Options:
1.00 per contract to open (plus .10 clearing fee)
Futures:
2.50 per contract (plus .30 clearing fee)
Stocks:
5.00 unlimited shares (plus .0008 per share clearing fee)
And here’s the game changer since I rarely let something go until expiration:
0.00 to close ANY POSITION (plus clearing fee)
Overall probably a better deal than my 1.25 per contract at TDA…they do seem like they’re wanting to shake things up. No negotiations on these rates either. Everyone there gets the same…
#ShortPuts – Last ones of the year…
Sold SVXY FEB 17 2017 70.0 Put @ 2.50
Sold SVXY MAR 17 2017 60.0 Put @ 2.30
Just for fun I’m adding a long term position similar to my positions on AMZN and GOOGL. Buying a 2019 call and selling 2 bull put spreads underneath it to reduce the initial cost. Then, selling weekly calls against the position. This type of trade is allowed in the #IRA. Based on my initial cost I’ll only need to sell an average of 27 dollars per week in premium to get that back. If we get a big pullback I’ll add “big league”…LOL
Bought to Open SVXY JAN 18 2019 (1) 70.0 Call and sold (2) 50.0/30.0 Bull Put Spreads @ 28.50 net
Then:
Sold SVXY JAN 13 2017 95.0 Call @ 2.25
Had a small position in UHC that did pretty good. Looking for some cheaper heath care now. Old high school buddy is a big shot with these guys up in Chicago** (I’m in the wrong business!) so I’ll give it a shot.
Sold THC FEB 17 2017 16.0/13.0 Bull put spreads @ 1.35
Worse case scenario I get the stock at 1.65 above wherever it happens to be trading at expiration.
** I have no insider info at all.
Looks like taking one for the team is working so far….gonna roll ‘er and give it some more time.
Rolled this week’s 100 put out to Jan monthly 100 put @ 2.00 credit. Total credit now 6.10 so slightly underwater so far.
#CoveredCalls – Another week gone by…
Bought to Close AMZN DEC 30 2016 775.0 Call @ .08 (sold for 4.10)
Sold AMZN JAN 6 2017 770.0 Call @ 4.53
#CoveredCalls – Replacing this week’s expiration…
Sold IBB JAN 6 2017 270.0 Call @ 1.80
Whew…busy week at work and still going. On the bright side it’s all downhill from here! Vail to Miami today…that’s downhill…LOL
Did manage to unload a marginal position that I’m not really interested in. Starting to look weak and I’ve got plenty of biotech exposure elsewhere…
Bought to Close MNK Jan 20 2017 45.0 Puts @ 1.25 (sold for 1.70)
#ShortCalls – This week’s looking fairly safe (in spite of that little spike about 60 seconds after I was filled…grrr) so selling next week’s against short puts.
Sold TLT JAN 6 2017 118.0 Calls @ .69
Sold TLT JAN 6 2017 118.5 Calls @ .52
#ShortPuts -Turning this into a full position now. Still continuing to sell the weeklies against at about a 1.5 ratio. These puts will really reduce my basis in the DITM Feb short puts.
Sold GLD FEB 17 2017 105.0 Puts @ 1.20
#ShortCalls – Just a little roll up while she goes sideways along the 50ma. Sold against a LEAP long call / put spread position.
Rolled GOOGL DEC 30 2016 800.0 Call to JAN 6 2017 802.5 Call @ .90 credit
#Eminis – I’ll be short an Emini after Friday. Already been selling puts against it to raise the basis. Since I don’t really have a lot to hedge it’s becoming more of a stand alone position. Rolling up a short put for nice credit while still leaving some downside protection.
Rolled /ES FEB 17 (Wk3) 2100 PUT up to 2200 @ 11.50 credit.
Basis in the Emini will now be 2230.
#CoveredCalls – Getting a jump on next week for lack of anything better to do…
Sold RH JAN 6 2017 32.0 Calls @ .50
http://seekingalpha.com/news/3232314-proshares-announces-splits-reverse-splits-13-levered-etfs?uprof=44&utoken=490e5ae65ccda0b61ca0c778144f4dd1#email_link
Looks like every little bounce gets sold so with the 50 and 100 moving averages lurking overhead I’ve decided on an aggressive sale for the 4 day trading week next week.
Sold AMZN DEC 30 2016 775.0 Call @ 4.10
Dr. J mentioned some unusual call buying today so I’m adding some long deltas. Sitting at one third position so this will be another third until we see what happens next. If nothing else it will dramatically lower my cost basis on the DITM puts…
Sold TLT JAN 20 2017 116.5 Puts @ 1.11
Going out 2 weeks for a little more room and premium…
Sold GLD JAN 6 2017 109.0 Calls @ .60
#ShortCalls – Reducing risk on an over sell against DITM puts…
Bought to Close TLT DEC 23 2016 119.0 Calls @ .02 (sold for .70)
Can’t double up on these in an #IRA so closing on weakness and hoping for a bounce to sell next week. Gotta be careful here…starting to squeeze and Christmas delivery news could come at any time. Considering going out 2 weeks next time for more upside room.
Bought to Close AMZN DEC 23 2016 782.5 Call @ .13 (sold for 4.00)
#ShortPuts #IRA -Taking some more risk off betting on a chance to re-sell these at some point…
Bought to Close SVXY MAR 17 2017 40.0 Put @ .50 (sold for 2.80)
Bought to Close SVXY MAR 17 2017 45.0 Put @ .75 (sold for 4.00)
#CoveredCalls – Was assigned early on some short puts so my long time WYNN rolling strangles are now covered calls. An example of how weekly premium really accumulates….I was assigned at 107 but with all the premium I’ve collected the actual basis of the stock is 84.50
Rolling the call side up and out now and trading as a regular covered call position…
Bought to Close WYNN DEC 23 2016 86.0 Calls @ 2.82
Sold to Open WYNN JAN 6 2017 88.5 Calls @ 2.95
Picking up another 2.5 points of upside while collecting .13 credit.
Getting a jump on next week replacing this week’s expiration:
#CoveredCalls – Sold IBB DEC 30 2016 270.0 Call @ 1.80
I’ll be out all day tomorrow so to avoid assignment risk:
#ShortPuts – Bought to Close AAPL DEC 23 2016 116.0 Puts @ .38 (sold for 2.60)
#ShortPuts This should get volatilty back into the market… Lol
Sold SVXY Dec 30 2016 100 Put @ 4.10
#ShortPuts – Bought to Close SVXY DEC 23 2016 85.0 Put @ .05 (sold for 2.27)
#ShortCalls – Still selling short calls on the drop. Gotta find a bottom somewhere…maybe
Sold DEC 30 2016 118.5 Calls @ .52
Currently short this week’s 116/108 inverted strangles. I’ve been rolling the puts up for awhile now for additional credit on what started out as a regular strangle. The puts are less of a concern than the calls so doing a fairly aggressive roll on the calls only.
Rolling just the 108 calls out to Jan monthly 121/114 inverted strangles at .05 credit. I’ll keep an eye on the original 116 puts for this week. Keeping them on a tight leash since they’re nicely green.
#CoveredCalls #IRA – Doing a conservative roll until we see how the transition of power goes. If all is well I’ll then look out to May or June for a big roll up. Until then, leaving plenty of downside room without hurting profits at all.
Rolled SVXY Dec 30th 74.5 calls out to Jan 20th 75.0 @ .90 credit.
Picking up another 1.40 of upside for about an extra 3 weeks of holding.
#IRA – Another starter position that I never got a chance to add to…
Bought to Close UVXY JAN 20 2017 25.0/35.0 Bear call spreads @ .06 (sold for 1.00)
Bought to Close /VX FEB 17 @ 14.60 (sold for 15.00)
Picked up a quick .40. Works for me since these trade at a grand per point so not worth holding very long.
Getting out now…more crazy stuff going on in the world today. Makes this market complacency even more amazing. China steals our drone and now this:
#IRA – Starter position that I never got a chance to add to…
Bought to Close UVXY JAN 20 2017 30.0/40.0 Bear call spreads @ .04 (sold for 1.00)
#Futures – For a little scalp as the front month rolls off on Wednesday…
SOLD /VX FEB 17 @ 15.00 (filled near the open Sunday evening)
#Eminis – Thanks Fibwizard!
Bought to Close /ES DEC 16 (EOM) 2150/2010 Bull put spreads @ .75 (sold for 7.05)
And to help continue raising the basis on my short /ES hedge:
SOLD /ES FEB 17 (Wk3) 2100 PUT @ 10.50
Of course, they don’t take into account the covered call selling in SVXY but still interesting…
https://www.tastytrade.com/tt/shows/market-measures/episodes/vix-credit-spreads-vs-inverse-etfs-12-16-2016
Taking Iceman’s advice and putting it in the rearview mirror. Premium received and the selling of the mirror image put spread reduced loss to 7.45. Manageable but irritating. Spreads on these illiquid underlyings just don’t cut. There’s a lot better opportunities out there so concentrating on those. Still a great year in this particular account so…onward and upward!
#ShortStraddle – Split the sides up and filled with a 380.0 pin. Sweet!
After various rolls:
Bought to Close REGN DEC 16 2016 380.0 Put @ .50 (sold for 2.95)
Bought to Close REGN DEC 16 2016 380.0 Call @ .45 (sold for 3.00)
#ShortStrangles – A new one for January…
Sold REGN JAN 20 2017 325.0 Put @ 2.27
Sold REGN JAN 20 2017 425.0 Call @ 3.02
Last position I’ve gotta watch today. After a couple rolls ended up with a 380 straddle today. LOL…maybe a pin?
#ShortPuts #FallingKnife – These are out to January so freeing up margin in an #IRA instead of waiting another month.
Bought to Close CVS JAN 20 2017 70.0 Puts @ .19 (sold for 1.45)
#ShortPuts – After a couple pretty aggressive roll-ups I’m booking them. May re-sell if we get a little rollover
Bought to Close GS DEC 23 2016 225.0 Puts @ .25 (sold for 4.05)
Still short 2018 130/100 bull put spreads. Plan on holding them for quite awhile unless things get really ugly.
#Eminis – Taking a little risk off…
Bought to close /ES DEC 16 (EOM) 2170 PUT @ 2.45 (sold for 9.25)
#CoveredCalls – Acquired this stock from an earnings trade. Selling next round replacing today’s expiration.
Sold RH DEC 30 2016 33.0 Calls @ .75
Rolled Dec monthly 32.5 puts out to Jan monthly @ .75 credit.
Total premium received now 2.00 and also short Apr 27.5’s
#ShortCalls #IRA -Thought I had the closing order in for a nickel….but nooooo! Oh well…sell ’em again.
Bought to Close AMZN DEC 16 2016 780.0 Call @ .42 (sold for 4.10)
Sold AMZN DEC 23 2016 782.5 Call @ 4.00
#CoveredCalls – Bought to Close IBB DEC 16 2016 280.0 Call @ .05 (sold for 2.30)
Closing this now commission free as safety since I’d already sold next week’s…
I’ve got this pairs trade (short /ES against short /VX) established now with single positions as an experiment. I’ve been in the short /ES call awhile and selling puts against it to raise basis. Just before the FED meeting I added the short /VX out in Feb. Didn’t use front month since it tends to react more violently to volatility spikes. Once Feb becomes front month I’ll probably roll it back out to a safer position…we’ll see. This should capture contango until we get a spike. Once this /VX gets slightly more profitable (up nicely already) I should be able to set a stop on it at breakeven.
So…assuming all my short /ES put positions expire and I get assigned the ITM call I’ll be sitting at:
Short /ES @ 2202.35 basis (slight loser but nice hedge)
Short Feb /VX @ 16.90 (assuming no spike this should gradually decay towards spot VIX at a grand per point)
and to further raise short /ES basis:
SOLD /ES JAN 17 (Wk3) 2180 PUT @ 10.25
Bought to Close TLT DEC 16 2016 120.5 Calls @ .01 (sold for .61)
Already sold next week’s…
It keeps dropping and I keep selling. Short ITM puts’ basis not quite keeping up with the drop but staying close.
Bought to Close GLD DEC 16 2016 112.0 Calls @ .01 (sold for .88)
Sell to Open GLD DEC 23 2016 108.5 Calls @ .85
Learning my lesson on these low liquidity tickers and trading spreads. Had a chance yesterday morning to close DUST 55/65 spreads at a small profit but got called to work so missed it. Now I’m seeing that they are nearly impossible to roll anywhere when DITM without a dramatic increase in risk. If we don’t get a pullback today or tomorrow allowing a roll I’ll probably just eat the max loss of 8.75. About the only option is to widen it by 5 points and roll it out and down a year to about 20/35 and hope for a big gold rally.
To avoid a similar situation:
Bought to Close BOIL MAR 17 2017 20.0/25.0 Bear call spreads @ 1.14 (sold for 1.40)
With the increase in margin from TDA for naked selling, it looks like I may be done with these tickers unless it’s maybe buying some put spreads when they start imploding…
Taking a little more risk off. Don’t want a good trade to get away with 2 days to go.
Bought to Close EWW DEC 16 2016 45.0 Puts @ .09 (sold for 1.03)
Also collected another 2.04 in premium over the life of the strangle/naked put position. Completely out now so looking for an entry to do it again…
Cleaning this up by closing it to save on exercise commissions.
Sold to close EBAY covered stock @ 27.96.
Stock was covered by 28 strike calls. Cheaper to close myself than wait for exercise even after giving up the 4 cents. Salvaged a wash on an old earnings trade after writing covered calls.
Just in case something crazy happens…
Bought to Close SVXY DEC 16 2016 65.0 Put @ .05 (sold for 1.05)
Bought to Close SVXY DEC 16 2016 80.0 Put @ .50 (sold for 3.20)
Freeing up cash in an #IRA ….
Bought to Close SVXY JAN 20 2017 45.0 Put @ .30 (sold for 2.60)
Gonna let the stock get assigned from my #Earnings strangle. Getting started on the road to recovery. This would get me out at almost even…(about a .07 loss).
Sold RH DEC 16 2016 33.0 Calls @ .68
#IRA – Selling against a long 2019 position…
Bought to Close AMZN DEC 9 2016 775.0 Call @ .05 (sold for 3.67)
Sold AMZN DEC 16 2016 780.0 Call @ 4.10
#IRA – Taking these off near max gain. Hoping Fed meeting will get me into a Jan position. These have been working every month. How long does VIX get and stay above 20 for an extended time? Especially when these are priced based on the front month future.
Bought to Close VIX DEC 21 2016 20.0/25.0 Bear call spreads @ .07 (sold for .80)
#Earnings -Original sale was 167.5/172.5/177.5 iron fly @ 4.11. Skewed it to the upside but not quite enough.
Max loss was .89 so:
Bought to Close AVGO DEC 9 2016 172.5/177.5 Bear call spread @ 4.80 reducing max loss to .69
Then:
Sold AVGO DEC 9 2016 175.0 Put @ .55 reducing max loss to .14
Risk here is AVGO tanking this afternoon so we shall see. Best play would probably be to just take the original loss…LOL
This same strateegery on LULU will work if it stays above 68 today reducing max loss of 120 dollars to a 6 dollar gain.
#IRA – Sold BOIL MAR 17 2017 20.0/25.0 Bear call spreads @ 1.40
#IRA – Breaking out above the 50 so rolling out and up…
Rolled GOOGL Dec 9th 790 call to Dec 30th 800 call @ .30 credit.
This is sold against a 2019 long position. If it turns out to be a fakeout I’ll roll it back in and down.
Skimming through some charts and noticed nat gas has been on a tear since the election. BOIL has nearly doubled since the election and is up well over 100 percent from it’s all time low. My theory is that this can’t last…as soon as “The Donald” starts relaxing some regulations on the coal industry while encouraging more fracking in areas that were previously off limits, I can’t see nat gas running back into the 6 or 7 range again. If it does…sell more BOIL…LOL
TDA has really jacked up the margin requirements on this for naked call selling so I’ll be looking out to the spring and selling pretty close to the money call spreads. Great bang for the buck with no margin worries. Also, leaving plenty of room to roll and add or roll and widen if needed.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-12-07/arctic-chill-blasting-the-u-s-puts-4-natural-gas-within-reach?cmpid=socialflow-twitter-business&utm_content=business&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social
#FallingKnife – ? I already have a long term position managing strangles so not adding here.
No sense waiting 5 weeks for a dime in an #IRA …
Bought to Close EWW JAN 20 2017 38.0 Puts @ .10 (sold for .80)
#FallingKnife – ?
#CoveredCalls – Rolling out but not up. Surprised me when this filled since I left this morning it was trading for about 40 cents.
Rolled Dec 16th 74.5 calls to Dec 30th 74.5 @ 1.00 credit.
Gradually picking up a few more dollars while keeping plenty of downside protection.
#ShortCalls – Getting a jump on next week. This week’s 102.5’s appear pretty safe. Still selling against DITM puts. This could go on for years. I’ll continue lowering the basis in the puts until we see a reversal.
Sold TLT DEC 16 2016 120.5 Calls @ .61
#Earnings – Yesterday sold 56/59/62 iron flies @ 2.60 risking 40 to make 260. Obviously not gonna work so:
Bought to Close LULU DEC 9 2016 59/62 Bear call spreads @ 2.95
Saved a nickel so max loss is now .35
Then:
Sold LULU DEC 9 2016 68.0 Puts @ .46
If these expire should be a scratch or slight winner after commissions.
Re-post from a couple weekends ago. Still going strong in the paper account. I’ll probably give it a shot for real when I assume a short /ES contract at the end of the year. Paper trading account is up over 25 percent since early September. This includes a nice boost it received shorting /VX futures on election night and never having more than about a third of it in the market at any time.
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#Futures I’ve been paper trading this for awhile and it seems to really work well. A low risk way to take advantage of contango all the time…not just during or after volatility spikes.
Looking at spot VIX as well as the futures…there is generally about a 2 point difference ($2000) between spot and front month and between front month and second month. As time passes with no volatility the front month future will gradually decrease to match spot while second month drops a similar amount (contango). If there is a volatility spike, spot will generally be the first to react with front month future lagging behind and second month future lagging even further behind since volatility is generally a short term phenomenon. Once spot exceeds front month we will be approaching a backwardation scenario.
So…with all that in mind, what’s the trade?
I’ve been shorting the front and second month futures against a similar number of short eminis. I keep a stop on the futures positions of 1.5 to 2 points higher and also sell a well out of the money put against the short emini. This allows 3 things to happen.
1. Drastically reduces risk on a volatility spike using the stops while continually cashing in on contango during long periods of low volatility.
2. If stopped out of the short volatility positions, the short /ES should make up for all the loss and probably more.
3. By selling the well out of the money /ES put I can still gradually raise my basis of the short /ES position but still give enough downside protection to make up for more than the volatility stop out loss.
Any thoughts or ideas are welcome. Still haven’t put the trade on in a real account. I probably will on the next decent volatility spike we get.
Got this off of SMM. Some strange symbol change. The regular UA is now UAA.
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/under-armour-stock-tickers-change-prices-rally-2016-12-07
Rolled Dec 23rd 210 puts up to 225 @ 1.50 credit. Total credit received on gradual roll ups is now 4.05
#ShortPuts – Gradually freeing up cash in an #IRA
Bought to Close SVXY JAN 20 2017 40.0 Put @ .25 (sold for 2.75)
#ShortCalls – These were double sold against ITM short puts. Don’t wanna get caught on a rebound so easing back to regular size…
Bought to Close GLD DEC 9 2016 112.5 Calls @ .55 (sold for 1.22)
#ShortCalls I’ll keep a close eye on this week’s 112.5’s while getting a jump on next week’s batch.
Sold GLD DEC 16 2016 112.0 Calls @ .88
#Strangles #ShortPuts Started out selling strangles on this thing and rolling down puts and selling more calls. Now that it seems like it’s wanting to form a base here I’m turning all bullish. Instead of selling any calls I’m adding to the current puts to get it to a full position.
Sold EWW DEC 16 2016 45.0 Puts @ 1.00
#Earnings Bought to Close AZO DEC 16 2016 750.0/700.0 Bull put spread @ 1.97 (sold for 6.20)
Didn’t think it would happen but was filled 15 seconds before the close yesterday. I drive a couple older cars and know how much I spend at Autozone so went aggressively bullish. Got lucky!
#ShortPuts I’ll join the CMG party…
Sold CMG Mar 17 2017 275.0 Put @ 4.10
Options Bistro 