Best brokerage firms for trading stocks under $1 (penny stocks) at no extra charge
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Conventional wisdom says that buying stocks under $1 dollar is extremely risky and it’s a bad investment.
In most cases we agree. But in every rule there are exceptions.
CitiBank was basically a penny stock in March of 2009. Now its price fluctuates between $4-$5 per share
and some analysts believe it will triple within next 2 years. It would have been silly not to buy, or, even worse,
sell Citibank in March of 2009 ONLY because of "I won’t allow penny stocks in my portfolio" rule.
So, in rare occasions, we want to be able to trade stocks under $1. There is one problem with this though:
many stock brokerage firms
are trying to overcharge investors for penny stocks.
The most common way brokerage companies do this is by putting a $0.01 surcharge on
each share of stock below $1. So if you buy 5,000 shares of penny stock and regular stock commission is $5,
this trade will cost you $5 + 5000*$0.01=$55! It’s a bit high, to say the least. Other brokerage houses
came up with less strict rule: surcharge (usually $0.01) on all shares above certain limit (2,000 or 5,000 shares
are common numbers). This is not as predatory, but it still makes trading penny stocks very expensive.
Fortunately, some of the
best rated brokerage houses
don’t overcharge their customers for trading stocks under a dollar or for large-size orders.
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- Stocks/ETFs: $8.95 per trade
- Options for active traders: $12.95 for up to 10 contracts, $1.25 per contract for over 10 contracts
- Mutual Funds: $9.95 per transaction for no-load mutual funds
- Bonds: $5 per bond, $9.95 minimum
- Futures: 1-40 contracts $6.99; 41-100 contracts $5.99; 101-300 contracts $4.99; 301-1,000 contracts $3.99; 1,001 + contracts $2.99
OptionsXpress Review
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- Stocks/ETFs: $9.99 if 0-149 trades per quarter; $7.99 if 150+ trades per quarter per trade
- Options: $9.99 plus $0.75/contract if 0-149 trades per quarter; $7.99 + $0.75/contract if 150+ trades per quarter
- Mutual Funds: $19.99 per transaction for no-load mutual funds
- Futures: $2.99 per contract, per side + fees
Etrade Review
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