strategy.setStop()

[mmillar]

Hi,

Can someone explain how strategy.setStop() works/if it works.

In the documentation it says you go long at 900 then strategy.setStop(3) will put a stop 3 points below the market (897). However, when I backtest it just stops out every trade at 3 (even though, of course, the market never gets to 3). Does it just not work?

Also, if I am in a trade is there some way of telling at what price I traded? (So if I need to strategy.setStop(897), how will I actually get the number 897?)

Thanks for your help in advance.

Cheers

mmillar

p.s. I'm on build 579

[eSignal_JasonK]

Hello mmillar,

The value passed to the Strategy.setStop() function is where the stop will be set. Try Strategy.setStop(897).

[mmillar]

Hi,

Sorry, I'm new to this so maybe asking very obvious questions...

If I do ...

Strategy.doLong("Long", Strategy.MARKET, Strategy.NEXTBAR);

...how do I find out what price it has entered at so that I am then able to set a stop at the appropriate level?

Thanks

mmillar

[gspiker]

mmillar,

The strategy statement that you specified will go long at the open of the next bar. This means all you have to do is use
open(); when getbarstate() == BARSTATE_NEWBAR.

// Check for a new bar and a long flag
if (getBarState == BARSTATE_NEWBAR && nLongFLag == true){
   nMyFillPrice = open();
   nLongFLag = false;
}
// If I got a signal set the long flag and tell the backtester to go 
// long on the open of the next bar
if (MySignal == true){
   nLongFlag = true;
   Strategy.doLong("Long", Strategy.MARKET, Strategy.NEXTBAR);
} 

Hope this helps.

Garth

[mmillar]

Thanks very much Garth. That's exactly what I wanted.