you put in a slingshot order on every stock as soon as it fills and then you can adjust as time allows.
Immediately upon being filled, place a slingshot at a reasonable number for that day. You can use the "quick update" click feature to move the bid/offer price up or down if you so choose. This way, you can make a little, or make more if the stock goes in the right direction. A "closing winner" vs. a "stop loss." Don
Don, Do you NOT use stop-limit orders ?? (I would like stop limits incase a stock makes a sudden move while I'm following another one) Do you use stocks with a beta as close to 1 as possible ? This to anticipate to the move back to the index as they are filled way out of mean ( = fair value) Do you always use S&P futures or also Dow ? Thanks
I always place one as soon as I'm filled, but I only put it out for about 1/4 of my position. I think having an order out for your whole position 6-10 cents from your fill will severely cut back on the overall expectancy of this style of trading. The big winning days for me come when we get a nice move in the futures and I can ride what I have left of positions on the right side of the market. Yes, sometimes I'll get a profitable exit on 1/4 of my trade with a slingshot then it will reverse and turn into a loser. The slingshot exit limits the overall damage quite a bit, but when a stock makes a 50 cent move, I might still have 1500 shares out of an original 2200. I scale out on the move up, and it more than makes up for the times a 8 cent winner turns into a 10 cent loser. Keeping good statistics on your stocks will help you know how tight to play them and which ones have the potential to really run. Today was really busy, 16 longs and 6 shorts, but made out with $1.10 gross.
A "profit" slingshot is actually nothing more than a standard "day order" at a price reflecting a profit. I don't use stop "losses" as a form of risk control because I see too many specialist "shakeouts" where the stock will drop, take out a "stop loss" and bounce right back. I don't worry too much about the beta...perhaps I might do a few more shares on lower beta stocks. As you enter the same stocks, day after day, you will find a comfort level. Don
Since we use an automated program, and can enter all the orders with a single click, I wait until just before the opening (9:28) and use the E'mini's....which are programmed into the opening spreadsheet. This gives us the last possible valuable piece of information. Don
Finally got my DSL back. Think the fire ate up part of the system No opening fills, but got a few daytrades off today: KSS +.05 SO +.03 RTN .00 SDS +.02 ATH .00 was too late to the party FDC +.06 Just pennies and nickles for the most part....... Gotta quit playing online poker on the weekends and work on my scans..
Today, 3 fills-3 winners. Because of HIG's loss yesterday I only ended up with a small profit for the week. Question for Don, You say you don't place stop losses because of the specialist and shakeouts, well what if you have a trading system that only sends a market order after the stock trades at your loss point so the specialist does not see your order in advance. If you had that type of system would you consider using stops?
Tony, come on pal...join the 21st Century....nobody wastes time "scanning" anymore...get an automated program for Trade-ideas or a good scalping program....scanning died in the 1990's (except for those "retail" guys who don't know any better).. (Yes, I know this is inflammatory, and I intend it to be....but not at you, Tony, just at the idea.....) Which poker site do you like best? Don (oops, pictures a bit big....but then, so am I...LOL)