Used when placing a trade for a stock or futures contract to make certain that the order isnÂ’t bought above a certain price or sold below a particular level. For example, an investor may want to buy 1,000 shares of AAA, which is currently priced at $10.25. The investor could submit a limit order that stipulates that he or she will buy shares of AAA until either 1,000 shares are bought or the price hits $12.00.