Stop Limit Order Buy Example

A stop-limit order combines the features of a stop-loss order and a limit order. The investor specifies the limit price, thus ensuring that the stop-limit order will only be filled at the limit price or better. However, as with any limit order, the risk here is that the order may not get filled at all, leaving the investor stuck with a money-losing position.

stop limit order buy example

A stop order, also referred to as a stop-loss order, is an order to buy or sell a stock once the price of the stock reaches a specified price, known as the stop price. When the stop price is reached, a stop order becomes a market order. A buy stop order is entered at a stop price above the current market price. Investors generally use a buy stop order in an attempt to limit a loss or to protect a profit on a stock that they have sold short. A sell stop order is entered at a stop price below the current market price. Investors generally use a sell stop order in an attempt to limit a loss or to protect a profit on a stock that they own.

A stop-limit order is an order to buy or sell a stock that combines the features of a stop order and a limit order. Once the stop price is reached, a stop-limit order becomes a limit order that will be executed at a specified price (or better). The benefit of a stop-limit order is that the investor can control the price at which the order can be executed.

1. You buy XYZ stock at $20 per share. 2. XYZ rises to $22. 3. You place a sell trailing stop order with a trailing stop price of $1 below the market price. 4. As long as the price moves in your favor (i.e., increases, because here you are looking to sell it), your trailing stop price will stay $1 below the market price. 5. The price of XYZ peaks at $24 then starts to drop (not in your favor). Your trailing stop price will remain at $23. 6. Shares are sold when XYZ reaches $23, though the execution price may deviate from $23.

A stop-limit order provides greater control to investors by determining the maximum or minimum prices for each order. When the price of the stock achieves the set stop price, a limit order is triggered, instructing the market maker to buy or sell the stock at the limit price. It helps limit losses by determining the point at which the investor is unwilling to sustain losses.

When a trader makes a stop-limit order, the order is sent to the public exchange and recorded on the order book. The order remains active until it is triggered, canceled, or expires. When an investor places a stop-limit order, they are required to specify the duration when it is valid, either for the current market or the futures markets.

For example, if an investor specifies the validity period to be one day, the order will expire at the end of the market session if it is not triggered. The trader can also select the order validity period to be good-til-canceled (GTC), which remains valid in future market sessions until it is triggered or canceled.

Traders use stop-limit orders when they are not actively monitoring the market, and the order helps trigger a buy or sell order when the security reaches a specified point. Once the price is attained, the order is automatically triggered. The following are the two main stop-limit orders that traders place:

For example, if John intends to buy ABC Limited stocks that are valued at $50 and are expected to go up today, he can put a stop price at $55. It means that once the price reaches $55, the trade is executed, and the order is turned into a market order. If the limit order is capped at $60, the order is processed after reaching $55, and if it exceeds $60, it is not fulfilled.

A sell stop order tells the market maker/broker to sell the stocks if the price decreases to the stop point or below, but only if the trader earns a specific price per share. For example, if the current price per share is $60, the trader can set a stop price at $55 and a limit order at $53. The order is activated when the price falls to $55, but not below $53. Below $53, the order will not be fulfilled.

A stop-limit order does not guarantee that the trade will be executed, because the price may never beat the limit price. If the limit order is attained for a short duration, it may not be executed when there are other orders in the queue that utilize all stocks available at the current price.

A stop-limit order combines the features of a stop-loss order and a limit order. Like with a stop-loss order, a stop price is specified higher than the current market price for buy-stops, and below the current market price for sell-stops. If the price of the security hits the stop price, the stop-limit order will then trigger a limit order. At this point the trade will execute as long as it can be filled at the limit order price or better.

As a result, a stop-limit order does not guarantee execution where the stop price is reached. It's possible that the security price gaps through the limit price before the trade can be executed at the limit price or better.

Compared to a stop-limit, a stop loss order triggers a market order to buy or sell once the stop price is reached. Since market orders are indiscriminate on price, stop-loss orders almost always result in executed trades once the stop price in reached.

Investors can place stop-limit orders that are day orders, good till canceled (GTC) orders, or set specific expiration dates. Stop-limit orders can remain in place for a long time, and will not execute at all in the below scenarios:

Tip: Investors can reduce the chances of their stop-limit price being gapped through by leaving a larger buffer between the stop price and the stop-limit price. A $50 stop price with a $47 limit will have a smaller chance of not executing than a $50 stop price with a $49.50 limit.

Let's assume an investor is long 100 shares of XYZ, and that shares are currently trading for $75. The investor decides they'd like to exit their position if shares of XYZ drop 20% from that level. The investor enters a stop-limit order with a stop price of $60 (20% of $75), and decides to specify a stop-limit price of $58.50.

Stop-limit orders are used by investors in an attempt to limit losses. Stop-limits add an extra layer of control atop a normal stop-loss, and will not result in trade execution if the stop-limit price cannot be obtained. Occasionally, however, stop-limit orders could result in the investor continuing to hold a position that has suffered greater losses than they were originally comfortable with.

Note, even if the stock reached the specified limit price, your order may not be filled, because there may be orders ahead of yours. In that case, there may not be enough (or additional) sellers willing to sell at that limit price, so your order wouldn't be filled. (Limit orders are generally executed on a first come, first served basis.) That said, it's also possible your order could fill at an even better price. For example, a buy order could execute below your limit price, and a sell order could execute for more than your limit price.

A stop order is an order to buy or sell a stock at the market price once the stock has traded at or through a specified price (the "stop price"). If the stock reaches the stop price, the order becomes a market order and is filled at the next available market price. If the stock fails to reach the stop price, the order isn't executed.

When you want to buy a stock should it break above a certain level, because you think that could signal the start of a continued riseA sell stop order is sometimes referred to as a "stop-loss" order because it can be used to help protect an unrealized gain or seek to minimize a loss. A sell stop order is entered at a stop price below the current market price. If the stock drops to the stop price (or trades below it), the stop order to sell is triggered and becomes a market order to be executed at the market's current price. This sell stop order is not guaranteed to execute near your stop price.

While the two graphs may look similar, note that the position of the red and green arrows is reversed: the stop order to sell would trigger when the stock price hit $133 (or below), and would be executed as a market order at the current price. So, if the stock were to fall further after hitting the stop price, it's possible that the order could be executed at a price that's lower than the stop price. Conversely, for the stop order to buy, if the stock price of $142 is reached, the buy stop order could be executed at a higher price.

Remember that the key difference between a limit order and a stop order is that the limit order will only be filled at the specified limit price or better; whereas, once a stop order triggers at the specified price, it will be filled at the prevailing price in the market--which means that it could be executed at a price significantly different than the stop price.

The next chart shows a stock that "gapped down" from $29 to $25.20 between its previous close and its next opening. A stop order to sell at a stop price of $29--which would trigger at the market's open because the stock's price fell below the stop price and, as a market order, execute at $25.20--could be significantly lower than intended, and worse for the seller.

In a similar way that a "gap down" can work against you with a stop order to sell, a "gap up" can work in your favor in the case of a limit order to sell, as illustrated in the chart below. In this example, a limit order to sell is placed at a limit price of $50. The stock's prior closing price was $47. If the stock opened at $63.00 due to positive news released after the prior market's close, the trade would be executed at the market's open at that price--higher than anticipated, and better for the seller.

So you may pay a minimum order fee to your broker for each trade. Your stop-limit order may get filled in three separate trades over multiple days due to the lack of liquidity. You can end up paying the minimum order fee three times. 041b061a72