What is AMO? After-Market Orders Explained for Indian Investors
An AMO, or After Market Order, is an order placed outside regular trading hours that gets submitted to the exchange when the market opens the next trading day. It allows investors to place buy or sell orders at night, early morning, or on weekends, without needing to be online at 9:15 AM when trading starts.
Say you are reviewing stocks at 10 PM after work. You decide you want to buy 50 shares of TCS at Rs.3,800. You place an AMO limit order at Rs.3,800. The order is queued with your broker overnight. The next morning, when the market opens, the order is submitted to NSE during the pre-open session. If TCS is available at Rs.3,800 or below, your order executes.
When can I place an AMO?
AMO orders can typically be placed from around 4:00 PM after the post-market session ends until roughly 8:55 AM the next morning before the pre-open session begins. The exact timing varies by broker. Weekends and holiday orders are queued for the next trading day.
What types of AMO orders can I place?
| Order Type | Available as AMO? |
|---|---|
| Limit Order | Yes, most common AMO type |
| Market Order | Some brokers allow, some do not |
| Stop-Loss (SL) | Some brokers allow, check platform |
| MIS (Intraday) | Generally not available as AMO |
| CNC (Delivery) | Yes |
Why would I use an AMO instead of waiting for market hours?
Many working professionals cannot watch markets during trading hours. AMO lets them make investment decisions at their convenience, whether that is late night or early morning. It removes the need to be available at exactly 9:15 AM.
AMO is also useful when important news breaks after market hours. You can react by placing an order immediately rather than waiting until the next morning and potentially forgetting or getting delayed.
What are the limitations of AMO?
You cannot be sure what price the stock will open at. If you place an AMO market order, you get whatever price is available at the open, which could be very different from the previous close if overnight news has moved sentiment. For this reason, limit orders are generally safer for AMO than market orders.
Place AMO orders through Stockk at stockk.trade/products/equity.
Investments in securities market are subject to market risks. This article is for educational purposes only.
Frequently Asked Questions
I placed an AMO but the price gapped up at open and my limit order did not fill. What now?
If you placed a limit buy AMO at Rs.500 and the stock opened at Rs.520, your order will sit unexecuted because your limit is below the current price. The order remains active as a regular day order until 3:30 PM. If the price comes down to Rs.500 during the day, it will execute. If not, it expires unfilled.
Can I cancel an AMO after placing it?
Yes, you can cancel an AMO before the market opens the next day. Once the market opens and the order is submitted to the exchange, you can still cancel it as long as it has not been executed. Check your broker's platform for the cancellation window.
Is AMO available for F&O trades?
AMO availability for F&O depends on your broker. Some brokers allow AMO for futures and options, while others restrict it to equity delivery orders only. Check your broker's order type options for the specific segment you want to trade.
Does placing an AMO block my funds immediately?
Yes. When you place an AMO, the required funds or margin are blocked in your account at the time of order placement, not at market open. This ensures the order has sufficient backing when it is submitted to the exchange.
Can I place multiple AMO orders for different stocks in one sitting?
Yes. You can place as many AMO orders as you want across different stocks, as long as you have sufficient funds in your account to cover all of them. This is one of the main conveniences of AMO for busy investors who want to set up multiple trades at once.
Investments in securities market are subject to market risks. This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
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