Fractional shares | Robinhood

Fractional shares

Fractional shares are pieces, or fractions, of whole shares of a company or ETF. Since Robinhood Financial offers Fractional Shares, you can trade stocks and ETFs in pieces of shares, in addition to trading in whole share increments.

Fractional shares on Robinhood can be as small as 1/1000000 of a share, and trading fractional shares is real-time and commission-free.

Note

Other fees may apply. For more information, visit rbnhd.co/fees. Trading in real time means orders for fractional shares placed during market hours are executed at that time.

Why offer fractional shares?

Our mission is to democratize finance for all, and offering fractional shares provides unique investing opportunities to people who might not otherwise be able to participate in the stock market.

With fractional shares, you can invest in certain stocks and ETFs that cost hundreds or thousands of dollars for a single share with as little as $1. This gives you the flexibility to invest as much as you want in the companies or ETFs you believe in, or get your toes wet without committing to an entire share.

Fractional shares can also help you manage risk more conveniently. Since you’re not locked into purchasing full shares, you can diversify your portfolio with smaller amounts of money.

Trading fractional shares?

You can place fractional share orders in dollar amounts or share amounts. All purchases will be rounded to the nearest penny.

Trade in dollars

If you place an order to Buy in Dollars or Sell in Dollars, you’ll choose the amount of money to buy or sell a stock for. Robinhood will convert this cash amount to the equivalent number of shares, then buy or sell the stock at the best available price, given the prevailing market conditions.

  1. Go to an individual stock's detail page
  2. Select TradeBuy or Sell
  3. Select Shares or DollarsBuy in Dollars
  4. Enter the amount to trade
  5. Review and submit the order

Keep in mind, if you’re buying or selling fractional shares, you must enter an amount of at least $1.00. However, you’ll have the option to Sell All if you have less than $1.00 of any fractional share.

Example

MEOW currently costs $100 per share. You place an order to Buy in Dollars for $10 of MEOW during regular trading hours. Robinhood converts $10 to 0.1 shares based on the current market price, then places an order to immediately purchase 0.1 shares at the current market price.

Trade in shares

If you place an order to Buy in Shares or Sell in Shares, you’ll choose the amount of shares to buy or sell. You can buy or sell as little as 0.000001 shares.

To trade or buy shares in the app:

  1. Go to an individual stock's detail page
  2. Select TradeBuy or Sell
  3. Select Shares or DollarsBuy in Shares
  4. Enter the amount to trade
  5. Review and submit the order
Note

Orders above $0.01 will be rounded to the nearest penny, and fractional share orders under $0.01 will be rounded up to $0.01.

Example

You place an order to Buy in Shares for 0.01 of MEOW during regular trading hours. Your order will be executed as soon as possible, and you’ll purchase 0.01 shares at the current market price. If the price is $1,000 per share, you’ll pay $10.

How does Robinhood handle fractional shares?

Starting July 1, 2022, fractional shares orders that you submit are generally handled by Robinhood on a Not Held basis. For more details on what this means for your orders, review Section 22 of the RHF-RHS Customer Agreement.

Not Held is an order handling designation that gives Robinhood time and price discretion to secure the best possible execution for you. This doesn't change the ownership of your shares, how your shares are held in your account, or the execution speed for fractional orders.

Robinhood continues to strive to execute all orders in a manner consistent with its best execution obligations and, in this case, is aligning with industry-standard approach for handling fractional orders.

Takeaway
  • Robinhood aligns with industry standards for fractional orders.
  • This doesn't change anything about how your shares are held or your ownership of them.
  • Orders are executed for your account just as they were before.

Supported stocks

Most stocks worth over $1 per share with a market capitalization over $25,000,000 are eligible for fractional share orders. If a stock isn't supported, we'll let you know when you're placing an order.

Canceling a pending fractional order

The process for canceling a pending fractional order is no different from the standard process for canceling a pending order. However, you might not be able to cancel a pending fractional order in the following situations:

  • During a trading halt. Trading on a particular security or in the market as a whole can be halted for a variety of reasons. If a particular security or the market overall is experiencing a trading halt, you’ll have the option to cancel pending fractional orders, but the cancel requests won’t be processed until the halt is lifted. These halts aren't Robinhood’s decision and the timing of them is beyond our control.

  • A trading halt starts before an order executes. If a fractional order is routed to a market center, and then a trading halt goes into effect before the order executes. You won't be able to cancel the order, which will execute once the halt is lifted.

  • Outside market hours. If you want to cancel a fractional order that’s scheduled to execute during market hours, you must do so before 9:20 AM ET. You can’t cancel these orders between 9:20-9:30 AM ET because it’s too close to market open.

Stock splits

If a stock experiences a forward stock split, you’ll receive the relevant amount of fractional shares. For example, if you own 2.5 shares of MEOW valued at $10 per share, and MEOW experiences a 2 for 1 (2:1) forward stock split, you’ll now own 5 shares valued at $5 per share.

If a stock experiences a reverse stock split, you'll receive the cash equivalent of any fractional (non-whole) share amounts resulting from the split in lieu of shares. For example, if a stock split results in 2.1 shares worth $10 per share, you’ll receive 2 shares and $1 (the cash equivalent of 0.1 shares).

Shareholder rights

  • Voting: We'll aggregate and report votes on fractional shares.

  • Dividends: Paid to eligible shareholders who own fractions of a stock. Dividend payments will be split based on the fraction of the stock owned, then rounded to the nearest penny. Fractional-share dividends may be paid at the end of the trading day on the designated payment date.

  • Transfers: You can't transfer fractional shares. If you initiate a full asset transfer out of Robinhood, your fractional shares will be sold and you’ll receive the resulting cash back. If you initiate a partial asset transfer, any fractional shares you own will remain in your Robinhood account as fractional shares.

Disclosures

For a complete explanation of conditions, restrictions and limitations associated with fractional shares, see our Customer Agreement related to fractional shares. Dividends are not guaranteed and must be authorized by the company’s board of directors.

All investments involve risks, including the loss of principal. Diversification does not ensure a profit or guarantee against loss. Investors should consider their investment objectives and risks carefully before investing.

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All investing involves risk.

Brokerage services are offered through Robinhood Financial LLC, (“RHF”) a registered broker-dealer (member SIPC) and clearing services through Robinhood Securities, LLC, (“RHS”) a registered broker dealer (member SIPC). Cryptocurrency services are offered through Robinhood Crypto, LLC (“RHC”) (NMLS ID: 1702840). The Robinhood Money spending account is offered through Robinhood Money, LLC (“RHY”) (NMLS ID: 1990968), a licensed money transmitter. Credit card products are offered by Robinhood Credit, Inc. (“RCT“) (NMLS ID: 1781911 and issued by Coastal Community Bank, Member FDIC, pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc.

The Robinhood Cash Card is a prepaid card issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC, pursuant to a license from Mastercard® International Incorporated. RHF, RHY, RHC and RHS are affiliated entities and wholly owned subsidiaries of Robinhood Markets, Inc. RHF, RHY, RHC and RHS are not banks. Securities products offered by RHF are not FDIC insured and involve risk, including possible loss of principal. Cryptocurrencies held in RHC accounts are not covered by FDIC or SIPC protections and are not regulated by FINRA. RHY products are not subject to SIPC coverage but funds held in the Robinhood Money spending account and Robinhood Cash Card account may be eligible for FDIC pass-through insurance (review the Robinhood Cash Card Agreement and the Robinhood Spending Account Agreement).

Options trading entails significant risk and is not appropriate for all customers. Customers must read and understand the Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options before engaging in any options trading strategies. Options transactions are often complex and may involve the potential of losing the entire investment in a relatively short period of time. Certain complex options strategies carry additional risk, including the potential for losses that may exceed the original investment amount.

Commission-free trading of stocks, ETFs and options refers to $0 commissions for Robinhood Financial self-directed individual cash or margin brokerage accounts that trade U.S. listed securities and certain OTC securities electronically. Keep in mind, other fees such as trading (non-commission) fees, Gold subscription fees, wire transfer fees, and paper statement fees may apply to your brokerage account. Please see Robinhood Financial's Fee Schedule to learn more.

© 2024 Robinhood. All rights reserved.