Bad fills on stop loss orders?

[evan 17]

I've noticed I'm frequently getting bad fills on my stop loss orders.  In cases where my stop is tight, this can really screw me up.  If I have a 5-cent stop and I get filled at 8 cents (as happened to me today in CCL), I just nearly doubled my expected loss.   

I am using ROUTE=MARKET for my stop loss orders.  Is this what everyone else is using, or is there some other routing that gets better fills?  I'm using ROUTE=SMRTL for my entries, and my fills from that are usually great.  But my understanding is that SMRTL is for marketable limit orders, which aren't a good idea for stop-losses.  Am I understanding routing correctly here, or am I confusing it with order types?

It should be noted that I'm in SIM, so maybe once I go live with IB the fills will be better?

Edited April 29, 2020 by evan

[Justin 262]

33 minutes ago, evan said:

I've noticed I'm frequently getting bad fills on my stop loss orders.  In cases where my stop is tight, this can really screw me up.  If I have a 5-cent stop and I get filled at 8 cents (as happened to me today in CCL), I just nearly doubled my expected loss.   

I am using ROUTE=MARKET for my stop loss orders.  Is this what everyone else is using, or is there some other routing that gets better fills?  I'm using ROUTE=SMRTL for my entries, and my fills from that are usually great.  But my understanding is that SMRTL is for marketable limit orders, which aren't a good idea for stop-losses.  Am I understanding routing correctly here, or am I confusing it with order types?

It should be noted that I'm in SIM, so maybe once I go live with IB the fills will be better?

Hard to comment on SIM, but I was trading CCL live this morning and didn't notice much slippage. If anything you'll have worse fills when you go live...

But yes, having market stops are your best bet. I could tell you a couple horror stories of stocks jumping past my limit stop, but I don't want to relive them

Basically try and look for stocks with tight spreads, and if you wait a bit longer after the open that will help with a bit of a decrease in volatility as well.

[evan 17]

Thanks.  CCL usually has a 1-cent spread, but I took the trade near the open (on the 4th minute), so the opening volatility was likely to blame.  Appreciate the feedback.

[Justin 262]

1 hour ago, peterB said:

yes sim account tends to have worse fillings

I disagree Peter. I've always found them to be borderline instant and right at the price...

[ecadaret 14]

On 4/29/2020 at 12:55 PM, evan said:

I've noticed I'm frequently getting bad fills on my stop loss orders.  In cases where my stop is tight, this can really screw me up.  If I have a 5-cent stop and I get filled at 8 cents (as happened to me today in CCL), I just nearly doubled my expected loss.   

I am using ROUTE=MARKET for my stop loss orders.  Is this what everyone else is using, or is there some other routing that gets better fills?  I'm using ROUTE=SMRTL for my entries, and my fills from that are usually great.  But my understanding is that SMRTL is for marketable limit orders, which aren't a good idea for stop-losses.  Am I understanding routing correctly here, or am I confusing it with order types?

It should be noted that I'm in SIM, so maybe once I go live with IB the fills will be better?

Your stop is really tight. Are you going for a quick scalp trade? The alternative is you adjust your position size to accommodate a wider stop and if the position is working, you add to it.

Keep in mind that once an order is submitted and on the book, MM's tend to knock you out, especially if it's a tight stop and you are too early on the large wave of order that make the price move in a direction. That's why i am suggesting above because you don't show your entire hand to the MM's and you can be "mask" your true intention.