- 1). Get the quote for the stock's share price. Your online broker will supply quotes for any ticker symbol you enter. If you do not know the ticker symbol for the stock, use your broker's search function to identify it or visit the public company's website. The quote for the share price is the price you would pay per share if you placed an order at that point in time for that stock.
- 2). Select the type of order to open the position. The most common type of order is the market order, often abbreviated as MO. This type of order is instantaneously placed for the best price offered at that point in time. Limit orders allow you to specify a price you wish to pay per share. For example, if stock XYZ is trading at $25 per share and you only wish to buy it for $24, you can enter a limit order at $24. This order will only be executed if the share price reaches $24. Limit orders are beneficial because you are guaranteed a specific price; however, commission for these types of orders is often slightly higher.
- 3). Select conditional sell orders. It is possible to select exit points for your position if the stock reaches a specific price. If you wish to limit your losses, you can use a stop-loss order. Stop-loss orders require that you enter a specific price at which you want the position to be sold. You can also set conditional limit orders that will sell the stock in order to capture gains if it reaches a certain price level.