Robert Some advice regarding HAUP if I may since shorting junk is my main diet. You simply cannot successfully play in this area through someone like IB for the very reasons you stated. The reason, as you probably already know, is that when is comes time to attack you can't. My strategy on something like HAUP is to start really small because who knows just how far the insanity will go? So on HAUP, for example, I started with 2K at 4.60, but was prepared to keep adding every .50 all the way to 6.00. Obviously that never happened and 4.85 was the hi if I remember right. In any event as HAUP started to fade I added a few more in the 4.40's and 4.20s to a total of 6K. At that point I'm figuring if it takes out the hi of the day then it's off to the races and I want no part of it until it shows weakness so my stop was HOD now. My original plan was to smoke it on a break of 4, but once it squeezed to 4.60 and broke down(clearly visible on a 5 min chart) it was game on and I added 15K at 4.45 and another 10K when it broke 4.25. All shares where later covered between 3.75-4.00. My point isn't that I'm great, but rather why you can't play these pos unless you can get a borrow when you need it most, which is when they start to rollover. By then IB is out of shares. I know because I learned the hard way. So either get a better broker or stay away from these widow makers altogether.
deadwood i must chime in here. anyone who shorts illiquid stuff like haup is either been broke a few times are heading that way.thats just stupid to short a $30 mil mkt cap company. that could have easily gone to $10-$15 but of course you would have kep shorting all the way up
He said that he had a stop in above the high of the day... ...but he could have been covering all the way to $15. LOL
Hey Deadwood, Thanks and I think your right on target. If you don't mind would you let me know which broker you use (PM is fine) I have been advised by ET that the stock at issue is considered a penny stock so I will no longer call it by name and respectfully would ask the same of everyone else. Since I don't normally deal with these huff and puffs I didn't think about it with my posts on my trades. Thanks Robert
I don't know that I would agree that it is stupid. There are some who trade in this microcrap space all the time and others who do not that have gone broke a few times. I will say that in general it may be a good idea to either focus in this area or stay the hell away. It surely does appear to be a lot like poker and we all know how well second best hand does in poker....
I think I was extemely clear, but let me give to you in terms even you can grasp. 1. I started very small and was prepared to add until 6 in .50 intervals. That would have put me at about 8K shares with about an avg of about 5.25 or about 12K at risk. Thats not a lot to me. 2. When it didn't run I added twice with a stop at HOD. With 6K shares I was risking about $2,400. Thats small for me. 3. When the squeeze to hod failed I smacked it on the weakness. ANy strength and I would have covered. 4. I've been doing this a long time and these plays are my specialty. Most of you should avoid them because you don't have the skill, experience or the account to help you through.
I am just boggled why you'd be interested in shorting something that just broke out to almost 2 year highs-reversion to mean is one of the best widow maker strategies. Trading is about single and two and occasional homerun -not about a gun slinger home run hitter. Compounding and confidence are amazing tools.
I'm not sure if you're talking to me or Robert, but if you don't understand what an unmitigated pos HAUP is or how the PnD world works I can fully understand why your boggled.