Exits
In this page, you will learn about how Exits work in the StratBuilder.
What Triggers Exits in the StratBuilder?
There are 2 ways StratBuilder can exit a trade.
Any ‘Exit’ condition is met upon bar closure
The ‘take profit’ or 'stop loss' is hit
1. Any ‘Exit’ condition is met upon bar closure
On most of the conditions in the StratBuilder, there is a checkbox on the side labeled ‘Exit’.
If a condition has the ‘Exit’ checkbox checked, then the StratBuilder will exit the trade once that condition is met upon bar closure. If there are multiple ‘Exit’ conditions in a strategy, then ANY condition that is met upon bar closure will exit the trade. Let me repeat that, if ANY ‘Exit’ condition is met upon bar closure, the StratBuilder will exit the trade.
2. The ‘Take Profit’ or 'Stop Loss' is hit
There is a section named 'Extra Exit Conditions' towards the bottom of the indicator. There, you will find an input for multiple different wick-based take profit and stop loss conditions.
It is recommended to read the tooltips (the little 'i' on the right of each condition) to understand their function more in-depth.
If the checkbox next to one of these is checked on, then it is active. If price wicks X% in the direction of your trade, then your take profit is hit and it will exit the trade.
If multiple 'Take Profit' or 'Stop Loss' settings are used, the strategy will use the Take Profit or Stop Loss price closest to the entry.
Example 1:
You enter a ‘2’ in the ‘Max Take Profit’ box, and select '%'.
You enter a long at $1.
Your take profit price is $1.02 because that would be a 2% gain from your entry at $1. If price touches $1.02, it exits the trade immediately with a 2% gain.
Example 2:
You enter '50' in the ‘Max Stop Loss’ box, and select 'Points', and you enter '15' in the 'Stop Loss at Lowest/Highest Point X Bars Back' box.
You enter a long at $1,000.
The lowest point 15 bars back was at $970 (30 points below entry). But you set your max stop loss to 50 points, which would be at $950.
The trade will exit at $970 because it is closer to the entry than $950.
How To Visually See Exits
How To Visually See ‘Take Profit’ and ‘Stop Loss’ Price
When the StratBuilder enters into a trade, it also plots 3 horizontal lines (in most cases) with numbers above them on the chart. A white line and number to show entry price, a green line and number to show ‘take profit’ price, and a red line and number to show ‘stop loss’ price. These lines can be toggled on/off with the “Plot Lines for Entry, TP, and SL” option at the bottom of the settings.
Note: If a strategy does not have a ‘take profit’ and/or ‘stop loss’ price activated, then it will not plot the lines for ‘take profit’ and/or ‘stop loss’, respectively.
How to Visually See Time of Exit from StratBuilder
If the StratBuilder exits the trade, it will highlight the bar that it exits on. If it exits on a win, it will highlight the bar green and say 'win'/ If it exits on a loss, it will highlight the bar red and say 'loss'.
The highlighting of bars can be toggled on/off with the “Plot Highlighted Bars on Entry and Exit” option at the bottom of the settings, or in the “Style” tab in the settings. The colors and opacity of the highlighted bars can also be customized in the “Style” settings.