Just now doing the last of the annual rebalancing.... went to place a buy limit order at Schwab... saw this online quote for BSV (Vanguard Short Term Bond ETF)
$1.43 BID/ASK spread???? Can that be right? That can't be right. I don't follow these things too closely... making 8 - 10 trades a year... but shouldn't the bid/ask spread be just a few pennies?????
I am sure that is because you have a quote from when the market is closed. Whenever I trade an ETF, I do it during market hours when the quotes and spreads are more realistic .
Thanks for the reassurances... yes... an after hours quote... perhaps broken SW... whatever... I put in a limit of $1.52... should breeze thru in the AM.
The bid/ask spread at the opening cross will be $0.00, so if your limit price is higher than the opening cross price then your buy order will be executed because you submitted your order before the market opens in the morning.
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livesoft wrote: ↑Tue Nov 28, 2017 7:50 am
The bid/ask spread at the opening cross will be $0.00, so if your limit price is higher than the opening cross price then your buy order will be executed because you submitted your order before the market opens in the morning.
Yes. Thanks. My buy limit order @ 80.52 was executed at the opening price of $79.48.
So, decent order execution by Schwab...even though the bid on their after hours screen was rediculous.
CaliJim wrote: ↑Tue Nov 28, 2017 11:42 amSo, decent order execution by Schwab...even though the bid on their after hours screen was rediculous.
Schwab had really nothing to do with the order execution. They were simply following the rules. All brokers would have given you the opening cross price (the price at open) of $79.48.
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Anybody is free to bid / ask whatever they want. The market is obviously less fluid (?) in the after-hours, and some trolls usually post a ridiculous price hoping for a "at-market" seller / buyer who won't check the bid / ask spread.
As others have noted, it is best to trade during market hours when the slack in the pricing is eliminated. In addition, I avoid at-market-price transactions, and will place a limit price just above the ask (if I'm buying), to prevent a rogue transaction from a troll. Fidelity, to be fair, is pretty good at matching my order to the best price, usually at the bid or slightly better. But putting a cap on the trade makes me feel better!
