getting in, trying things, and sharing your experiences with the Cool Club! I know I did not address your question directly, because I suggested to avoid being set-up. Maybe someone else on the list has another approach.
I was hoping someone might have some insights/answers concerning a Virtual Trade option Put order I made today. I had a Sell to Open order SPY 3Q12 145 Put filled on Sept 20. I placed an order in the VT to Buy To Close the option today (I was experimenting) - I placed the order and 20 seconds later, I decided to modify the order. So I clicked the Modify tab on the order, changed the limit amount and re-submitted the order. When I viewed the order status, two different BTC orders had been filled.
The Options Industry Council was not able to help me with the problem, except to tell me to reset my entire account, which I did not want to do. I eventually decided to try a SELL TO CLOSE SPY 3Q12 145 Put to see if it would cancel out the extra BTC order. Looking at my current positions, I think it fixed the problem (but did cost me virtual dollars to fix). I don't know how or when to use Sell to Close (or what it does), but I tried it since it was just the simulator. Does anyone have any advice for how I could have handled this issue? If this happened in real life, I would not want to spend real money fixing this unexpected problem. Thanks for any suggestions.
09/21/2012
O
STC
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.37
$14.95
$58.99
09/21/2012
O
BTC
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.34
$14.95
($83.00)
09/21/2012
O
BTC
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.35
$14.95
($85.00)
09/20/2012
O
STO
SPY 3Q12 145 Put
2
$0.72
$14.95
$128.99
Theresa
M M C on
I've gone fishing with my bait price, but when I do, I enter the STO order after market close for the next day or early in the morning. I alway bait fish for the day, so the order is limited in time too. Not fill or kill, just good for the day. Fills, I'm happy, doesn't fill, I can adjust bait price and go for another day's fishing, or just cast it out again. I only take on fees IF the order fills.
Thank you for your advice!!! I LOVED all your tips & can't wait to try them. I will definitely cancel an order from now on & then place a new order. I'm actually glad unusual things happen in the Virtual Trader so I can learn how to deal with them before trying in real life.
Thanks again & I can't wait to go fishing!
Theresa
On Sep 22, 2012, at 5:11 PM, Sharon McAllister wrote:
Hi Theresa, something tells me that Paul is having fun, and I hope he is. <grin>
Here is what I do in my real money account because I noticed that the exchange fees increase when I edit an order to modify it. If memory serves me right, one of my accounts eats the fee and the other passes it along. Your brokerage firm will disclose how they manage exchange fees for modified orders. I know these exchange fees may be a tiny amount, but when I am selling options, overall expenses eat into the total return. So, what I do when I want to modify an order is to cancel the order first, wait for a confirmation that the order has been cancelled, and then I place a new order.
SPY options are highly liquid and most often trade at bid-ask spreads of a penny. Some options trade with larger bid-ask spreads, and you may want to experiment with a 'fishing' technique. To do this, you can enter the order in at an ask price that is higher than the bid price and wait. Then, you may consider taking that bait away and submitting the order at a slightly lower asking price, which is still greater than the bid price to see if the market maker will come to your price. If the bid rises, you may want to take the second order away and see just how far you can tempt the market maker into following your bait. This will not work with SPY, but can work with stocks that have a sizable bid-ask spread. There are some different ways you can try to catch fish and fishing strategies depend on how swift the price of the underlying stock or ETF is moving at the time.
I'm delighted you are getting in, trying things, and sharing your experiences with the Cool Club! I know I did not address your question directly, because I suggested to avoid being set-up. Maybe someone else on the list has another approach.
I was hoping someone might have some insights/answers concerning a Virtual Trade option Put order I made today. I had a Sell to Open order SPY 3Q12 145 Put filled on Sept 20. I placed an order in the VT to Buy To Close the option today (I was experimenting) - I placed the order and 20 seconds later, I decided to modify the order. So I clicked the Modify tab on the order, changed the limit amount and re-submitted the order. When I viewed the order status, two different BTC orders had been filled.
The Options Industry Council was not able to help me with the problem, except to tell me to reset my entire account, which I did not want to do. I eventually decided to try a SELL TO CLOSE SPY 3Q12 145 Put to see if it would cancel out the extra BTC order. Looking at my current positions, I think it fixed the problem (but did cost me virtual dollars to fix). I don't know how or when to use Sell to Close (or what it does), but I tried it since it was just the simulator. Does anyone have any advice for how I could have handled this issue? If this happened in real life, I would not want to spend real money fixing this unexpected problem. Thanks for any suggestions.