thinkorswimWeb is a browser based trading platform that offers traders a streamlined experience for trading stocks, futures, forex, and options.
The thought of taking a few days off from trading may seem refreshing. But it may be difficult to relax when you completely detach yourself from what you love doing. Maybe you hear something on the news about a stock you often trade. You want to place a trade, but without your trading platform within reach, you feel at a loss.
Good news! You can use the new web-based thinkorswim® platform from TD Ameritrade (thinkorswim Web) and sneak in a trade or two. thinkorswim Web may not have all the intricate bells and whistles of the parent thinkorswim desktop platform, but you can analyze stock, futures, forex, and options trades and place them if you think they have potential.
Here’s a taste of thinkorswim Web features. After you login from thinkorswim.com, you’ll see the default screen divided into three sections—Account Summary, Watchlist, and All Account Positions.
Let’s say you’re considering trading options on a specific stock. Enter the symbol in the symbol box (see figure 1). A middle window opens up that displays quote details, the option chain, and a price chart.
It’s simple to switch between your live and paperMoney® account; from the menu in All Accounts select the account you want to use. If you’re trading from a public computer, you can hide your account value by selecting the eye icon next to Account Summary.
Expand any option chain, and you’ll seethe different strikes (see figure 2). If you want to see more than what’s displayed, select More. If you want to rearrange things a little, any column in thinkorswim Web can be customized by dragging and dropping the column headings.
If you’re considering a strategy that’s listed below the Trade ticket window—you’ve got a few choices—select one, and thinkorswim Web will build the trade for you. But you can also build the trade manually if you prefer.
Suppose you’re considering trading a calendar spread. Select it from the Strategy drop-down list, and thinkorswim Web will display the trade risk profile with its different legs (see figure 3).
You can make adjustments to any of the trade parameters, either manually or by using the menus. Below the Trade ticket window, you’ll see the price chart and risk profile. If you hover over a price bar, you’ll see the estimated profit and loss (P&L) on the risk profile (and vice versa). And if you roll positions, you’ll see the P&L profile after rolling the position. If all looks good, you can review the trade before sending it. When a trade is executed, it will populate in the Account Position window. You can keep track of open positions on any device; your account stays synced.
Isn’t it comforting to know that you can always peek at your account and maybe even place a few trades using thinkorswim Web?