# Share price query



## ozdave (4 June 2009)

I bought a parcel of shares today and got them at 0.255 per share. this was .005 above the price in my watch list but wasnt too fussed about it. At the time I just thought, ah the quote  on my watch lists is only in hundredths of the dollar not thousandths

So after my purchase I had at the last ten trades out of curiosity. Now the thing thats bugging me is that every trade before and after mine came in at .250! all the last ten trades are at 15:59 so theres not a big time gap between them and there are parcels both larger and smaller than mine in the list.

Am I just unlikely that i got it on a (really tiny) spike? had I clicked back and sent the order again before I had hit submit i am sure I would have got the for .250. 

Its only $100 so i'm not going to lose any sleep over it. i'm more curious than anything

thanks for anyone who can shed some light on it for me!


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## Trembling Hand (4 June 2009)

You hit the ask. the rest were on the bid.

What stock is it?


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## ROE (4 June 2009)

ozdave said:


> I bought a parcel of shares today and got them at 0.255 per share. this was .005 above the price in my watch list but wasnt too fussed about it. At the time I just thought, ah the quote  on my watch lists is only in hundredths of the dollar not thousandths
> 
> So after my purchase I had at the last ten trades out of curiosity. Now the thing thats bugging me is that every trade before and after mine came in at .250! all the last ten trades are at 15:59 so theres not a big time gap between them and there are parcels both larger and smaller than mine in the list.
> 
> ...




if you buy at market price then it get excuted

whatever the going price is but if you say you want to buy 0.250 then
your oder wont executes until someone is willing to part at 0.250.
so all the other trades must be set to buy at 0.250 

Usually a bad idea to buy at market price, better you set the price you want
that way you know exactly how much you are up for + plus brokerage fee


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## ozdave (4 June 2009)

You're right i did buy at market price. My understanding of how this is determined against what the quote shown on my watch list is non existent.

My broker gives me the quote before i buy though and I get it at the quoted price, sometimes its the same as the quote on the watch list sometimes its different

Whats the relationship between the 2?

TH - Stock is MOF


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## Trembling Hand (4 June 2009)

Here is a market depth screen of futures but the mechanics are the same for stocks. buys on the left. Sells on the right. Yellow marker last traded price which would appear on your quote screen and in any watch list.

as you can see at this instant the last traded price will not be available for anyone executing "@ market"


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## beamstas (4 June 2009)

TH
Is the highlighted 4 a bid or ask?


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## darkside (4 June 2009)

ROE said:


> if you buy at market price then it get excuted
> 
> whatever the going price is but if you say you want to buy 0.250 then
> your oder wont executes until someone is willing to part at 0.250.
> ...




Thank you , i had absolutly no idea thats how it worked either, i just thought i was unlucky by a few cents, thats explained that to me. Cheers


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## Trembling Hand (4 June 2009)

beamstas said:


> TH
> Is the highlighted 4 a bid or ask?




Neither. its the last sale price. Nothing there now but fresh air.


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## nomore4s (4 June 2009)

Ozdave,

As TH said you hit the ask.

In the example below the last price is $5.60 - which would be on your watchlist. You put a buy order in at market so you would get filled at $5.63. The sales before & after yours were sellers selling at market so their orders were filled at $5.60.


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## beamstas (5 June 2009)

Trembling Hand said:


> Neither. its the last sale price. Nothing there now but fresh air.




Is there alwaysa  gap between the bid and ask?
I don't trade the DOM, but the few times i've looked i am positive i have seen for example

BID-------ASK
0.205----0.210


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## nathanblack (6 June 2009)

the reasons explained above are all correct, but as you suspect you were pretty unlucky too. it basically means all the shares available at the last sale price were filled before your order was accepted. 

so the last traded price was 0.25, no shares were available at that price. the next level was 0.255. at that level there was no buyers waiting. then you entered an 'at market' bid. meaning you were willing to pay the next level and your order was filled.

after your order was filled, a new seller entered the market at 0.25, which was subsequently filled by a new or waiting buyer willing to pay 0.25.

had you specified a limit order at 0.25 you would have been first inline to get those shares, or conversely as you suspect had you hit the buy button a few seconds after that seller entered his order at 0.25 and no buyers on that level the shares would have cost you less.


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## nunthewiser (6 June 2009)

be careful buying"at market price "

lots of naughty gaps appear at times and you may find a nasty surprise


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## nathanblack (6 June 2009)

nunthewiser said:


> be careful buying"at market price "
> 
> lots of naughty gaps appear at times and you may find a nasty surprise




especially on the less liquid stocks, quite often a large gap between the last sale price and the current offer price. not to mention the quantity you want may wipe out all available shares at several levels.


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## shiftyphil (11 June 2009)

beamstas said:


> Is there alwaysa  gap between the bid and ask?
> I don't trade the DOM, but the few times i've looked i am positive i have seen for example
> 
> BID-------ASK
> 0.205----0.210




The only times there can be no gap is when the market is closed (the share in question is not currently trading for another reason).

If the bid is the same as the ask (or bid > ask) then the shares being offered will be changing hands within a few processor cycles. And you'll have a gap again.


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## beamstas (11 June 2009)

shiftyphil said:


> The only times there can be no gap is when the market is closed (the share in question is not currently trading for another reason).
> 
> If the bid is the same as the ask (or bid > ask) then the shares being offered will be changing hands within a few processor cycles. And you'll have a gap again.




Should have been more clear
A Gap of more than one price point

Bid---Last---Ask
.20---.205--.210

Or can it be 
Bid---Ask
.20--.205

I realise that if someone hits the bid or ask that there will be a trade take place..


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