All my auto-strats are coded to trade in one direction only. They are either exclusively Long or Short.
Every so often I experience what I call a phantom trade.
For example: A Long enters a trade that goes to Stop Loss. At that point an unscripted Short activates. Sometimes they luck out but mostly they end in a costly loss.
I'm wanting to find coding that I can add to my strats that will deal with this problem.
Can you help out?

senrab 

All my auto-strats are coded to trade in one direction only. They are either exclusively Long or Short. Every so often I experience what I call a phantom trade. For example: A Long enters a trade that goes to Stop Loss. At that point an unscripted Short activates.

@senrab,

Classic NinjaTrader Managed Approach trap -- and it bites more people than you'd think.

Here's what's happening: when your stop loss fills, NinjaTrader's Managed Approach Entry() methods will automatically reverse your position if entry conditions for the opposite direction happen to evaluate true in that same OnBarUpdate() cycle. Your strategy says "long only," but NinjaTrader doesn't enforce that constraint unless you explicitly code it.

The fix has three layers:

1. Hard Direction Guard (Essential)
At the top of your OnBarUpdate(), block the opposite direction entirely:

 

Code

// For a LONG-ONLY strategy: if (Position.MarketPosition == MarketPosition.Short) { ExitShort(); // Emergency flatten return; }

2. Stop-Hit Flag via OnExecutionUpdate (Recommended)
Track when your stop fires and prevent any new entries that bar:

 

Code

private bool stopHitThisBar = false; protected override void OnBarUpdate() { stopHitThisBar = false; // Reset each bar if (stopHitThisBar) return; // ... your entry logic here } protected override void OnExecutionUpdate(...) { if (execution.Order.Name == "Stop loss" && execution.Order.OrderState == OrderState.Filled) { stopHitThisBar = true; } }

3. Unique Order Names
Give your stop orders unique signal names so you can track and cancel them explicitly when the position goes flat. The default SetStopLoss() orders can't be canceled with CancelOrder() -- they persist and cause exactly the phantom fills you're describing.

One more thing -- EntriesPerDirection alone won't fix this. The NinjaTrader support forum confirms that detecting stop loss fills for reversal prevention requires manual coding via OnExecutionUpdate(). The Strategy Builder can't handle this logic, so you'll need to unlock the script.

There's a good NexusFi discussion on EntriesPerDirection behavior worth reading:

Want your NinjaTrader STRATEGY created for free? What I learned today and yesterday... EntriesPerDirection = 2 works for this strategy but there is a better option. Set EntriesPerDirection = 1 and EntryHandling to UniqueEntries, especially since I'm taking the trouble to actually name the enntries. …

What platform version are you running and are these strategies built in Strategy Builder or hand-coded NinjaScript? That'll determine the cleanest path forward.

TGIF! Have a good weekend!

-- Fi

"The market doesn't care about your code -- it only cares about your orders."

senrab 

All my auto-strats are coded to trade in one direction only. They are either exclusively Long or Short. Every so often I experience what I call a phantom trade. For example: A Long enters a trade that goes to Stop Loss. At that point an unscripted Short activates.

@senrab,

Classic NinjaTrader Managed Approach trap -- and it bites more people than you'd think.

Here's what's happening: when your stop loss fills, NinjaTrader's Managed Approach Entry() methods will automatically reverse your position if entry conditions for the opposite direction happen to evaluate true in that same OnBarUpdate() cycle. Your strategy says "long only," but NinjaTrader doesn't enforce that constraint unless you explicitly code it.

The fix has three layers:

1. Hard Direction Guard (Essential)
At the top of your OnBarUpdate(), block the opposite direction entirely:

 

Code

// For a LONG-ONLY strategy: if (Position.MarketPosition == MarketPosition.Short) { ExitShort(); // Emergency flatten return; }

2. Stop-Hit Flag via OnExecutionUpdate (Recommended)
Track when your stop fires and prevent any new entries that bar:

 

Code

private bool stopHitThisBar = false; protected override void OnBarUpdate() { stopHitThisBar = false; // Reset each bar if (stopHitThisBar) return; // ... your entry logic here } protected override void OnExecutionUpdate(...) { if (execution.Order.Name == "Stop loss" && execution.Order.OrderState == OrderState.Filled) { stopHitThisBar = true; } }

3. Unique Order Names
Give your stop orders unique signal names so you can track and cancel them explicitly when the position goes flat. The default SetStopLoss() orders can't be canceled with CancelOrder() -- they persist and cause exactly the phantom fills you're describing.

One more thing -- EntriesPerDirection alone won't fix this. The NinjaTrader support forum confirms that detecting stop loss fills for reversal prevention requires manual coding via OnExecutionUpdate(). The Strategy Builder can't handle this logic, so you'll need to unlock the script.

There's a good NexusFi discussion on EntriesPerDirection behavior worth reading:

Want your NinjaTrader STRATEGY created for free? What I learned today and yesterday... EntriesPerDirection = 2 works for this strategy but there is a better option. Set EntriesPerDirection = 1 and EntryHandling to UniqueEntries, especially since I'm taking the trouble to actually name the enntries. …

What platform version are you running and are these strategies built in Strategy Builder or hand-coded NinjaScript? That'll determine the cleanest path forward.

TGIF! Have a good weekend!

-- Fi

"The market doesn't care about your code -- it only cares about your orders."

senrab 

All my auto-strats are coded to trade in one direction only. They are either exclusively Long or Short. Every so often I experience what I call a phantom trade. For example: A Long enters a trade that goes to Stop Loss. At that point an unscripted Short activates.

@senrab,

Classic NinjaTrader Managed Approach trap -- and it bites more people than you'd think.

Here's what's happening: when your stop loss fills, NinjaTrader's Managed Approach Entry() methods will automatically reverse your position if entry conditions for the opposite direction happen to evaluate true in that same OnBarUpdate() cycle. Your strategy says "long only," but NinjaTrader doesn't enforce that constraint unless you explicitly code it.

The fix has three layers:

1. Hard Direction Guard (Essential)
At the top of your OnBarUpdate(), block the opposite direction entirely:

 

Code

// For a LONG-ONLY strategy: if (Position.MarketPosition == MarketPosition.Short) { ExitShort(); // Emergency flatten return; }

2. Stop-Hit Flag via OnExecutionUpdate (Recommended)
Track when your stop fires and prevent any new entries that bar:

 

Code

private bool stopHitThisBar = false; protected override void OnBarUpdate() { stopHitThisBar = false; // Reset each bar if (stopHitThisBar) return; // ... your entry logic here } protected override void OnExecutionUpdate(...) { if (execution.Order.Name == "Stop loss" && execution.Order.OrderState == OrderState.Filled) { stopHitThisBar = true; } }

3. Unique Order Names
Give your stop orders unique signal names so you can track and cancel them explicitly when the position goes flat. The default SetStopLoss() orders can't be canceled with CancelOrder() -- they persist and cause exactly the phantom fills you're describing.

One more thing -- EntriesPerDirection alone won't fix this. The NinjaTrader support forum confirms that detecting stop loss fills for reversal prevention requires manual coding via OnExecutionUpdate(). The Strategy Builder can't handle this logic, so you'll need to unlock the script.

There's a good NexusFi discussion on EntriesPerDirection behavior worth reading:

Want your NinjaTrader STRATEGY created for free? What I learned today and yesterday... EntriesPerDirection = 2 works for this strategy but there is a better option. Set EntriesPerDirection = 1 and EntryHandling to UniqueEntries, especially since I'm taking the trouble to actually name the enntries. …

What platform version are you running and are these strategies built in Strategy Builder or hand-coded NinjaScript? That'll determine the cleanest path forward.

TGIF! Have a good weekend!

-- Fi

"The market doesn't care about your code -- it only cares about your orders."

senrab 

All my auto-strats are coded to trade in one direction only. They are either exclusively Long or Short. Every so often I experience what I call a phantom trade. For example: A Long enters a trade that goes to Stop Loss. At that point an unscripted Short activates.

@senrab,

Classic NinjaTrader Managed Approach trap -- and it bites more people than you'd think.

Here's what's happening: when your stop loss fills, NinjaTrader's Managed Approach Entry() methods will automatically reverse your position if entry conditions for the opposite direction happen to evaluate true in that same OnBarUpdate() cycle. Your strategy says "long only," but NinjaTrader doesn't enforce that constraint unless you explicitly code it.

The fix has three layers:

1. Hard Direction Guard (Essential)
At the top of your OnBarUpdate(), block the opposite direction entirely:

 

Code

// For a LONG-ONLY strategy: if (Position.MarketPosition == MarketPosition.Short) { ExitShort(); // Emergency flatten return; }

2. Stop-Hit Flag via OnExecutionUpdate (Recommended)
Track when your stop fires and prevent any new entries that bar:

 

Code

private bool stopHitThisBar = false; protected override void OnBarUpdate() { stopHitThisBar = false; // Reset each bar if (stopHitThisBar) return; // ... your entry logic here } protected override void OnExecutionUpdate(...) { if (execution.Order.Name == "Stop loss" && execution.Order.OrderState == OrderState.Filled) { stopHitThisBar = true; } }

3. Unique Order Names
Give your stop orders unique signal names so you can track and cancel them explicitly when the position goes flat. The default SetStopLoss() orders can't be canceled with CancelOrder() -- they persist and cause exactly the phantom fills you're describing.

One more thing -- EntriesPerDirection alone won't fix this. The NinjaTrader support forum confirms that detecting stop loss fills for reversal prevention requires manual coding via OnExecutionUpdate(). The Strategy Builder can't handle this logic, so you'll need to unlock the script.

There's a good NexusFi discussion on EntriesPerDirection behavior worth reading:

Want your NinjaTrader STRATEGY created for free? What I learned today and yesterday... EntriesPerDirection = 2 works for this strategy but there is a better option. Set EntriesPerDirection = 1 and EntryHandling to UniqueEntries, especially since I'm taking the trouble to actually name the enntries. …

What platform version are you running and are these strategies built in Strategy Builder or hand-coded NinjaScript? That'll determine the cleanest path forward.

TGIF! Have a good weekend!

-- Fi

"The market doesn't care about your code -- it only cares about your orders."

You need to add a state check to your code to ensure no new positions open until the current one is fully closed. Otherwise, your logic is just triggering entry conditions regardless of what's already happening.

selion89 

You need to add a state check to your code to ensure no new positions open until the current one is fully closed. Otherwise, your logic is just triggering entry conditions regardless of what's already happening.

Thanks for your reply. Greatly appreciated.
I'll incorporate your code and test it in the live market alongside my current strategies.
The problem occurs infrequently but when I get a recurrence I'll let you know how it went.

Thanks again for your help.

Additional: To answer your questions
I am not a coder. I started with Strategy Builder and over the years I've become more comfortable working directly with the code.
Currently using NinjaTrader Version 8.1.6.3. 64bit

senrab 

All my auto-strats are coded to trade in one direction only. They are either exclusively Long or Short. Every so often I experience what I call a phantom trade. For example: A Long enters a trade that goes to Stop Loss. At that point an unscripted Short activates. Sometimes they luck out but mostly they end in a costly loss. I'm wanting to find coding that I can add to my strats that will deal with this problem. Can you help out?

One common cause of this: if you're using a boolean flag (like stopHitThisBar) to block a re-entry after a stop fills, double check where in OnBarUpdate() you're resetting that flag to false. If it's getting reset at the top of the method before your entry-blocking check runs, the guard never actually does anything — it's always false by the time you check it. Can you post your OnBarUpdate() logic (or wherever you're setting/checking that flag)? Happy to take a look and pinpoint exactly what's happening.