Prop Trader Journal

10/6/11

Net PnL=+115
Shares Traded=1,140

So basically took two trades today.



CNQ:

+118

Had been downgraded. Showed good RS all morning. Initially
failed at the A-up, I took the break of the failure. Ran for a bit. I took it off after i consolidated in a range. Eventually pushed to highs near 30.50. But I was long gone for that.

WAG:

+2
Same type of setup as above. I got out with a scratch after the break. Got in around 33.3, pushed near .50 and failed. I was out!

So was very patient and took the only setup that I saw as a high probability trade. One thing I missed was the rally in the financials. As I heard the news of the ECB not lowering rates. The market was not reacting with much weakness to the news so I thought that the best play off of that would be financials like MS, DB etc. If those things held in and showed some strength...they could soar! After the opening bell I totally forgot about that and focused on my watch list. Would've been some decent trades.
 

Attachments

Quote from Shanb:

Maybe I'm wrong. Don't know, just an observation ive made by looking at traders around me in chicago(at least in stocks).

If your making six figures a week, more power to you! You could prob teach me a thing or too :)
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ALRIGHT, you were referring to stocks and i was silly enough to assume you were talking about futures.... oh darn, i was really presumptive there, my humble apology, shanb.

and before others were misled by what was said without prethought out wordings, it was only during last several turbulent weeks that enabled us to arrive at those number. and it was more the results of the market conditions than our approaches, techniques, or setups, OK?

happy and profitable trading everyone. :) also thx much, shanb, for helping me to think more precisely rather than just assuming.
 
Quote from nakachalet:

ALRIGHT, you were referring to stocks and i was silly enough to assume you were talking about futures.... oh darn, i was really presumptive there, my humble apology, shanb.

and before others were misled by what was said without prethought out wordings, it was only during last several turbulent weeks that enabled us to arrive at those number. and it was more the results of the market conditions than our approaches, techniques, or setups, OK?

happy and profitable trading everyone. :) also thx much, shanb, for helping me to think more precisely rather than just assuming.
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No worries, thanks for sticking around my journal. Good trading my friend :)
 
Quote from Shanb:

Hey there...I'd say it is mixed. Daytraders are not doing as well. Better than earlier this year, but not like a few years ago(thats what they tell me) .Markets aren't as liquid. Not alot of retail or institutional participation. Fighting against the algos for what is left LOL.

On the other end, we have some guys who run a quasi long-short strategy and they are doing great. They are mainly trading REITS, smaller banks, water, electric companies etc. There's a kid my age who is pulling in mid 5 figures a month that is apart of that group! Sometimes I wonder If I'm on the wrong end of the spectrum :-/

How long have you been trading?
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Hey Shanb, thanks for the reply. I've been trading off and on for 10 years, most years are profitable but never the kind of success I wanted. And the last 2 years have been the worst. The recent volatility should've been great if you are on top of your game. The guys you mentioned, are they intraday traders? or little bit long term? If they are short term, how different are their trading style than yours? more volume, more frequency?

Since you only started not long ago, you haven't developed a set way of trading yet, I'd think it'll be easy for you to switch trading styles. Of course, I don't know if they are easily accessible but if you can emulate the successful traders, no need to reinvent the wheel.
 
Quote from kistrader:

Hey Shanb, thanks for the reply. I've been trading off and on for 10 years, most years are profitable but never the kind of success I wanted. And the last 2 years have been the worst. The recent volatility should've been great if you are on top of your game. The guys you mentioned, are they intraday traders? or little bit long term? If they are short term, how different are their trading style than yours? more volume, more frequency?

Since you only started not long ago, you haven't developed a set way of trading yet, I'd think it'll be easy for you to switch trading styles. Of course, I don't know if they are easily accessible but if you can emulate the successful traders, no need to reinvent the wheel.
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They hold most positions overnight. That type of trading requires a lot of capitalization and they are essentially backed by clients who provide this.

Yes that probably wouldn't be possible, but I'm getting very comfortable with ACD. ACD framework is developed by one of the best traders in the world(mark fisher). In fact he mentions that he has a friend that works at Tudor investments and all he does is look for good news/bad action and bad news/good action trades every morning.

I'm also trading extremely small right now. probably two to three times less risk than I would take on given my account. I also have access to more capital which would allow me to scale up as necessary.

Just trying to get in the flow of things, and once I do I can gradually scale up. Earnings season is around the corner, so should be an exciting time for this type of trading!
 
10/7/11

Net Pnl=-20

Not alot to note for Fridays trading. Was busy over the weekend so thats the reason for the late post. Trading is slow today as well(holiday). At least I'll get a chance to study for the Series 56 test! :-/
 
10/10/11

Net PnL=+32
Shares traded=400

SMG:

Took SMG long, after it made an a-up. Got out with a very small profit after it failed to follow-through. It eventually grinded up to a very nice move...guess that's what you get with a very low volume day like today.

Earnings season starts soon! Actually excited as I will be getting more oppurtunities...the week going into earnings season is usually very slow with news flow, should def pick up soon! This will be a good test of my approach and execution.
 
10/11/11

Net Pnl= -69
Shares traded=1400

ASML:

=-18

Downgraded, yet was showing some strength. Took my long into the A-up, and took a litle bit of a loss here.

SLG:

=-20

Upgraded and gapped up. Started rolling over midday. Got short into the A-down, exited my position after it didn't move as expected in 20 minutes. Ended up breaking lows, but was late with this trade.

DB:

-25:

Finanicals were all gapping lower on the Slovak vote expectations this morning. Financials showed strength off of the open. GS and MS broke out and didn't look back...so could'nt chase those. Those were the trades that I was looking for. DB made the A-up and, got out a time stop. Eventually chopped but closed near highs.

I will most likely be adjusting my A-value as I am getting in late on alot of my trades, will keep you guys posted.
 
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