If one is only trading stocks and using IB , once a trade is more than 1500 shares then IB is not cheap anymore. 5000 shares is 27-50. Any ideas on reasonable brokers for bigger share trades ?
IMO, IB's strength is ideal for small to mid-size investments. You are right, it is not cheap for large orders at all. But unfortunately through many policy changes such as PDT rules on stock options, they are killing small investors who probably generate more commissions for them. Am I right?
Keep in mind that IB's per share arrangement allows for scaling in and out very easily and cheaply . If you are planning to wade in with a 10,000 share market order, then other brokers will be cheaper.
taodr, "IB and size"; I thought size didn't matter ... never mind, that's something else ... I also regret that IB has priced itself out of large orders. I've confronted this problem and have been looking to take my business to less expensive brokers. The following is the information that I have to date. I moved part of my account to rjt.com (who had recently been purchased by T. D. Waterhouse) because they seemed to have the lowest commissions for an unlimited number of shares. It's $9.95 for market and limit orders. However, all was not well when I found out that if you trade during pre- or post-market, then there is an added cost of 1 cent per share. This definitely is not good, as I like to use these times to get out of positions, on occasion. I have recently learned that Ameritrade has one set commission regardless of number of shares, viz., $10.99, and furthermore this is also true during pre- and post-market. I was assured by them that there were no extra costs. They had recently merged with Datek. Another brokerage to consider is Scottrade which charges $7.00 for market order and $12.00 for a limit order for an unlimited nimber of shares. I don't know if they offer pre- and post-market trading, and whether the commission changes. Also Brown and Co. (www.brownco.com) has $5.00 market orders and $10.00 limit orders for up to 5,000 shares. After 5,000 shares you pay 1 cent per share retroactive to the first share, so that the commission on a 6,000 share market order is $65.00. Obviously, it's better to issue 2 orders and pay $10 in commissions. They also offer pre- and post-market trading, and it appears the commission structure is not changed during these times. Cybertrader.com has commssions of $9.95 for up to 5,000 shares. After that the commission structure is complicated by a whole bunch of rules. Best to check their web site for this. I hope this helps. Please let us know where you end up. Richard
Thanks for the Decent replies. Bunrider.... You seem to suffer from a similar disease to a few on these boards.. Your OVER MASTIBATION causes a jealousy/intelligence brain drain.
I just spoke to a Brown and Co. rep. this morning. They presently do not offer on line pre-market trading. If you need to trade pre-market with them, then you need to phone in and use a broker at $22 commission. Post-market trading is currently available on-line and I was assured that the commission is unchanged from the regular session. However, note that only limit orders can be used outside of regular hours so the minimum commission rate is $10 for up to 5,000 shares. Richard
"If you are planning to wade in with a 10,000 share market order, then other brokers will be cheaper" hahaha - send your big market orders to me, I'll do that for you for free thank you
Couldn't have typed it better myself...LOL Too much mastibation is bad?? What about masturbation?? Is that bad too?? Love, Bunrider