Serious question, my broker's trade execution was super slow on a big market move last Thursday

I put in a sell order for 500 shares of a tech stock right at the open when the news hit, and it took over 90 seconds to fill while the price dropped $2. I called support and they just said 'high volume' but it felt like their system choked. Has anyone else seen this with their platform during fast moves and know a better way to handle it?

3 comments

3 Comments

wilson.anthony1mo ago

I had a 300 share market sell get stuck for 45 seconds on my old platform. Now I use limit orders with a wide range, like a dollar below the bid, during crazy opens. It usually fills faster because their system isn't hunting for a price that's already gone. You still take a hit, but you get out.

allen.ruby1mo ago

Hey @wilson.anthony, that's a solid tip. I read a piece by a trader who said market orders can get stuck in a queue when the price is moving fast, but a limit order gives the system a clear instruction so it jumps the line. They called it "taking liquidity" versus "adding to the mess." Makes total sense you'd get filled faster even with a worse price.

abbyl4927d ago

But what if the limit order just misses the whole move? I've seen them get skipped over when the price tanks past your set point... then you're stuck holding a falling stock with no fill at all. Sometimes a slow market order is still better than no order.