Breaking the Pattern Day Trading Barrier

expiated said:
I don't know who O is, but yes, it says it right there on the chart...

View attachment 263791

Nonetheless, when I divide the profit by the change in price, $6.25 is what I get. As for ticks, as best as I can tell, they mean one thing when dealing with this asset, and yet, another thing when dealing with that one. Consequently, when conceptualizing ideas so that they make sense to me personally, I use terminology that does not change in my mind—hence my analysis in terms of units.

For example, Investopedia states that: "Point, tick, and pip are terms traders use to describe price changes in the financial markets. A point represents the smallest possible price change on the left side of a decimal point, while a tick represents the smallest possible price change on the right side of a decimal point."

However, when I look at the numbers along the right side of the e-mini Dow candlestick chart, there is nothing on the right side of the decimal point. So, what is Investopedia talking about?

No need to answer... I'm just saying that this is why I use, and will continue to use, my own vocabulary, at least for the time being.
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O = Overnight

You got filled at 34423 not 34422. You made 5 ticks, not 4. 5*5=$25 your profit.

But you are right use whatever words you care to, if you don't care what most everyone else uses.

And by everyone else I mean everyone that trades U.S. index futures. And not CFD's or any other that other pip nonsense.
 
expiated said:
Once again, if I consider the digit directly to the left of the decimal point as representing single units, with my Profit from selling the Russell being $110.00, it would appear that each unit is worth 110 ÷ (2120.8 - 2118.6) = 110 ÷ 2.2 = $50.

View attachment 263784

So to review, I calculate each unit of the DOW being worth $6.25, with the NASDAQ being $20 and the Russell being $50.
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Russel's ticks are in increments of 0.10 so each tick on the emini is actually $5 not $50, but it is $50 per point, as you show, which is 1.0
Hope that makes sense.
 
studentofthemarkets said:
Russel's ticks are in increments of 0.10 so each tick on the emini is actually $5 not $50, but it is $50 per point, as you show, which is 1.0
Hope that makes sense.
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Yeah, I think for me, when it comes to figuring out where I'm going to place my stops and how much money I can afford to risk, it's going to make more sense to think in terms of points (whole numbers) then to think in terms of ticks.
 
In doing a little bit of experimentation, it seems that perhaps the reason the MT5 platform would not let me trade the S&P 500 future was because my take-profit target was too close to the entry price. I had to set it far away and then move it closer (adjust it) afterward. I just shorted the S&P at 4243.00 and exited at 4238.75, a difference of 4.25, for $212.5, which means that each "unit" (as I conceptualize them) is worth $50, as was the case with the Russell 2000.

Dow 30 = $5 ................... (This figure changes with each trade that prints in the performance record.)
NASDAQ 100 = $20
S&P 500 = $50
Russell 2000 = $50
 
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expiated said:
In doing a little bit of experimentation, it seems that perhaps the reason the MT5 platform would not let me trade the S&P 500 future was because my take-profit target was too close to the entry price. I had to set it far away and then move it closer (adjust it) afterward. I just shorted the S&P at 4243.00 and exited at 4238.75, a difference of 4.25, for $212.5, which means that each "unit" (as I conceptualize it) is worth $50, as was the case with the Russell 2000.

Dow 30 = $6.25
NASDAQ 100 = $20
S&P 500 = $50
Russell 2000 = $50
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Having your target too close to your entry price shouldn't keep you from being able to place an order, unless that's a unique feature with MT5. Some people go for just 1 tick on the ES. I don't know if they are profitable or not, but I've heard of people trying it...and I've tried it just to watch it work.

Overnight and Suntrader gave you good explanations. Your Dow calculations are off by everybody's else's measurement, but you'll figure it out. It takes a while to get used to.
 
studentofthemarkets said:
Actually, your Dow calculations are right now. You have it at $5.
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Not really... it varies from one trade to the next. Though he might have given me a good explanation, I have Overnight on ignore, so I don't see any on his posts, assuming this is a male. I know that where you can set MT4 Forex targets and whatnot varies with certain brokers. At OANDA, I can set them just one fraction of a pip away, but this is not the case with Forex.com, which will not even allow me to move them too close manually as an adjustment afterward.
 
expiated said:
No, what varies is the quotient I get when I divide the Profit showing in my Account History by the difference between the Price and the T/P.
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Yes but in the case of the miniDow there is a difference, granted a minor one (a tick I mean pip err make that unit) between where you set your T/P and the actual fill. :)


So shouldn't you then adjust the quotient to reflect what actually took place?
 
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