Staying In Synch with the Chart

[markpc17]

I've been running a strategy within Tradestation. I'm using the email interface to send the trade set-ups from Tradestation into Ninjatrader and then onto Interactive Brokers for execution.

I've run into a few issues, 95% of the time all is fine but then I run into a hiccup and it really makes it challenging to replicate proper results.

1. My strategy will send through a buy stop limit to enter, or a sell stop limit. Once that is filled, there is a protective stop and a profit limit placed. Most times that works fine, but on occasion the buy stop limit for example will not immediately fill, after about 20 seconds it will show a warning about that. However, it immediately places the profit target and protective stop. So, imagine if I'm not there when it executes and now there's a sell stop and sell limit hanging out there, potentially to be executed without ever filling on the initial trade.

In addition, I've had times where per Tradestation, a buy stop price triggered, but per Interactive Brokers it did not, so it manages the trade like it is "live" but turns out I'm never holding the trade in IB, yet it places a stop and limit.

What can I do to prevent this dilemma? It must happen for others as I'm using fairly straightforward stop limit entry with stop and limit for exit once in.

2. The error message that comes up saying it's out of synch. Is there anyway to be notified of that happening? If I'm not right there watching (and then what's the point of automation if you have to be right there) I might never know that it disconnected, or it didn't record a fill or is getting out of synch? Is there a way to have Ninjatrader somehow notify through an email or something so we know that it has determined there could be an issue?

Please assist. Thanks.

(I'm using NT 6.5)

[NinjaTrader_Brett]

Hello,

Thank you for your note.

I just wanted to let you know that we recieved your note and you will recieve a response at the latest Monday.

Thank You for your patience.

[NinjaTrader_Bertrand]

Mark, for those synching issues you outlined we recommend working with the 'submit marked order on TS fill' option. As an alternative you could also work the 'submit as is' approach, offering also to try 'forcing' a fill after x seconds with a market order, also minimizing sync issues as you can expect a fill under normal and liquid market conditions with these approaches.

For the errors, you would need to wait on NT7's production release, this will allow of emailing error message to you per default, which also could be converted to text / SMS then if you're provider supports it.

[markpc17]

Auto Trades w/NT

Bertrand,

Thanks for reply. Great to hear about NT 7 having that email alert capability - that will help. Any ETA yet on that?

As for submit market order on TS fill, the issue there is we're talking markets that move - about the last thing I want to do is then try and market in when a market like Crude or the Dax has filled on Tradestation - - I'll end up with all kinds of slippage -- not a great solution for markets that move.

I have tried the other suggestion to fill after x seconds -- but for me it hasn't worked. It gives me an error message popping up saying it's out of synch, but then doesn't seem to market in after x seconds. Any trick/secret to make that actually happen? I'd be comfortable with that as an alternative but hasn't worked for me.

Thanks.

[NinjaTrader_JoshP]

Unfortunately there is no ETA we can give for NT7 production.

Can you please provide the full message text that is given? Thank you.

[markpc17]

It Happened Today

Ok, here's a perfect example - happened just today.

My strategy set-up a Sell Short on the Dax Futures at 6001. I've set it up so as soon as that order is pending, it places that order through Ninja into IB. I do allow 1 tick slippage so it was a stop limit 6001/6000.50. This fills 95% of the time or more like this. However, today, it moved fast and jumped over that price -- and though this market normally ticks up and down around every price level and fills me, this time it was a straighter shot down. No fill.

It did however place the buy limit order to exit and the buy stop -- despite the fact that it hadn't filled so was out of synch. In fact, it filled the buy limit down at 5973 which should have taken me flat - but I was actually long there which could have been very dangerous if it kept tanking.

It kept the order to sell stop limit at 6001/6000.50 and about an hour later, luckily the market came back up to that price and that order filled - actually while it was trading a whole new set-up that was a long.

What really bothers me is I have it setup in Ninja to: "Convert unfilled amount to market this many seconds after TS fill" and I have that set at 45 seconds. Shouldn't this have just converted the sell stop limit to a market order to ensure the fill? I've never seen that work.

Instead I get the error through ATI: "Tradestation order was filled more than 60 seconds ago, but NinjaTrader order still is pending: SellShort 1 Stop Limit @ 6001 x 6000.50

Why is it not converting this to a market?

[NinjaTrader_Bertrand]

markpc17, to investigate I would need to see trace and logs from today, please contact me via Help > Mail to Support for this and include an approx time when the order was submitted so I've got an easier time spotting it in the files, thanks in advance.