A market order means execute the trade right now at the currently offered price. If you are buy a stock this price is the Ask. If you are selling this price is the Bid. This will get you the fastest execution but you may get a lousy price. You don't know what price you will buy the stock at. You use this type of order if time is of the essence, there is a lot of activity in the stock.
A stop order is used to create a market order when a stock hits a certain price. A buy stop is placed above the current price and a sell-stop is placed below, and if this price is hit a market order is created. For example, Microsoft is trading at $70 and you want to wait until it hits $75 to buy it,then you put in a buy order for Microsoft with a stop price of $75. You may not get execution at $75. Microsoft may announce the invention of a new product so the stock jumps from $70 to $100, your order will now become a market order. More common then a buy-stop is a sell-stop. This can be used to reduce possible losses on a stock. Say if you buy Microsoft at $70 and want to sell it if it hits $65, you put in a sell order with a stop of $65. If Microsoft's stock hits $65, then your order becomes a market order. You may not get an execution at $65 you can get a trade at $60 or even $66.
A limit order is an order to Buy at or below the limit price or to Sell at or above limit price. If you put in a sell limit for Microsoft at $70, and the price trades at $69 7/8, your trade will not get executed. It must trade at $70 or above. If you put in a buy limit order at $60, then your will buy Microsoft's stock at $60 or below.
A stop-limit order is a stop order that becomes a limit order once the stop price is reached.
This is dependent on your age, your financial goals, your ability to handle risks, and your current portfolio.
Go to our Quick Research page and do some research on this stock.
Float are shares that are actually traded and outstanding shares includes all shares, even the untraded shares owned by insiders
When you hold a stock, it's the same as if you bought the stock today. You can use the scenario, that your broker accidentally sold the stock and deposits the cash into your account, then calls you and asks you if you want to repurchase the stock. What would you do?
Another reason to sell a stock is that the reason you bought the stock no longer exists. For example, you bought a stock because earnings were increasing and the earnings start decreasing.