if a stock is on the rise, can you buy into it on the up swing even though nobody is selling?

Question

Or the converse of this question: if a stock starts to slip quickly (news of a company scandal, ex. enron) can you sell the stock quickly even though nobody would like to buy it?

Answer 1

That's the importance of volume. The more volume out there, the better your odds of buying and selling that stock and at a favorable price. Low volume stocks tend to have larger swings and fewer people are needed to push a stock up or down.

Now who would buy your stock on a downswing? Chances are it will be a computer program that buys and sells on technicals rather than news. Most buys and sells are actually done this way by mutual fund companies and other large firms.

Answer 2

Well, there does have to be somebody on the other side of the transaction (the somebody can be a market maker that buys for their own account but they probably won't do alot of buying during quick moves until the dust settles). Still, even when stock prices move really fast there is usually someone to buy/ sell to if you too are really fast and don't have to many shares to move.

There are exceptions, if a stock price moves to fast and to far trading can be halted in it. Then the exchange will wait a little bit and reopen trading at whatever price is equilibrium between the buyers and sellers - but this is very rare.

Answer 3

if u are trying to sell 10 or 100 shares u should have no problem selling shares to a big company like enron but if it a tiny-cap and u want to sell 1000000, u may have a little trouble.

Answer 4

How do you buy if no one is selling?
How do you sell if no one is buying?

The answer is only if the price is right will someone buy in a bear market and sell in a bull market.

Answer 5

Yes. There's always a market unless a stock gets delisted.

Answer 6

Sure you can