Q&A  |  APR 2003

Q&A by Don Bright

Q&A by Don Bright OPENING-ONLY ORDERS I’ve been following the opening-only orders strategy very closely, and I have a question. I’m a futures trader and somewhat unfamiliar with the practical aspects of trading listed. I watched around 13 opens this morning, and saw fills on three of them. One was LLY, which opened delayed… with news. The position would have been long in LLY at 56.50 to open. After a nice move to 56.80, I saw futures leveling off, possibly getting ready for more buying. But let’s say a trader wanted to start unwinding a 2,000-share position at this point. Since the open, the quotes have not shown more than 300 on either the bid or the ask. I’m trying to read the tape and see what it’s doing. All the other drug stocks are down off the open; one is starting to roll over. I’m looking to exit. Now what? How do you unwind a 2,000-share position with only 200 showing on the bid in a case like this? Do you take it off in pieces, or put the whole thing out there? Thanks for any ideas or suggestions — Dave N.

by Don Bright