If you’re thinking about becoming a stock market trader, you’re probably wondering about all of the things you’ll need to know to be successful. One of the first things to think about is knowing how to buy a stock. Here’s a quick walk-through to show you how to make a stock purchase using broker software.
5 Simple Steps to Buying a Stock
- Open Your Broker Software
- Search for the Stock
- Click the “Buy” button
- Review the Purchase Information
- Send the Order
There are actually 5 simple steps to buying a stock. While these steps are roughly the same, no matter what broker software you use, you may need to look up exactly how to do it in yours. For this example, we’ll use TD Ameritrade. Now, let’s review each step in more detail.
Step 1 – Open Your Broker Software
Open Your Broker Software – Seems simple enough. Open the Think or Swim platform and enter your username and password. If you just want to practice, you can choose the “Paper Money” option – but normally you would choose “Live Trading”. With everything entered in, click the Log In button to continue.
Step 2 – Search for the Stock
Select the Charts tab
Find the stock you want to buy.
Now that the application is open, you need to make sure you are on the correct tab so you can find the stock you want to buy. Click on the Charts tab and then enter in the stock ticker to search for the stock. With most brokers, you will see your choices narrow with each letter you type in the search box. If you accidentally type it wrong, you will see that it can’t be found. Just back up and try it again.
Step 3 – Click the “Buy” button
When you see the chart for the stock you want to buy, just click the “Buy MKT” button to start the purchase process. Keep in mind, in this example, you would be buying at the Market price (which may not be the price you wanted to buy at). You can edit the price in the next step.
Step 4 – Review the Purchase Information
You should always review the purchase information before executing your order. Make sure that you have the number of shares correct. It’s also a good idea to confirm the price you are buying at (unless it’s a market order). Also, check out the cost of the trade (including the commission being charged) so you know what it will cost you.
Step 5 – Send the Order
When all of the trade information is correct, the only thing left to do is to press the Send button and your order will be entered. Depending on the volume of orders, it may take some time to get filled.
Review the Chart
If everything went well, you should now have the trade referenced on your chart. That’s all there is to buying a stock.
Review the 5 Simple Steps to Buying a Stock
Now that you’ve been through the whole process, its simple to see that it’s just 5 simple steps. Opening your software, Finding the stock, Clicking the buy button, Reviewing the purchase information and sending the order.
Additional Viewing Options:
Would you like to view a video or presentation on this topic?
- Check out this video on Youtube https://youtu.be/ASUzO4ukres
- Download the presentation on SlideShare https://www.slideshare.net/mikeauten/how-to-buy-a-stock-in-5-simple-steps