Why is my order pending / not executed yet?
When you place an order (whether it’s a market order or a limit order), it’s important to understand that execution depends on market conditions and other factors. This article explains how orders are processed and what affects whether your order will be executed immediately.
Why Some Orders Don’t Execute Immediately
Not all orders are executed as soon as they are placed. This can happen for a few reasons:
Market is closed: Orders placed outside of trading hours will only be executed when the market opens.
Market liquidity: There may not be enough buyers or sellers at the price you’ve set for your order.
Order queue: Other orders may be ahead of yours in the market. We do not have visibility over these orders.
Price limits: For limit orders, your order will only execute if the market reaches your specified price.
Because of these factors, we cannot guarantee when (or if) it will be executed.
How Market Conditions Affect Execution
Market conditions such as volatility, trading volume, and demand can influence how quickly an order is executed:
High volatility: Rapid price changes can mean your order takes longer to fill or may not fill at all.
Low liquidity: If there aren’t enough buyers or sellers, orders can remain pending.
Market events: Corporate actions, such as ex-dividend dates, stock splits, or other events, can cancel or delay existing orders.
Other market orders: Large orders or multiple orders at the same price can affect the order queue.
Managing Your Limit Orders
You have options to help increase the likelihood of your limit order being executed:
Edit the limit price: You can cancel your current order and place a new order with a different limit price.
Set realistic limits: Choose a price that improves execution chances. E.g. Higher buy price or lower sell price.
Be patient: Limit orders often have an expiry date (e.g. 30 days), after which they are automatically cancelled if not executed.
Key Takeaways
All orders are subject to market conditions.
Execution timing depends on liquidity, volatility, and other orders in the market.
You can manage your orders by adjusting your limit price or cancelling/replacing your order.
For more information, please see our other related articles:
Can buy or sell shares at a set price?
Why did the order I placed cost more/purchased less units than what I expected.
Can I invest outside of market hours?
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out via our live chat function or email us at help@pearler.com :)