Irby-
These guys trade mainly popular NYSE because , as Steve says, the market is easier to read. We also have to depend on selectnet and brokers for nasdaq executions. Imagine having 4000 DPMI to sell as the stock is dropping, MM's there for 1000 or less each, but soes'd ahead, you could lose a dollar or more before you get your second thousand "declined" and still have 3000 to go. With DOT or floor brokers, size is executable size, and you hope the specialist isn't trading against you. I'm still learning, but I can offer up one bit of wisdom from my observations of the real pros- read carefully what Steve posted, all of his points are the guts of this profession, it doesn't matter what software or online broker you use, it's your understanding of trading and the markets. A recent post from Funk mentioned the equivalent of ISLD on the NYSE- it's already there, DOT access allows you to reflect your order in the inside market. I'm sure firms offer it, because I've used it where I traded my own account.
As for the groups most traded at my firm, Oils and Financials for liquidity and volatility. I'll try to put together a list if you're interested. Have a good one.
-Alex |
