stop order

1. An order to buy or to sell a security when the security's price reaches or passes a specified level. At that time the stop order becomes a market order, and the executing broker, usually the specialist, obtains the best possible price. A stop order to buy must be at a price above the current market price, and a stop order to sell must have a specified price below the current market price.
2. An order from the SEC suspending a registration statement when an omission or a misstatement has been found.