Find the exact stock price that triggers a margin call, see your current equity percentage, and know how much cash you'd need to deposit to meet the call.
Buying on margin means borrowing part of the purchase price from your broker, using your securities as collateral. Reg T sets the initial margin requirement, typically 50 percent, meaning you must fund at least half the purchase with your own cash. As the stock price moves, your equity, the portion of the position's value that's actually yours after subtracting the loan, moves with it. If the stock falls far enough that your equity percentage drops below the maintenance margin requirement, your broker issues a margin call requiring you to deposit more cash or securities. Every slider on this page has a matching number field: drag to explore, or type exact figures if you already know your numbers.
The margin call price equals your loan amount divided by the number of shares times one minus the maintenance margin requirement. This comes directly from setting your equity percentage equal to the maintenance requirement and solving for price. Because the loan amount is fixed at the dollar value borrowed on day one, this formula tells you exactly how far the stock can fall before you're called, regardless of what you originally paid for it.
A common mistake is assuming the margin call price is some fixed percentage below your purchase price. It's actually driven by the loan amount and maintenance requirement, not directly by your entry price, though your entry price does determine the loan size in the first place. Two investors who bought the same stock at different prices but with the same loan amount and the same number of shares would have the identical margin call price in dollar terms.
FINRA sets 25 percent as the regulatory minimum maintenance margin requirement, but individual brokers are free to set higher house requirements, and often do, particularly for volatile or low priced stocks, sometimes requiring 30 to 40 percent or more. Always check your specific broker's house requirements rather than assuming the regulatory minimum applies to your account.
Margin accounts, Reg T requirements, maintenance margin, and margin call calculations are core content on the SIE exam and Series 7, and this exact formula is one of the most frequently tested calculations on both. Margin risk also appears in the suitability content on the Series 65.
If you don't deposit additional funds or securities, your broker has the right to sell securities in your account, without prior notice in many cases, to bring your equity back up to the required level. The broker can choose which securities to sell and is not required to consult you first.
This calculator assumes no dividends or additional deposits affecting the loan balance. In practice, dividends received on margined securities are often applied to reduce the loan balance or are paid to the account holder depending on the brokerage agreement, which would shift the actual call price.
No. Reg T's 50 percent applies broadly to most listed equities, but some securities, including many volatile or low priced stocks, are subject to higher house requirements from the start, and some securities are not marginable at all.
Yes. Each slider has a paired number input. Type directly into any gold field to enter a precise figure, and the slider along with all results update immediately.
Margin calculations show up directly on the SIE and Series 7 exams. Practice for free.
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