I don't think many brokers offer after hours trading.. Pretty sure TDA doesn't (my account doesn't)...... So what you experienced is just part of the game, and I've experienced it too.. Pretty damn frustrating!!!

But there are ways to lower your risk... For one, look for less volatile stocks.... As a general rule, the lower the share price, the more volatile the stock can be..... For one, they require less capital for the big dogs to manipulate (see penny stocks) And two, NASDAQ and NYSE have certain standards for listed companies, and one of them is a minimum share price... I believe it's $1.00 for both, so the closer a stock is to $1.00, the closer it is to being de-listed.. Which means they're in trouble!