#ContangoETFs STO $ZSL Nov 20th 63 call for 1.15
STO ZSL Dec 18th 67.5 call for 2.35
Need to keep an eye if its behavior will be any different after the split. If there’s no change, this one will always top out and fail in the 60-65 area.
Author Archives: Jeff
NXPI covered calls
#Earnings #CoveredCalls STO $NXPI Nov 27th 83 call for .50 and 84 call for .45. (assigned stock at 86.00)
Good morning…
Up and down yesterday, up today? Check out the great chart Robert posted (prvtrader) last night… we are at resistance on a downtrend line from beginning of November… pressed against it yesterday then failed; we will press it again this morning. I’m picking and choosing $SPX spreads wisely, playing the whipsaw action. I remain watchful for more downside since we are under a Warning from Friday.
KOLD puts
#ContangoETFs Hard to believe I still get someone to buy these, expiring in 3 days…
STO $KOLD Nov 20th 110 puts for 1.25.
SPX put roll
#SPXcampaign #Rolling STO $SPX Nov 27th 1965/1940 put spreads for 1.30, as a partial roll of spreads stopped out last week.
DUST in the wind
#ContangoETFs STO $DUST Jan 45 calls for 1.15. Will add more if premium rises.
SPX call spread #2
#SPXcampaign STO $SPX Dec 17th 2165/2190 call spreads for 1.25. Second call spread for the week, 20 points higher than yesterday. I won’t worry about defending these unless we break through all-time high at 2134.
Good morning…
Another day rocketing higher? Looks that way. I have been backtesting the $VIX warning signals, and I have not found a downside warning that triggers without a subsequent correction in the $SPX (I have tested 1999 thru 2011 thus far). Sometimes, the correction may come weeks later, or sometimes it may be only a decent pullback rather than “correction.” But nonetheless, I am staying on watch for more downside in the days and weeks to come after Friday’s Warning.
Signs that we should reset the clock would be either a new $VIX low (below 12.80) or a new $SPX high (2134). Also, a firm break of the recent SPX high (2116) or a close below the most recent base for the VIX warning (Wednesday’s close of 16.05) I believe would mean relative safety. This is a new indicator and our first time working with it in real-time. So every day is an education.
Monthly expiration is this Friday, and it could be playing a role in this rally. Seeing what happens next week will be interesting.
SPX pre-market call spread
#SPXcampaign In pre-market (4:34am ET) STO $SPX Dec 4th 2130/2155 call spreads for 1.20. This is actually my second regular call spread for this expiry, given that I only sold half my normal amount a couple weeks ago. Staying at or above all-time highs, and above the most recent swing high.
WMT bearish trade
#Earnings – this is NOT my normal earnings trade, but with market volatility I do not feel like shorting options on earnings, especially because there isn’t a lot of premium in many of these companies reporting. But much of retail is very bearish, dropping further on earnings. So I bought 3 $WMT Nov 20th puts for .34, a $100 bet that this could crater down toward 50 when it reports tomorrow morning.
Adding Avatars
For Contributor/Authors, to add an avatar or photo by your Posts, click on the profile button in upper right (round button with silhouette). Select “My Profile.” (this is also where you can enter profile info and adjust email notifications). Click on the silhouette. This will take you to a separate site, Gravatar, where you can upload a picture. Once finished there it may take several minutes or hours before your photo will appear in OptionsBistro.
The avatars of all contributors can now be found on the right-hand column of this site. —->
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If you’d like to become a Contributor, please let me know!
SPX call spread
#SPXcampaign STO Dec 17th $SPX 2145/2170 call spreads for 1.25
Good morning..
Quite a Friday the 13th we had…. we got our $VIX warning signal, and it looked like it could be a repeat of Aug 20-24… however, a significantly more minor one; $SPX was only down 1.12% for the day. Then the Paris attacks instilled fear, but because they happened Friday, with the weekend to digest, it was anyone’s guess what Monday would look like.
For now, we STILL have an active warning from Friday, so be on the lookout. VIX would need to fall at least back below Wednesday’s close of 16.05 before I would say we can ease off the brakes. SPX vol is high so selling new spreads will get you fairly far OTM; just proceed cautiously. Call spreads should be above all-time high of 2135. I will look to sell my normal 5-week out spreads for Dec 17th before I consider putting rolls on from spreads that were stopped last week.
Options Expiration 11/13/15
Followers who do not have Posting privileges can respond to the Post with their expirations
Expiring with 100% of max profit:
$NXPI 75 puts
$NXPI 85 covered call
$UVXY 25 put
$VLO 67 & 68 covered puts
$SPX 2125/2145 call spreads
$SPX 2150/2175 call spreads
No assignments. Thanks everyone, have a great weekend!
If you’d like Posting privileges, please email me or reply here and I will invite you.
Closed positions
I closed some of my short options positions for profit in $NUGT, $ZSL, $TDG. I closed some options and stock for losses in $KOLD, $NXPI, $VLO (I intend to roll the KOLD positions once the market settles down). Took off the risk to manage margin should we have an ugly Monday.
…and another SPX stop
#SPXcampaign Bought to close $SPX Nov 27th 1950/1925 put spreads for 2.75. Sold for 1.70 on Oct 23rd (part of a roll).
$SPX new call spread
#SPXcampaign Don’t normally sell call spreads on a day like this, but I still needed another for Dec 11th, and I’m still able to get one right at all-time highs. If next week is more down, it will be fine. If we rebound, the relief from put spreads will make up for any pain on this one. It is my only call spread below 2160.
Sold to open $SPX Dec 11th 2130/2155 call spreads for 1.25.
$SPX stopping Dec 11th spread
#SPXcampaign Bought to close Dec 11th 1920/1895 put spreads for 3.20. Sold for 1.25 on Wednesday.
With warning signal in effect and continuing downside, I am closing non-SPX positions as well, to keep margin clear for a possible Monday crash. I don’t really expect it, but the end of this week is looking like a minor version of August 20-24.
$VIX steadily rising, $SPX steadily…
$VIX steadily rising, $SPX steadily decreasing for last two hours. We are getting a retest of the 20.05 signal level. Take caution as risk remains high for Monday and next week. Need a very strong end-of-day rally to say otherwise.
SPX Stop-out
#SPXcampaign Bought to close $SPX Dec 4th 1940/1915 put spreads for 2.90. Sold for 1.25 on Nov 5th. Closing down a few put spreads today to avoid weekend risk after $VIX Warning has fired.
TICK low of the day.
Something is still roiling us intraday… epic battle.
$NUGT and $KOLD ETFs
#ContangoETFs Managing some ITM positions in these…
BTC KOLD Nov 20th 100 call for 22.50. Sold for 4.00 on Aug 17th
STO KOLD Nov 20th 110 puts (x2) for 2.55. Will also add a Dec call for 17.50 or more on next KOLD up day.
BTC NUGT Nov 20th 30 put for 5.50. Sold for 2.50 on Oct. 12th.
STO NUGT June 45 call for 5.60
$SPX new LOD, but…
…TICKs fired huge after bottoming… $RUT near positive on day. That may have been bears’ last breath?
$SPX new LOD
$SPX new LOD
Danger Zone colors…
I’ve changed the background color and included the note in the header… “VIX danger zone entered 11/13.” Since #SPXcampaign is a key strategy followed by multiple members, I’ll alter the site appearance based on different conditions to be aware of.
Second $VIX signal hit – DANGER ZONE
#SPXcampaign…. well, that sounds dramatic. But we hit 20.06, which is 25% above Wednesday’s close of 16.05. That’s the second signal which means we have entered a Danger Zone. Increasing volatility into a Friday is scary, as Monday could be a follow through. Friday the 13th, no less.
Even though we have been ticking up since the lows (and the $RUT is moving up strongly), we should be cautious for more possible downside. This could be a false warning, but those are rare in the backtesting I have done. I recommend you close put spreads if they are anywhere near your stops. If placing any new put spreads today, please make sure they are as far OTM as possible. We are now on warning until $VIX falls back below Wednesday’s close of 16.05.
$VIX warnings for Monday are 25.60 (100% from 10/28 low) and 22.96 (25% up from Thursday’s close).
$SPX Not an ideal stop…
$SPX Not an ideal stop on the 2025/2000… got caught in the downdraft, and ended up paying 5.00 to get out. These same day expirations have caught me before. Very dangerous and you have to be aggressive to get out before your stop is hit.
We are pennies away from second $VIX signal at 20.05. If we do not rally back toward flat-on-day, I recommend being careful with any spreads you leave on over the weekend.
SPX, stopped out of today’s…
SPX, stopped out of today’s 2025/2000, closed short, will look to sell longs with next push down.
First $VIX signal hit
We are up 50% from the recent 12.80 low from 10/28. So we are now on notice for a second signal. With one signal fired, we should now proceed more cautiously on put spreads.
$ZSL forward split…
#ContangoETFs Now trading at 61.84, which would be 123.68 in yesterday’s dollars. All options positions have doubled in size.
SPX spread rolled
#SPXcampaign Rolling the Dec 11th spread I STOPPED out last night:
Sold to Open $SPX Dec 17th 1890/1865 put spreads for 2.00, 1.5x position size.
$SPX will gap down, but…
$SPX will gap down, but not to much… a bigger gap might be a signal of capitulation, leading to a rip higher. A small gap is less telling, so we’ll have to watch. If you have $SPX spreads hitting stops, be patient in getting your exit, or even wait to see what the morning’s direction will be.
Futures are saying we will open at 18.75, so shy of our next two signal points: 19.20 and 20.05. Watch that area, and watch @prvtrader‘s Fib levels on SPX.
SPX took one stop early
Since I had a few spreads threatening if we gap down tomorrow, I closed one before the $3.00 stop was hit.
Bought to close $SPX Dec 11th 1940/1915 put spreads for 2.70. Sold for 1.25 on Monday.
SPX call spread, UVXY call closings
#SPXcampaign Bought to close $SPX Dec 4th 2170/2195 call spreads for .20. Sold Nov 2nd for 1.25.
#VXXGame BTC $UVXY Dec 18th 80 call for 1.25. Sold for 9.20 avg price in August. Not worth risk when over 80% profit available.
$SPX new lows of the…
$SPX new lows of the day
NXPI and VLO management
#Earnings… got some movement today in stocks I was assigned through earnings plays.
$VLO, was assigned short shares at 65.00. Been selling puts and calls, raising my cost basis. Today closed some Nov 13th 71 calls for .08, and sold a Nov 27th 65 covered put for .55
$NXPI was assigned long shares at 86.00. Yesterday sold Nov 20th 85 covered call for .95, and today a Nov 20th 75 put for .60. Lowering my cost basis by selling premium.
SPX 1-day spread
#SPXcampaign Selling $SPX Nov 13th 2025/2000 put spreads. These expire tomorrow, assuming we won’t go too much lower, so risky… stop at 3.00. I have sold a couple for 1.10, looking for 1.20 for more.
Closing trades for margin clearance
#ContangoETFs Bought to close $ZSL Nov 20th 150 call for .25. Sold for 6.10 on August 25th
#SPXcampaign Bought to close $SPX Nov 13th 1970 puts for .15. Sold as part of 1970/1945 put spreads for 1.35 on Oct 23rd.
TZA calls
#ContangoETFs Sold to open $TZA Dec 18th 50 calls for 1.55.Even on the extreme volatility spike of 8/24 this only topped out at 56.
SPX another call spread closed
#SPXcampaign Bought to close $SPX Nov 27th 2160/2185 call spreads for .15. Sold for 1.25 on Oct 28th.
SPX call spread close
#SPXcampaign Bought to close $SPX Nov 27th 2165/2190 call spreads for .15. Sold as part of an iron condor roll on Oct 23rd.
Good morning
Futures are plummeting… our current $VIX warning signals are 19.11 and 19.20…. so if we get that high both signals would be hit on the same day, meaning we’d enter a Danger Zone. If that happens, look to take profits/stops early on $SPX put spreads and be cautious when selling new ones.
$TDG earnings look to be a beat, so that should open higher and the 200 puts can be closed early.
Welcome to any new members! Please be sure to Reply to Posts with trades, questions, or comments.
SPX call spread close
#SPXcampaign one minute after the close: Bought to close $SPX Nov 13th 2110/2135 call spreads for .20. Sold for 1.20 on Oct 22nd. Was planning to let this expire Friday, but I hadn’t taken off my GTC order yet. It filled right after the bell, so now I can forget about it.
SPX Dec 11th put spread
#SPXcampaign Sold to Open $SPX Dec 11th 1920/1895 put spreads for 1.25, with SPX at 2075. This is the second and final put spread I’m selling for Dec 11th expiry. I also sold a call spread yesterday, so I need one more call spread to complete the Dec 11th campaign.
KOLD call
#ContangoETFs Sold to Open $KOLD Nov 20th 136 call for 5.60.
I’m underwater on a handful of short calls in this one, so pressing it a bit here, but this strike is at its recent high, and this is juicy premium for only 8 days until expiration. Also selling puts against the calls, waiting for the eventual fall.
TDG earnings play
#Earnings Sold to Open $TDG Nov 20th 200 puts for 1.40. Never traded this before, but it is not much of a mover on earnings. Over last 12 quarters:
Biggest UP move: 4.2% Biggest DOWN move: -4.4% Average move: 2.3%
These expire NEXT week, and are 9.5% out-of-the-money. IV should drop by at least 10% tomorrow.
If selling naked options, be sure to use an appropriate position size for your account.
Closed TZA calls
#ContangoETFs Bought to close $TZA Nov 20th 50 calls for .12. Sold for 1.50 on Oct 21st.
NXPI covered call
#Earnings #CoveredCalls Sold to Open $NXPI Nov 20th 85 call for .95. This is against the stock I was assigned at 86 on an earnings trade.
SPX bottom picking
#SPXcampaign Working on selling my second put spread for Dec 11 expiry… trying to pick the bottom; now looking at 1910/1885 for at least 1.25
SPX pre-market put spread close
#SPXcampaign In pre-market, bought to close Nov 19th 1925/1900 put spreads for .20. Sold for 1.25 on Oct 27th.
ZSL forward split
#ContangoETFs Starting on Friday $ZSL will be trading at half its current price, and any positions will be doubled in size.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/proshares-announces-etf-share-splits-203000108.html
Quiet day…
Could be even slower tomorrow on Veteran’s Day.
Welcome to new members coming in today. Feel free to reply to this post if you have any questions about the site or the trades.
SPX Dec 11th call spread
#SPXcampaign Sold to Open $SPX Dec 11th 2165/2190 call spreads for 1.25, with SPX at 2082.
SPX campaign PDF now available!
Just click the link at the top of the screen: “SPX Strategy PDF”. Enjoy!
KOLD puts
#ContangoETFs STO $KOLD Nov 20th 105 puts for 2.05. These are against several short calls I’m already short.
NUGT reverse roll
#ContangoETFs #ReverseRoll
Made the mistake of selling some puts too early… but no worries since it is easy to flip these…
BTC $NUGT Nov 20th 30 put for 5.25. Sold for 2.50 on Oct 12th.
STO $NUGT March 50 calls (x2) for 3.10 each.
SPX roll iron condor
#SPXcampaign Sold to Open $SPX Nov 30th (monthly) 1915/1940/2145/2170 iron condors for 2.00, as a roll from the Nov 13th 2040 spread closed earlier today, 1.5x position size.
I chose Nov 30th expiration as it is not part of the normal weekly strategy, since it is an end-of-month expiration, this time on a Monday. Therefore I had no spreads already in this expiry. I chose an iron condor to balance the risk on both sides, so I could go further OTM on the puts and above all-time highs on the calls.
SPX close call spread
#SPXcampaign Bought to close $SPX Nov 13th 2130/2155 call spreads for .25. Closed today to free up some margin space.
SPX freefall! Another spread bites the dust.
#SPXcampaign Well, we knew downside was bound to come… just maybe not all in one day. I put on a couple of aggressive Nov 13th put spreads in recent days to take advantage of non-stop upside. Got stopped out of 2050 spread already, now
Bought to Close $SPX Nov 13th 2040/2015 put spreads for 2.95. $3 stop was hit; waited for bounce to get out cheaper. Will wait before rolling this one.
After this, I have a fair amount of room before other put spreads are threatened.
Current signal levels for a downside warning to take effect are $VIX 17.91 (1-2 day 25% increase), and 19.20 (50% up from swing low). The 17.91 is from Friday’s low, so will be in effect until end of Tuesday.
SPX rolled put spread
#SPXcampaign #Rolling Sold to Open Nov 19th 2010/1985 put spreads for 2.15. This is a roll from put spread stopped earlier today, 1.5x position size.
SPX stop-out
BTC for 3.00.
SPX stop-out
#SPXcampaign Taking a stop on $SPX Nov 13th 2050/2025. It’s difficult to do that at what could be the bottom of the day, but that’s what stops are for. Trying to get out for 2.90 on a bounce.
ZSL call
#ContangoETFs This one keeps rising, which would be scary if I hadn’t seen it die above 120 so many times before.
STO $ZSL Jan 2016 140 call for 3.60
PCLN earnings trade
PCLN earnings trade
Bought to close $PCLN Nov 13th 1650 calls for .05. Sold for 2.40 on Friday.
SPX Dec 11th put spread
#SPXcampaign STO $SPX Dec 11th 1940/1915 put spreads for 1.30, with SPX at 2091. This is the first of two put spread I will sell this week for the Dec 11th expiry.
SPX Dec 11th on deck
This week I’m selling spreads in Dec 11th expiry, and with the down open I will look for a put spread in the first half-hour of trading.
Options Bistro week 2
Another week, another new look. This one should be more permanent. Now, comments appear under each post without having to click through to them. Also, the name of the Member who posted leads each entry, along with a photo or avatar.
Starting this week, Members besides me will be able to post to this blog. To do so requires an invitation from me and each user to register at wordpress.com. To start, I have invited Ramie, Fuzzball, and Steveo. After we get accustomed to using the site with multiple contributors, I will send out invitations to other followers. Stand by for emails and further announcements. In the meantime, please feel free to post your trades, questions, or comments as replies to any of the posts.
And you can always click ‘Home’ at upper left to list all posts and refresh for new ones.
I will also be announcing this site to additional traders, and posting the PDF of the SPX strategy.
Thanks again for being the first members of Options Bistro!
FB closing earnings iron butterflys
BTC $FB Nov 6th 103 call for 4.30
BTC $FB Nov 6th 104 call for 3.25
I collected 8.00 total in premium when selling two iron butterflys, so with these closing trades I am left with .45 in profit.
Options Expiration 11/6/15
Anyone wanting to list their expirations for today can reply to this post with their expirations for today. Have a great weekend, everyone!
One Week In!
Thank you all for being the “beta” group for the first week of OptionsBistro. I am working on several changes you will see by Monday, including a more condensed look to the posts and the ability for users to make entries. There will also be more people, as I will announce the blog to additional groups of traders.
Thanks again, everyone!
VLO rolls
Was assigned short stock last Friday at 65.00, and sold some more calls that went ITM. Rolling out as follows, staying short the stock.
BTC $VLO Nov 6th 70 calls for 1.62. Sold for .40 on Tuesday.
STO VLO Nov 13th 71 calls for 1.60
STO VLO Nov 13th 68 puts for .27
PCLN earnings trade
#Earnings Sold to Open $PCLN Nov 13th 1650 calls for 2.40. This is 14.7% OTM. Only selling calls because premium is much lower for puts this far OTM. Stock is bullish but also a bit extended.
Over last 12 quarters on earnings,
| Biggest UP move: 8.5% | Biggest DOWN move: -8.4% | Average move: 4.7% |
You have to go back 13 quarters, to July 2012, for a -17% down move. And you have to go back to August 2010 for a higher UP move, +21%. That was when PCLN was trading near $300.
SPX roll iron condor
Replacing the 2095 calls I had to close this morning for 4.70.
Sold to Open Nov 13th 2020/2040/2125/2145 iron condors for 3.00. 1.66x position size.
BOIL call
Added one more ETF on intraday Nat Gas reversal; new high in $BOIL
STO BOIL March 35 call for 2.30.
Closed SPX 2095 calls
#SPXcampaign BTC $SPX 2095 Nov 6th short calls for 4.70. Missed my shot to get out below 2.00. Action looks bullish, so not risking the possibility of ending the day above 2100. Will look to get a few cents extra by selling the long 2120 calls if I can. Also will look for a roll candidate spread.
