Is it a good idea to use "Stop on quote" when selling stock?
I bought WKHS when it was under $3 and it shot up to over $48. Unfortunately I wasn't paying attention and WKHS didn't get any orders from USPS and the stock dropped to $16 when I sold. I don't really pay enough attention to my portfolio to catch the fluctuations of stocks I own. So in order to not lose out on profits I've started putting "stop on quote" orders on stocks that are doing well. Is this a good strategy??
kswck22021-04-06T20:53:59Z
I naturally distrust ANY company that misses earnings estimates by a LOT for 3 quarters in a row and Suddenly has a BIG profit. When that happens, they usually get sued-like they are now. But putting in Stops will minimize YOUR risk.
The answer by user slumlord points out the primary problem with using stop orders.
If I have decided I want to sell at a certain level I usually prefer to sell covered calls instead of using stop order. At least that way you get some return if the stock does not reach that level. The downside is that if the stock skyrockets than falls before the options expire you lost your chance for a bid profit.
Another thing I prefer, if I invest in a volatile stock, is to sell part of my position but keep part so I can still benefit from further price increases if they occur. For example, if a stock triples I may sell a third of my shares to get back my investment but still have the ability to to make most of what I could have made if had not sold any shares.
A better idea might be to follow the price a bit more but sure, go ahead and do that if you want.
The problem is, putting in a sell order at $45 would made you a heck of alot of money (this time) but suppose you'd put the order in at $50 or $10. Then you'd be no better off (worse off if the order were put in to sell at $10) and since you don't really seem to have a good idea exactly where you want to sell, then a sell order may not work any better than just doing nothing.