#VIXIndicator is updated (click “Home/REFRESH” to keep right-hand column updated)
Volatility was crushed on Monday, dropping over 25% and closing below the VIX 78.6% Fib line to cancel the Downside Warning.
Tuesday’s first warning level 13.55 (25% above 2-day closing low), and 14.96 would establish a new Downside Warning. Alternatively, three consecutive closes below 11.32 will constitute an Upside Warning.
So it looks like most of the traders on this site have had similar trading journey’s. Start out trading some funds and stocks when younger. Realize it is a 50-50 game most of the time. Then try to trade directionally but really hard to predict the future all the time. Then get into options for the leverage and income and then finally realize the house always wins and selling options is how the professionals make big and steady money. Sure, may have to pay out the occasional lottery ticket but in the long run the casino/insurance company always wins. Good to be on the right side of the trade and glad to be here!! I will be picking some of your brains on these volatility trades.
$SPX STO 5/26 2465/2440 BECS @ 1.55 Thank you @jeffcp66
Closed early
$SPX BTC 5/5 2220/2245 @.15 89% profit
#VXXGame After selling multiple options on volatility spikes, I usually prefer to close them for 80-95% of max profit rather than wait for expiration. So I put close orders on all short volatility positions today. These filled:
BTC SVXY May 19th 75 put for .12. Sold for 1.30 on Apr. 11
BTC SVXY May 12th 65 puts for .05. Sold for .60 on Apr 13th
Sold May 19th 2435/2455 Bear call spread @ 1.00. Revisiting this to build my experience in placing and management. We shall see.
$TDG #ShortPuts #FallingKnife – Bought to close 1 TDG May 19 2017 125.0 Put @ 0.05.
It won’t trade any lower and still has a month to run before expiration.
Originally sold only 1 month ago at 1.55.
March 29th Sold 2 ea April 2275 Short puts @ 7.70
April 24th Bought 2 April 28th 2275 short puts @ 0.60
gain @ 92%
April 6th sold 2 ea May 5th 2270 short puts @ 7.40
April 24th bought 2 ea Mat 5th 2270 short puts @ 1.30
Gain 85%
April 6th sold 2 ea May 12th 2255 short puts @ 8.60
April 24th bought 2 ea Mat 12th 2255 short puts @ 2.30
Gain 71%
Closed out my April Options Month…when the gap up today fills to the down side,
I’ll sell my 2nd shorts against the existing longs..for the may trades..
#SPXcampaign Bought to close $SPX Apr 26th 2375/2400 call spreads for 7.00. Sold for 2.90 on Thursday. Was working on getting out as it pulled back in the last hour, but missed my fill and ended having to chase as it burst to a new high. Why does it so often work that way?
Will wait to roll this tomorrow. As of right now, it looks like the massive VIX drop will be ending the downside warning today.
Long overdue because of travels, but just updated my positions. The minor market pullback got me out of all ITM call spreads. I’m now pressured on a couple expiring this week but will be rolling if we break 2375.
Be sure to click “Home/REFRESH” to keep your screen updated.
#SPXcampaign
I was thinking about selling some spy or /es strangles but with the vix back down to 11 will focus on individual names that have good vol and premiums.
My short list I watch every week is TSO, HAL, EOG, FSLR (falling knife), EXPE, DAL, AAL, WDC, SWKS, FB, BX, GS, GM (falling knife), JPM, GILD (falling knife) and CELG. Just watch the earnings dates, a lot of them are next week. You can typically make 1.00 several strikes OTM with these with only 1 week out.
$UVXY within pennies of new all time low. Wow, did this thing get crushed. I tried to put some trades on at the open before a complete collapse could occur but couldn’t get any fills for a decent premium.
#shortputs UVXY
Sold May 19 13 put for .56, bought a 10 put for .o3
#BuPS
BTC NFLX 135/125 BuPS for $0.59 Sold on Thu for $1.60
#SPXcampaign Bought to close $SPX May 5th 2230/2205 put spreads for .20. Sold for 1.40 on Apr 7.
#Earnings #Gold This was an earnings trade gone bad… assigned with an 85.00 cost basis back in August, stock dropped to 60 a couple times… finally put a trail stop on it and the final batch closed today. I don’t tend to wait forever for recovery on these assignments. My mistake was not putting stops on the stock at the beginning, since it did recover into profit territory briefly. Dividends and covered calls brought my cost basis down to the high 70’s… average stock sale around 69.00.
market makes being greedy this morning with the pop in the market, the WDC roll went through for .91.
STO one contract of the January 195 call @10.60
Rolling WDC 75 puts this week to May 26 77.5 puts for credit of around .95
They were originally sold for 1.20 and are down to .15-.17. Only 3 contracts but part of a ladder rolling for 4 weeks.
STO one contract of the January 2018, 190 call @11.55
I had covered calls expire on Friday and the stock jumped 10% this morning so I sold the stock at 18.15 for a small profit. Better to be lucky than smart sometimes.
BTC June 6 calls @.05, sold AT .55 This is one of the few pigs I was assigned on and no matter how much lipstick I put on this, it will not go away. Earnings are in May so I will resell the covered calls on the earnings run if there is one.
Bought to close my May 19th 39 Calls @ 0.12. Originally sold 4/11 for $1.51 on a roll to avoid the Sky is Falling scenario during my Chicken Little phase.
#SPXcampaign Sold to Open $SPX May 26th 2440/2465 call spreads for 1.60, with SPX at 2372.
I’m not going to worry about upside unless we break above the morning’s high, which was hit in the first minute of the day. If we get above that and hold, I will be rolling some near-the-money call spreads.
#ShortStrangles – I’m booking the quick profit since it was a decent size position (for me). Looking to sell again as the paranoia of the May 7th runoff gets wound up…
Bought to Close FXE MAY 19 2017 101.0/107.0 Strangles @ .50 (sold for 1.02)
#SPXcampaign Close orders filled, bought to close the following $SPX put spreads:
Apr 26th 2255/2230 for .20. Sold for 1.35 on Mar 29th
Apr 28th 2225/2200 for .20. Sold for 2.75 on Mar 21st
Apr 28th 2260/2235 for .20. Sold for 1.30 on Mar 31st
May 1st 2275/2250 for .20. Sold as part of a #CondorRoll for 3.95 last Monday.
Bank Of Hawaii Corp. (BOH) – consensus EPS $1.08
Halliburton (HAL) – consensus EPS $0.03
Hasbro (HAS) – consensus EPS $0.38
Kimberly-Clark (KMB) – consensus EPS $1.55
NuStar Energy L.P. (NS) – consensus EPS $0.56
TCF Financial Corp. (TCB) – consensus EPS $0.26
Earnings After Markets Close
Alcoa (AA) – consensus EPS $0.70
Ameriprise Financial (AMP) – consensus EPS $2.52
Newmont Mining (NEM) – consensus EPS $0.23
T-Mobile (TMUS) – consensus EPS $0.34
W.R. Berkley (WRB) – consensus EPS $0.88
Whirlpool (WHR) – consensus EPS $2.72
Bam! go the markets because of… France. VIX Indicator is updated (click “Home/REFRESH” to be sure you have updated the right column). Downside Warning remains in effect until we get the close below 11.32; but we could be headed there so protect your short call spreads, roll if necessary.
Options Bistro 