An order to conduct two
transactions such that, if one transaction is done, then the other is cancelled. For example, an
investor may wish to buy both
stocks and
bonds at a certain
price. If the price becomes available for bonds first, that part of the order is filled while the order to buy stocks is cancelled. OCO orders may apply to different types of
securities or even to different types or orders; for example, one may contain both
stop-loss orders and
limit orders. OCO orders are useful to investors who have limited funds and perhaps are unsure about the
market's direction at a given time. It is also called an either-or order.