orders not eligible for price improvement

[vladiator]

Quote from Copernicus:

happened to me 3 times last 2 months
ss order on the open, stock opens on an uptick above my limit, 2 times i get nothing, 1 time i get a 100 shares, specialists way of say f.. u.
all 3 drop like a rock....

Your case is different though, in this case I think he could legitimately ignore those orders b/c for some reason they were NOT eligible for price improvement. This reason is what I'm trying to find out more about...

 

[sprstpd]

Quote from Maverick74:

The reason your order did not get filled is because you entered it after 9:25 est time and it did not get placed on the book.

Are you sure there is a 9:25 est cutoff time? This doesn't jive with what I see. Where is this written?

 

[Free Thinker]

i had a limit order in to sell SNP today. i got 1.50 price improvement.

 

[Maverick74]

Quote from sprstpd:

Are you sure there is a 9:25 est cutoff time? This doesn't jive with what I see. Where is this written?

Yeah, I'm sure. I'm not exactly sure where it is written but the firm I use to work for had a guy that use to work on the floor with a specialist and he explained the procedure to our group. He said the specialist can include you in on the print only if he wants to after 9:25 but he is not obligated to. The reason for this is that he needs time to match the orders in the book. He can't possibly match all the orders at the best price if hundreds are being submitted one minute before the open. If you put your order in before 9:25 am you should get the opening print. Something to note here though, I have noticed in the past, that when someone did not get filled on a print, it was actually our software to blame and not the specialist. Many times the order for whatever reason never made it down to the floor even though our screen said it was active. Something to double check. Oh and good luck getting your firm to accept the blame for this. LOL.

 

[hayman]

I have been "improved' on Limit Orders, but they are few and far between, in my experience. It appears that Market orders get favored for price improvement (since they are willing to forego the spread). I only get "improved" on Limit Orders when there is a large block in a trade, and the vast majority of the shares transacted are below me (on the BID side) or above me (on the ASK side).

I'm still of the contention that "price improvement" is a total scam, however. For every person that is helped by it, there are one or more people who are screwed. Hence, it can equally be called "price disimprovement". IMO, "price improvement" (aka "pennying") has diminished the usefulness of the Limit Order concept, which in turn, has reduced liqudity in the marketplace overall. In essence, it is a license to steal for the Specialist, since they can capriciously and arbitrarily "improve" at a whim.

I haven't heard Thames calling for its repeal, so I assume it is going to continue to exist, and it is something you have to deal with, unfortunately, if you want to be in the game.