Hi Alpaca Community,
I’m writing to express my disappointment and frustration with the current limitations surrounding fractional/notional orders, specifically when trying to implement basic risk management strategies like take profit and stop loss orders.
Like many users, I appreciate the ability to trade fractionally, allowing me to invest a specific dollar amount (notional) into a stock, regardless of its share price. However, the inability to combine fractional orders with bracket or OCO (One-Cancels-the-Other) orders is a major drawback. The current API forces us to choose between trading fractionally and having automated risk management in place.
The workaround of placing separate take profit and stop loss orders and then manually monitoring and canceling the other order is cumbersome, inefficient, and prone to errors. It’s simply not a viable solution for automated trading strategies, especially in volatile markets.
I’m using the API to build automated trading tools, and this limitation significantly hinders my ability to create robust and reliable strategies. It forces me to choose between investing the amount I want and managing risk effectively.
Are there any plans to address this limitation in the near future? I find it hard to believe that I’m the only one facing this challenge. I urge Alpaca to prioritize enabling full bracket/OCO order functionality for fractional/notional orders. This would significantly improve the platform and empower users to trade more responsibly and effectively.
Thanks for listening. I hope to see some improvements in this area soon.