Options Trade Not Filled Question

Was it an "all or none" order? If the 10 didn't match, they couldn't place the trade.

 

Yes, it was an all or none. Maybe that was it.

 

dont use that if the size shown is already what you want

duh

 

OK, I didn't realize that meant that one trader had to take all 10; I thought it just meant all 10 would be taken by the another party.

 

not even sure about that myself. but if it inhibits the fill, then its not helping you

 

did you rout it to a specific exchange & did you observe the depth of their offer? In fast markets &/or low volume options the MMs will show only 1 contract @ a given price so not to get slapped with a big order they have no home for.

IF you are not in a hurry, try a FOK - Fill Or Kill - order. As I recall the MM has 10 (?) seconds to ... FOK your order.

Also, in low prices options, "cross the market" - go .01-.02 ABOVE the other side - so in your case should have been .24. Doing so you get all there is at the lower price then you might get the rest at the next increment!

I used to do 50-100 lots per side (of spreads - so 100-200 total) and only in high volume options and still the games the MMs played drove me bonkers. Often was not sure if to smile or pout when I got my confirmation!

 

So for level 2 options data, if I see quantity as 1 on the OPRA BBO this truly means only one contract is being offered or is there some round lot specification (like 10 contracts = 1 unit)?

 

1 contract = 100 shares.

Also there are "Hidden Orders" where for instance 1 could mean in reality the MM/exchange has 250-500-XXX contracts to fill but only "shows" say 5 the remainder being "hidden" so not to spook the market!

Here you go: https://www.interactivebrokers.com/en/index.php?f=596

If you are new @ this, I'd recommend getting the bible of the options traders: "Options as a Strategic investment" by Larry McMillan! I am not sure what is the latest Edition.

G'luck

 

Thanks. I don't think I did a great job of asking the question, but I appreciate the response.

I'm not new to options and remember the old days when the OPRA Feed would not update the volume on the BBO unless the the new volume was at least 10 contracts more. I see it updating it in units of 1, and I wanted to be sure IKBR wasn't dividing the unit by 10 contracts or something (much like how the NBBO is in round lots).

It seems that my knowledge of BBO is probably just stuck in the nickel-trading age...