Can I long and short simultaneously ?

[cesfx]

Right, as long as you have 2 different accounts you can do anything. But if you use a single account, hold 100 shares long and get caught in a steep reverse, there is no mechanism to short that same stock without first having to exit the long at a loss because those shares are in your portfolio and have to be dealt with first.
I'm not concerned with the tax implications.

Why would you want to temporary freeze the drawdown?
What difference does it make?

Could make sense for margin, psychological or taxes reason... Or if you want to take a short term trade against your long term positions, otherwise technically I see no advantage.

 

[VicBee]

if you want to take a short term trade against your long term positions, otherwise technically I see no advantage.

Yes, that would be a good reason, a short against a long.

 

[cesfx]

It is a zerosum game with the share holding.

You can be flat, long or short. Total net of position is what counts at the end of the day.

 

[Girija]

That's also a little-known trick that some of the chatroom gurus do, like the guys who claim to make huge fortunes day trading. On-screen they go long in a position, while off screen a confederate puts on an equivalent short position in a different account.

That way the guru trades relatively risk-free, because they have simultaneous long and short positions on in the same instrument. But the people in the chat room only see the long position being broadcast.

Another trick is to trade a Sim account but claim that it is a real money account. The way to expose this trick is to request the guru trade an Odd trade size, like 67 shares, and tell you exactly when he puts the order on. Now look for that specific order in time and sales as it scrolls by. Do this two or three times. Any honest chat room trainer who is claiming they trade live should have no objections to this.

@KCalhoun This doesn't make much sense since a covered bearish trade can't report a net loss of zero. You may be able to do a revenge act by blowing the true story to IRS. No harm done morrly since you are helping the country identify tax evaders.

 

[Girija]

It is a zerosum game with the share holding.

You can be flat, long or short. Total net of position is what counts at the end of the day.

Only for profits. Taxes have their own view.

 

[Girija]

I didn't realize I was going to open a can of legal worms with my question which was primarily technical and not well presented. Your example of aapl is was I wanted to do, but couldn't figure out if and how to do it in TOS. Once in a long or short position, there's no way to enter with an opposing position without first closing the original position, unless I'm doing this from 2 different accounts.
I was also asking because TOS US allows things not available on TOS in other countries, like the ability to choose which lots to sell instead of FIFO only. I wondered if my question had to do with a similar technical limitation.

Talk to tda customer support. Apparently they need to enable this facility since it is not a defacto ability on all accounts but what happens between you and IRS is a complicated item you need to be mindful.

 

[Sig]

Let's be perfectly clear here, there is absolutely no difference from a trading profit perspective from one simultaneously holding an identical long and short position and simply selling the long position, except that you'll end up paying more in commissions and spread. Please feel free to provide any example you care to and I can demonstrate this. It's a common newbie fallacy that can easily be dispelled by thinking through it.

The only legitimate reason for doing this would be if you lived in a jurisdiction where it could lead to favorable tax treatment, typically for ensuring a long term capital gain. This doesn't work in the U.S. So if you're in the U.S., doing this is not only pointless but stupid.

 

[qlai]

Please feel free to provide any example you care to and I can demonstrate this. It's a common newbie fallacy that can easily be dispelled by thinking through it.

I don’t know if this makes sense or it’s purely psychological, but I often “hedge” a underwater position in a separate account. This is mostly when I fear overnight gap. In my mind, I am buying a protective option with no theta decay. I often get out of this hedge with a profit. Does this make any sense to you?

 

[Sig]

I don’t know if this makes sense or it’s purely psychological, but I often “hedge” a underwater position in a separate account. This is mostly when I fear overnight gap. In my mind, I am buying a protective option with no theta decay. I often get out of this hedge with a profit. Does this make any sense to you?

It makes sense that you would feel that way. But if you work through it methodically it actually doesn't make any sense in reality. This is one of those places where our intuition let's us down.

 

[Tarzan]

Of course you can. Just do it with 2 different accounts.