# Day Trading - A Game **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [January 24, 2009, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/day-trading-a-game/482739 "2009-01-24T00:46:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mtgman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Mtgman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mtgman)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2009, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/day-trading-a-game/482739/1 "2009-01-24T00:46:28Z")
Voila! By virtue of reading this opening line, you now have $10,000 US and instantaneous access to NYSE and NASDAQ trading. It’s like you’re inside the head of a trader on the floor during days when there are more ups and downs than a roller coaster. If you can ride the ups and survive the downs, you can make a killing before the end of the three minute ride. Think you’re up to it? Here’s an example of play. We’ll get into the details afterwards, if this piques your interest. > [@](#): > > Post 1 - Buy 100 shares of [IBM](http://finance.google.com/finance?q=NYSE:IBM) > > Current market price(Jan 21 4:01pm ET): $82.00 per share or $8,200 for 100 shares > Broker’s fee 2% of purchase: 164 > Total out of pocket: $8364 > Will sell if price hits $91.00 anytime between now and Jan 28 4:01pm ET > > Current assets > Cash: $1636 > 100 shares IBM > > Liabilities > None > [@](#): > > Post 2 - Woot! IBM hit $91.00 > > During the day of Jan 22 IBM hit a high of $91.41 meaning I was able to sell all my shares at 91.00 each. 91 \* 100 = 9100 > Broker’s fee: $182 > Total Income: $8,918 > > Current Assets > Cash: $10,554 > > Liabilities > None > > I guess no one ever got fired for picking IBM! Or something like this. > [@](#): > > Post 1 - Short 300 shares of [MSFT: Microsoft](http://finance.google.com/finance?q=NASDAQ:MSFT) > > Current market price(Jan 21 4:01pm ET): $19.30 per share or $5,790 > Lender’s Short Fee 4%: 231.60 > Broker’s fee 2% of purchase: 115.80 > Total out of pocket: $347.40 > Proceeds from sale: $5,790 > Will re-buy if price hits $17.00 anytime between now and Jan 28 4:01pm ET > > Assets > Cash: $15,442.60 > > Liabilities > 300 shares of MSFT owed no later than Jan 28 4:01pm ET > [@](#): > > Post 2 - Booyah! > > MSFT hit 16.75 on 1/23/09! Bought 300 shares at $17 total of $5,100 > Broker’s fee 2%: $102 > Total out of pocket: $5,202 > > Assets > Cash: $10,240.60 > > Liabilities > None > > 240 bucks for ten minutes worth of emails to my broker! Sweet. Here’s how it works. There are two types of transactions. Buy, and Short. Buying includes selling(we’re day traders, we don’t hold stocks) within a specific time period. Here’s what you’ll need to do a transaction. 1 - Provide a ticker symbol and link to google finance for that company, for example ``` * A – Agilent Technologies * C - Citigroup * KO – Coca-Cola Company * MSFT – Microsoft * WAG – Walgreens * TGT – Target Corporation * WMT – Wal-Mart * MMM – 3M Company * HPQ – Hewlett-Packard * INTC – Intel * TXN – Texas Instruments ``` 1. State the number of shares and the current market price(total transaction value). The examples were post-dated, but that’s not allowed in the game. They need to be the actual market price within an hour or so of your post for a buy or short. You can go back up to a week for when you sold or bought to cover a short, but must take the first instance of when it hit your predicted buy/sell price. 2. State your type of transaction(Buy, Short). If you’re buying provide a sell price. The first time your stock hits that price within your window, you’ll sell it all. There was no way you’d know it would continue to go lower. If you’re shorting, you must provide a buy price. The person who loaned you their shares won’t be happy if you don’t give the shares back at the end of the loan. 3. Calculate the fees, income, and costs. 4. Provide your assets and liabilities at the end of each post. The most you’ll be able to hang onto a stock is one week. If the stock doesn’t hit your price by that time, you have to sell at whatever the market price currently is and take the gain or loss accordingly. You lose if you’re ever completely out of money. You can make multiple transactions, as many as you feel comfortable juggling, as long as you don’t run out of cash on hand. Buying with the proceeds from a short sale is allowed, but cruel laughter may be heard if the strategy backfires. Tips and hints: Follow the news cycle closely. For instance, in the Microsoft example above, the company’s big hit came because [on Jan 22nd Microsoft announced layoffs](http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/090122/aqth032.html), and that is sure to send stock tumbling. Similarly, [IBM announced solid earnings](http://www.forbes.com/2009/01/21/briefing-closer-bac-markets-equity-cx_ss_0121markets34.html) which sent it’s stock climbing. So watch for when earnings are due to be announced and watch that news cycle. DON’T underestimate the difference fees make. You ever wonder how those nice hotels in Vegas make money? They rake every pot, just like brokerages do. If a stock isn’t going to move more than about 5% don’t touch it. By all means, use the examples as a template. This kind of stuff is annoying to keep tabs on and if you can use someone else’s typing to save some of your own, do it. Most of the BIG money can be made by buying on Margin, but that’s a little more complicated than I was willing to set up for this thread. Anyone with easy ideas on how to implement it, I’m willing to listen. Enjoy, Steven ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/day-trading-a-game/482739/2 "2009-01-26T12:49:38Z")
Damn, I’d love to do this but a) I have a full-time job already and b) I’d be using the FTSE anyway. Cool idea for a thread, hope other people take you up on it. When I win the lottery I’m totally doing this for real, when I get bored of playng poker :). ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2009, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/day-trading-a-game/482739/3 "2009-01-26T17:17:39Z")
Personally I like the idea, but it is way too complicated. Pick 5 stocks every months, 100 shares (or $1,000 worth) and repeat every month. No selling short, no commissions, and cannot buy same stocks in two consecutive month.