How To Exit A Trade At A Specific Time

In Options Auto Trader, you can automate the exit of your trades by setting up an early management rule. This feature allows you to specify when a trade should be closed based on the number of Days Until Expiration (DTE) and, more precisely, the time of day on the early management day. This article will walk you through how to set up and use these settings to exit trades at a specific time.

Step 1: Understanding Early Management Rules

The early management rule automatically exits a trade when the DTE (Days Until Expiration) reaches or falls below a specific threshold that you set. This rule is useful for traders who want to avoid holding a position too close to expiration, which can come with increased risk or volatility.

Example:

If you set the early management DTE to 21 days, the system will close the trade when there are 21 days or fewer left until the option expires.

Step 2: Setting the Early Management DTE

To set the early management rule:

1. Log into your Options Auto Trader account.
2. Navigate to your auto trader’s settings by clicking the gear icon on the Auto Trader page.
3. Scroll to the Early Management section.
4. Set the DTE to the desired number of days before expiration when you want the trade to close. For example, if you want your trade to close when it has 21 days left until expiration, enter 21 in the DTE field.

Once the DTE reaches 21 days or fewer, the system will prepare to exit the trade based on the additional settings you configure, including the specific time of day.

Step 3: Setting the Exit Time on the Early Management Day

After setting the early management DTE, you can also specify the exact time of day you want the trade to be exited on the early management day.

1. Below the DTE field, you will see the option to set a Specific Exit Time.
2. Select the hour and minute you want the trade to close on the day your early management rule triggers.
   • For example, if you set the exit time to 2:30 PM, the trade will close at 2:30 PM on the day when the trade has 21 days (or whatever your DTE is set to) left until expiration.
3. Save your settings.

Why Set a Specific Time for Exiting?

Exiting a trade at a specific time of day can help you avoid certain market conditions, such as late-day volatility, or execute your strategy during periods of lower or higher trading volume depending on your goals.

Step 4: Save and Monitor Your Settings

After configuring both the early management DTE and the specific time for exiting the trade:

1. Ensure that you click Save at the bottom of the settings page to apply the changes.
2. Your auto trader will now automatically exit trades when the DTE reaches your specified threshold, at the exact time of day you set.

You can monitor the status of your trades in the Dashboard to confirm that they are closing at the correct times according to your early management rules.

Step 5: Adjusting Early Management Settings

If you need to adjust the early management rules for any reason, such as changing the DTE or modifying the time of day:

1. Navigate back to the Auto Trader Settings.
2. Modify the DTE or the Specific Time to better align with your updated strategy.
3. Save your changes.

These adjustments will apply to future trades and the current trades being managed by your auto trader.

Conclusion

The Early Management feature in Options Auto Trader allows you to exit trades automatically when a trade reaches a specific Days Until Expiration (DTE) threshold, and you can further customize this by specifying the exact time of day for the trade to close. This gives you more control over your exit strategy, reducing risk and improving the overall efficiency of your trading.

If you have any questions or need help setting up early management and exit times, feel free to contact our support team.