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THE MARKET WHISPERER 27 3

• Notes
If there are sufficient sellers to supply the 1000 shares I seek, I will

receive the entire amount. However, if someone else hit the buy button
faster than I did, the full size that I want might not be available. For
example, if someone else gets to 300 shares before me, I will be executed
on 700 shares and an open buy order is created for the 300 shares I still
want. My demand for 300 shares will now appear as the highest BID and
will wait until sellers come along. At any time, I can cancel the bid for 300

shares by clicking the cancel button.

• Practical example

In the market depth image (Level II), you see that the number of sellers
at $54.26 stands at 1700 shares. What would happen if I wanted to buy
2000 shares with a limit of $54.26?

Answer: since only 1700 shares are offered there, that is the maximum
quantity I could buy at the limit price I have set. The only way I can receive

all 2000 is if there are sellers hiding their real supply.
Outcome: since there are insufficient sellers at $54.26, the ASK price

will go up by one cent to $54.27 and the BID price will also go up one cent
to $54.26. My bid price will display as an open order for 300 shares. It will
remain open until someone is willing to sell at my limit, or until I cancel

the open order.
What would happen if I tried to buy 2000 shares at a limit of $54.27?

Note that at this price, one seller is offering 100 shares. In other words,
I would receive 1800 shares total: the 1700 shares at $54.26 and 100 at
$54.27.

What would happen if I had set a limit of $54.28? Judging by the
number of sellers at $54.28 you can see that I would have received the
whole amount of 2000 shares from the moment I clicked BUY. I could even
have received more than 2000, if I had wanted them.

Would it not have been worth buying some of that quantity of 2000

shares from the beginning, at the higher price? Not necessarily; it depends

on how much you really want the entire amount. It is usually better to take

the smaller quantity, and wait a few seconds, or a little longer, for more

sellers willing to meet your lower limit.