State the inputs before calculating
All numbers are fictional. Buy whole shares using USD 10000 of available own cash: entry USD 50 per share and planned exit 48. The planned loss budget is USD 200, an assumed input rather than a recommended risk allowance.
Commission is USD 0.05 per share on the purchase and again on the sale, with no minimum. Taxes, currency conversion and other charges are unspecified. Exact fills at 50 and 48 are assumptions, not available executions.
Convert the budget into whole shares
The price loss is 50−48=USD 2 per share. Full-cycle commission is USD 0.10 per share. Therefore N=floor(200/2.10)=95; floor rounds down to a whole share.
With 95 shares, price loss is 190 and commissions 9.50, giving USD 199.50. One more share would give USD 201.60 and exceed the assumed budget. This reverses the task of converting a price step into money for a quantity already chosen.
| Case | Shares | Exit | Price loss | Cycle fees | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plan | 95 | 48.00 | 190.00 | 9.50 | 199.50 |
| One more share | 96 | 48.00 | 192.00 | 9.60 | 201.60 |
| Gap | 95 | 47.00 | 285.00 | 9.50 | 294.50 |
Purchase consideration differs from the entry debit
95×50=USD 4750 is the gross share purchase value. Entry commission adds 95×0.05=4.75, so the entry debit is USD 4754.75. The exit commission has not been paid yet, but already belongs to the planned cycle loss.
The own-cash constraint is floor(10000/50.05)=199 shares. It permits more than the loss-budget constraint, so 95 is the binding quantity here. Having enough money to buy does not establish that a quantity fits the planned loss budget.
| Shares | Share value | Entry fee | Entry debit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 95 | 4750.00 | 4.75 | 4754.75 |
| 199 | 9950.00 | 9.95 | 9959.95 |
| 200 | 10000.00 | 10.00 | 10010.00 |
A planned loss is not a guaranteed maximum
If the same 95 shares are sold at 47, the price loss is USD 285. Keeping the fictional commission unchanged gives a total loss of USD 294.50. The gap has passed the planned 48 exit.
A stop sets an activation condition, not a guaranteed fill price. Actual charges, available size and intermediary rules can differ too. This calculation does not establish margin, liquidation or combined portfolio risk.
Try another budget
With a USD 150 budget and the same terms, how many whole shares fit? Calculate the entry debit separately.
Answer: floor(150/2.10)=71. Planned loss is 71×2.10=USD 149.10; purchase debit is 71×50.05=USD 3553.55. Buying 72 would imply a USD 151.20 planned loss.
Keep the assumptions beside the chart
Record initial prices, quantity, both fees, budget and adverse-fill alternative externally. Student Wyckoff supports studying closed bars and saving a workspace; it does not calculate position sizes or send broker orders.
- Check price and quantity units.
- Separate gross purchase consideration from the entry debit.
- Keep planned and adverse outcomes distinct.
Primary sources
Sources explain the mechanics and limitations; the editorial examples use invented numbers rather than market quotations.
Your next practical step
Open the first-chart guide, choose an exact symbol and closed daily bars. Keep the cash calculation and proposed prices externally; explore workspace saving to return to the same chart area.
Open the first-chart guide ↗