#SPXcampaign Sold my first 5-week position as a condor:
Sold $SPX Dec 8th 2485/2510/2650/2675 #IronCondor for 3.05
Author Archives: Jeff
SPX trades
Sold $SPX Nov 20th 2560/2585 call spreads for 20.25, as an #ITMroll from spread closed yesterday.
Stopped Nov 16th 2610/2635 for 2.70. Will look for a roll.
SPX puts sold
#SPXcampaign Since today marks a further validation of the Upside Warning on the #VIXindicator, I’m selling an additional aggressive put spread, and holding off on selling new call spreads and an #ITMroll.
Sold $SPX Nov 16th (monthly) 2585/2560 call spreads for 5.10.
STMP
A wild ride today
SPX trades
#SPXcampaign $SPX
Closed on GTC orders:
Nov 8th 2540/2515 put spreads for .20. Originally sold for 2.00
Nov 16th 2465/2440 put spreads for .20. Sold for 1.50 on Oct 19th.
Closed Nov 13th 2570/2595 call spreads for 16.25. Sold last Monday as part of an #InverseCondor for 23.00. (Leaving the 2590/2565 put spread on for hopeful expiration)
#ITMroll Sold Nov 20th 2575/2600 call spreads for 14.60.
Closed Nov 13th 2540/2565 call spreads for 23.45. Sold last Monday for 20.50.
Not yet rolled
Sold Nov 20th 2585/2560 put spreads for 6.10.
GUSH
#ContangoETFs Hey @ramie77, since DRIP has dropped, is it time to give GUSH a gander?
Econ Calendar for week of 11/6/17
Be sure to periodically click “Home/REFRESH” above to keep Bistro features updated.
Options Expiration 11/3/17
— Expired w/Max Profit —
AAPL 157.5 and 160 puts
AAPL 177.5 calls
FB 172.5 puts
FB 192.5 calls (partially covered)
— #Assignment —
LITE 62 puts (cost basis 60.50)
— Expired w/Max Loss —
CC 55.5/57.5/59.5 #UnbalancedButterfly (sold for .60, loss of 1.40)
STMP 200/180 put spreads (sold for 4.15, loss of 15.85. Rolled out 2 weeks)
TSLA 320/325/330 #UnbalancedButterfly (sold for 2.15, loss of 2.85)
SPX add’l roll
#SPXcampaign Sold $SPX Nov 15th 2565/2540 put spreads for 2.90.
STMP roll
FB covered call
#CoveredCalls #LongStock Staying long the stock and replacing the earnings options expiring today.
Sold $FB Dec 1st 187.5 covered call for 1.25
SPX trades
#SPXcampaign $SPX Today, in chronological order:
Before open, closed on GTC order: Nov 10th 2490/2465 put spreads for .20. Sold for 1.55 on Oct 13th.
Sold Dec 1st 2490/2465 put spreads for 1.45
Closed Nov 10th 2565/2590 call spreads for 14.00. Sold for 10.80 on Oct 26th.
#CondorRoll Sold Nov 17th 2550/2575/2585/2610 condors for 14.10
Closed Nov 10th 2535/2560 call spreads for 22.00. Sold for 18.90 on Oct 26th.
#ITMroll Sold Nov 17th 2550/2575 call spreads for 19.00
Sold Dec 1st 2630/2655 call spreads for 1.60.
Closed on GTC order: Nov 6th 2560/2535 put spreads for .30. Sold for 3.45 on Oct 20th.
VIX dropping
#VIXIndicator The VIX is closing in on another validation of the Upside Warning. If it closes below 9.98 today and Monday, that will be three in a row below the 78.6% Fib retracement of the last spike, which historically is less compelling than an original Upside Warning but still a decent indicator of more upside, or at least further delay before a correction.
MELI closed
#Earnings BTC $MELI Nov 17th 200/210/280/290 iron condors for 1.12. Sold for 2.35, so just over 50% of max profit and out 2 weeks early.
Rough earnings
#Earnings AAPL and MELI looking fine for strangles/condors… LITE and STMP not looking good for longs. Considering whether to take loss, take assignment, or roll. TSLA and CC butterflys are out of reach, too, but smaller losses so I’ll let them go.
SHOP closed
#Earnings BTC $SHOP Nov 3rd 100 puts for .45. Strangles sold for 3.30 on Monday. Total exit price: .85
Jobs Report for October
U.S. gained 261,000 non-farm payroll jobs in October, vs. +310K expected; biggest monthly gain this year; Sept revised from -33K to +18K.
Unemployment rate DOWN 0.1 to 4.1%.
U6 dropped to 7.9%, its lowest in over a decade.
Avg hourly earnings down -0.04%.
Labor Force Participation up to 62.7%, down from Sept.
Maybe Stamps are going out of style…
$STMP down, at least at first.
MELI and AAPL up.
CC down.
Earnings
Bring ’em on!
AAPL add on
#Earnings Sold a 160 put for .90, since the 157.5’s became too cheap. So I’m short 177.5 calls and 157.5 and 160 puts.
STMP earnings
#Earnings Sold $STMP Nov 3rd 200/180 put spreads for 4.15. Biggest UP move: 38.1%, Biggest DOWN move: -6.2%, Average move: 16.3%. This trade is -8.3% OTM.
MELI earnings
#Earnings #IronCondor Thanks @fuzzballl for heads up on this one. Leaning a bit bullish (based on historical performance) and going with a condor for protection and less margin:
Sold $MELI Nov 17th 200/210/280/290 condors for 2.35
Closing up SHOP
#Earnings Started closing the Nov 3rd 100/125 strangle, sold for 3.30 on Monday.
Closed all of the 125 calls for .05.
Closed one 100 put for 1.45. Hopefully can get out of rest for lower, but watching as this one has been as low as 94.51 since earnings. The weakness may be over, but watching.
CC earnings
#Earnings #UnbalancedButterfly Never traded this before but strong historical earnings results and a bullish trade. Sold $CC Nov 3rd 55.5/57.5/59.5 (1/3/2) unbalanced put butterfly for .60.
Max profit at 57.5: 2.60
Minimum profit above 57.5: .60
Max loss under 55.5: 1.40
SPX trades
#SPXcampaign Sold to Open $SPX Nov 13th 2560/25635 put spreads for 4.00, as a #ReverseRoll from calls stopped yesterday.
Also yesterday, forgot to post:
Closed Nov 8th 2530/2505 put spreads for .60. Sold for 3.70
AAPL earnings
#Earnings Sold $AAPL Nov 3rd 157.5/177.5 strangles for 1.23. Small position to start, may add more on each side with intraday swings.
Biggest UP move: 6.5%, Biggest DOWN move: -6.6%, Average move: 4.2%. With stock at 166.50 my short strikes are +6.6% and -5.4% OTM.
FB earnings
#Earnings #CoveredCalls Sold $FB Nov 3rd 192.5 covered calls for 1.15 and 1.30
SPX trades
#SPXcampaign $SPX
Closed Nov 8th 2525/2550 call spreads for 23.75. Sold last Wednesday for 19.40.
#ITMroll Sold Nov 15th 2540/2565 call spreads for 20.70.
Closed Nov 8th 2540/2565 call spreads for 22.65. Sold for 19.35 on Oct 24th.
#InverseCondor Rolled to Nov 15th 2575/2600 calls and 2595/2570 put spreads for 23.25.
Stopped Nov 10th 2600/2625 call spreads for 3.80 (4.00 stop was hit)
Working on a #ReverseRoll
TSLA earnings
#Earnings Sold $TSLA Nov 3rd 320/325/330 unbalanced (2/3/1) put butterfly for 2.15.
Bought two 320 puts, sold 3 325 puts, bought one 330 put. Net credit 2.15.
Max profit with 325 pin, 7.15. Minimum profit if above 325, 2.15 . Max loss of 2.85 to downside below 320.
MA earnings closed
#Earnings BTC $MA Nov 3rd 150/148 put spreads for .25. Sold for 1.00 on Monday.
SPX trades
#SPXcampaign BTC $SPX Oct 31st 2565/2540 put spreads for .35. Sold for 3.70 on Friday.
Sold Nov 13th 2540/2565 call spreads for 20.50 as an #ITMroll from Nov 6 spread stopped yesterday.
LITE earnings
#Earnings I’ve never traded this but it has juicy premiums, and upside bias on its short history of earnings (since Nov 2015). Using a spread for disaster protection.
Sold $LITE Nov 3rd 62/57 put spreads for 1.50. Biggest UP move: 14.1%, Biggest DOWN move: -3.7%, Average move: 6.1%. This trade is -3.2% OTM.
SPX calls sold
#SPXcampaign Sold $SPX Dec 1st 2625/2650 call spreads for 1.70.
RH roll again
#Earnings #ShortStrangles #Rolling Will some one tame this beast!?! This is my fourth roll.
BTC $RH Nov 17th 70/95 strangles for 6.95. Sold for 4.97 on Oct 16th.
STO $RH Dec 1st 85/95 strangles for 7.25.
History: Sep 8th 36/64.5 on 9/5
Rolled to: Oct 20th 65/75 on 9/7
Rolled to: Oct 27th 72/80 on Oct 5th
Rolled to: Nov 17th 75/90 on Oct 16th.
Original trade sold for 1.10, now up to 2.01 total credit.
SPX trades
#SPXcampaign $SPX Today, in chronological order:
(Friday after close) BTC #ITMroll Nov 6th 2520/2545 call spreads for 23.50. Sold for 22.10 last Monday.
Today:
BTC Nov 1st 2540/2515 put spreads for .35. Sold Oct 18th for 2.70.
BTC #ITMroll Nov 6th 2525/2550 call spreads for 23.20. Sold for 22.25 on Oct 20th.
Sold Nov 13th 2570/2595 call spreads and 2590/2565 put spreads for 23.00 total, as an #InverseCondor to roll one of the Nov 6th #ITMroll call spreads stopped above. This gives me a much higher call spread strike. One of these two will be rolled next Monday, or both if they are both ITM.
BTC Nov 10th 2460/2435 put spreads for .32. Sold for 1.45 on Oct 9th.
Sold Dec 1st 2480/2455 put spreads for 1.47.
(the above 2 were done together as one trade, which seemed to “trick” my broker into a better margin outcome that they were showing had I done them separately)
BTC Nov 10th 2600/2625 call spreads for 1.95. Sold for 1.68 in early October. This is a double position so I’m doing a #ReverseRoll on half since it got close to my stop level on Friday.
Sold Nov 8th 2540/2515 put spreads for 2.00 as a #ReverseRoll
Still waiting to sell another #ITMroll, hopefully during a rally into the close. My news alerts said that today’s drop was due to word that corporate tax cuts may come in phases. If that’s really the reason, sounds like another dip to buy.
MA earnings
#Earnings Sold $MA Nov 3rd 150/148 put spreads for 1.00. 1:1 risk/reward for ATM spread… bullish trade. Biggest UP move: 9.4%, Biggest DOWN move: -2.7%, Average move: 2.6%. Stock needs to end the week above 150 for full profit.
SHOP earnings
#Earnings Sold to Open $SHOP Nov 3rd 100/125 strangles for 3.30. A bullish leaning trade. Over last 12 quarters, Biggest UP move: 13.0%, Biggest DOWN move: -3.7%, Average move: 7.8%. My strikes are -7.0% and +16.3% OTM.
Econ Calendar for week of 10/30/17
Click “Home/REFRESH” for your Halloween update of Bistro features.
FB covered call
#CoveredCallCampaign BTC $FB Oct 27th 177.5 covered call for .15 to avoid possible assignment. Sold for 1.35 on Oct 6th. Now into earnings. Carrying stock and selling calls against it. This one was so low for so many days that I almost forgot about it.
SVXY roll
#VXXGame #StrangleRoll
BTC $SVXY March 104 call for 18.40.
STO $SVXY March 85/122 strangle for 19.35
Also, earlier, sold $VXX Nov 17th 38 put for 4.00.
SPX another reverse roll
#spxcampaign
Closed $SPX Nov 8th 2585/2610 call spreads for 7.45. Sold for 3.50 on Wednesday.
Sold Nov 8th 2580/2560 put spreads for 6.15.
Also:
Sold Nov 24th 2625/2650 call spreads for 1.75.
VIX Indicator
#VIXIndicator… the Upside Warning never got canceled during this week’s volatility, and it’s coming through again now. A VIX close below 9.98 would be a new confirmation of the Up warning (as if we can’t just look at another all-time high to know that already).
SPX reverse roll
#SPXcampaign Soon after the open, closed $SPX Oct 31st 2575/2600 call spreads for 3.50. Sold for 3.05 on Wednesday.
Sold to open Oct 31st 2565/2540 put spreads for 3.70.
Also, in pre-market, closed on GTC order: Nov 3rd 2480/2455 put spreads for .40. Sold for 1.55 on Oct 6th.
VIX Indicator has been updated
Click “Home/REFRESH” to update right-column features. The VIX managed to eke out a gain on the day, keeping the uptrend in tact.
VXX game
#VXXGame My #LongPutDiagonals have my account leaning short volatility. This means it costs me to sell volatility, but credits me to buy it. I cleared a couple short positions to preserve powder for more spikes:
BTC $SVXY Dec 15th 47.5 put for .89. Sold in May as part of a strangle for 12.90, pre-split.
BTC $UVXY Dec 15th 91 call for .39. Sold yesterday for .725
SPX trades
#SPXcampaign Compared to yesterday, quiet day. I rolled a couple of call spreads that I closed yesterday. I am now short term bearish but not hugely so.
Sold Nov 10th 2565/2590 call spreads for 10.80
Sold Nov 10th 2535/2560 call spreads for 18.90
Closed Nov 8th 2560/2535 put spreads for 6.10. Sold yesterday for 7.45.
No soup for you!
#OffTopic I follow simpleroptions.com and use the name “Optionsbistro-Jeff” in their chat room. When they answer my questions they usually say “Jeff.” Earlier this week John Carter mentioned “Options Bistro” when answering my question. The next day, I could no longer enter the word “bistro” as any part of my name. They’re a bit territorial over there, I guess!
SPX puts closed
#SPXcampaign Bought to closed $SPX Oct 27t 2525/2500 put spreads for .25. Sold for 1.45 on Oct 16th. These got up to 2.50 yesterday. Wanted to sell more but missed fill attempts before the bounce.
NSC earnings
#Earnings #ShortPuts BTC $NSC Oct 27th 130 puts for .35, near the open. Sold for 1.10 on Monday. After a day on the hole I’m clearing this one off early, mainly to release margin.
AMZN earnings
#Earnings The 30-point ATM #IronButterfly is going for about 25.00 right now (940/970/1000). That would allow a 2.6% move for breakeven. Here are its one day moves last 12 quarters. Quieter lately as stock price has gotten much higher.
July 27, 2017 AC -2.48%
April 27, 2017 AC 0.71%
Feb. 2, 2017 AC -3.54%
Oct. 27, 2016 AC -5.13%
July 28, 2016 AC 0.82%
April 28, 2016 AC 9.56%
Jan. 28, 2016 AC -7.60%
Oct. 22, 2015 AC 6.22%
July 23, 2015 AC 9.79%
April 23, 2015 AC 14.13%
Jan. 29, 2015 AC 13.71%
Oct. 23, 2014 AC -8.34%
Margin in the corner
#ContangoETFs #ShortCalls I found these $NUGT positions all sitting in the corner of my portfolio, neglected and ignored. Margin freed up!
BTC NUGT Nov 17th 60 call for .03. Sold for 2.10 on Sep 7th.
BTC NUGT Dec 15th 51 calls for .15. Sold for 2.18 and 3.85 in August.
BTC NUGT 58 call for .07. Sold for 2.28 on Aug 31st.
BTC NUGT Jan 19th 58 call for .28. Sold for 5.80 on June 6th.
BTC NUGT Mar 16th 60 call for .77. Sold for 5.50 on Sept 5th.
VXX game trades today
#VXXGame #LongPutDiagonals In chronological order:
Sold $VXX Dec 15th 30 call for 7.50, adding to my position… switching the failed covered puts to calls, which have much better chance of surviving.
Closed $SVXY Jan 2018 97.5 call for 13.10. Sold for 3.125 (effective price) in January.
#Rolling the above to March 104 call for 13.35. Likely have to be rolled again, but at least I got it higher.
Closed $VXX Oct 27th 44 put for 6.75. Sold for 5.85 on Sept 29th as a roll.
Sold $UVXY Dec 15th 91 calls for .70 and .75
Was that a bottom? SPX trades
If there’s a bounce to be, it has begun
#SPXcampaign #VIXIndicator The VIX topped out (thus far) at 13.20, which is .47 shy of canceling the Upside Warning. If the bullish trend is to continue, the bounce may have started now.
Closed $SPX Nov 3rd 2520/2545 call spreads for 19.45. Sold Friday for 22.70. This will be another #ITMroll, but I’m going to roll it late today or tomorrow, provided we continue higher.
Stopped Oct 31st 2560/2535 put spreads for 9.60. Sold for 3.15 on Friday. This was stopped on the way back up from the lows. Can’t risk a gap down with expiration date so near. I’m going to consider how to roll tomorrow.
TICKs hit +600 for first…
TICKs hit +600 for first time today
SPX trades
#SPXcampaign $SPX Huge day and still going. In chronological order:
Stopped Oct 25th 2575/2550 put spreads for 11.75. Sold Monday for 3.85.
Stopped Nov 1st 2515/2540 call spreads for 22.40. Sold for 22.15 as #ITMroll last week.
Stopped Oct 30th 2560/2535 put spreads for 5.40. Sold for 4.75 last week.
Sold Oct 31st 2575/2600 call spreads for 3.05 as a partial roll.
Sold Nov 8th 2530/2505 put spreads for 3.70 (1.5x pos size), #Rolling from Oct 30 puts stopped above.
Sold Nov 8th 2525/2550 call spreads for 19.40, an #ITMroll from Nov 1st calls stopped above.
Sold Nov 24th 2450/2425 put spreads for 1.70.
Stopped Nov 16th 2500/2475 put spreads for 2.90. Sold Monday for 1.40.
Sold Nov 22nd 2470/2445 put spreads for 2.00 (1.5x pos size, roll from Nov 16 puts stopped above).
Stopped Nov 24th 2485/2460 put spreads for 3.10. Sold Monday for 1.45.
Sold Dec 29th 2350/2375/2655/2680 #CondorRoll for 3.35, as a roll to Nov 24 puts stopped above. Went out further than usual here as I like the distance OTM I’m able to get, even though it’s over two months to go.
More fun to come, I’m sure!
CMG closed
#Earnings Took the loss at a discount,
closed $CMG Oct 27th 290/300/350/360 #IronCondor for 9.65. Saved .35 from letting it expire… it could recover into Friday, but I’m doubting it. This also releases some margin.
Lowest TICK reading since mid-August
Lowest TICK reading since mid-August
CMG dying?
I still like their burrito bowls. My 300/290 put spread, not so much. #Earnings
VIX Indicator has been updated
The VIX adds another candle to the uptrend. (Click “Home/REFRESH” above to update the #VIXIndicator and other right-hand-column features)
EDIT: I added the SPX for comparison (purple line)
SPX trades
#SPXcampaign Closed $SPX Nov 8th 2580/2555 put spreads for 9.25. Sold yesterday for 9.35. Decided to bail on this as the lackluster bounce and rising VIX tell me that some index weakness could be coming.
Sold Nov 8th 2540/2565 call spreads for 19.35. #ITMroll from Oct 31st spread closed this morning.
CMG earnings
#Earnings I was looking for a trade on this and then @thomberg1201‘s post popped up to inspire me.
Sold $CMG Oct 27th 290/300/350/360 #IronCondor for 2.40. Biggest UP move: 7.8%, Biggest DOWN move: -9.3%, Average move: 5.7%. My short strikes are -7.6% and +7.9% OTM.
SPX calls sold
#SPXcampaign Sold to Open $SPX Nov 24th 2620/2645 call spreads for 1.70.
Also, closed Oct 31st 2535/2560 call spreads for 20.90. Sold for 17.95. Looking to roll as we move higher into afternoon.
NSC Earnings
#Earnings #ShortPuts Sold to Open $NSC Oct 27th 130 puts for 1.10. Biggest UP move: 10.5%, Biggest DOWN move: -3.5%, Average move: 3.0%. This trade is -2.3% OTM.
VIX Indicator has been updated
#VIXIndicator The VIX is trending up and having its biggest swings since the Upside Warning on 9/22.
VXX call
#LongPutDiagonals Sold a couple $VXX calls as rolls from the puts that have been painful.
STO VXX Nov 17th 38 call for 1.35
STO VXX Dec 15th 30 call for 5.50 (sold ITM)
SPX trades
#SPXcampaign I’m continuing to roll out threatened call spreads as if we will be continuing up. Today, the down move was larger than expected so some trades were made too early.
Stopped Call spreads:
Oct 23rd (today) 2565/2590 for 11.40. Had I waited, looks like it would have expired.
Oct 30th 2570/2595 for 11.00.
Oct 30th 2500/2525 for 24.50.
Rolls sold:
Oct 25th 2575/2550 put spreads for 3.85
Nov 6th 2520/2545 call spreads for 22.10
Nov 8th 2580/2555 put spreads, sold ITM for 9.35
Standard spreads sold:
Nov 16th (monthly) 2500/2475 put spreads for 1.40 (didn’t fill on Friday, so sold today)
Nov 24th 2485/2460 put spreads for 1.45
VXX Gaming
#VXXGame STO $SVXY Nov 17th 90 put for 1.87.
#LongPutDiagonals BTC $VXX Nov 3rd 43 put for 9.35. Sold for 6.70 on a roll.
First SPX down day in several, but VIX and VXX products not showing much interest.
Options Expiration 10/20/17
#OptionsExpiration #Earnings #ContangoETFs #VXXGame #LongPutDiagonals
Forgot to post this!
— Expiring w/max profit —
HCA 82.5 #CoveredCalls
NUGT 45 call
SVXY 55 and 68 puts
VXX 50 call
— Expiring w/max loss —
GWW 180/185 #ShortCallSpreads
NFLX 210/220/230 #CallButterfly
Econ Calendar for week of 10/23/17
Be sure to periodically click “Home/REFRESH” above to keep Bistro features updated.
SVXY roll
#VXXGame Rolled these two from the ITM call I closed:
STO $SVXY Dec 15th 95 put for 5.25
STO $SVXY Jan 2019 205 call for 8.05 (highest strike)
NFLX earnings
#Earnings #IronButterfly BTC $NFLX Oct 20th 200 put for 5.80. Sold in the 190/200/210 Iron Butterfly for 8.18 on Monday. Plus I had a call butterfly that was a bust, so profit all together was a whopping 1.18!
VXX Game folly
#VXXgame BTC $SVXY Oct 20th 90 call for 18.00. Sold for 2.65 on Aug 25th. This one slipped past me, should have rolled much earlier.
BTC $VXX Oct 20th 44 put for 10.00. Sold in a #StrangleRoll for 5.86 on 9/22. Part of the #LongPutDiagonals. Not rolling these anymore… waiting for some volatility to sell any more options against the long positions.
SPX puts sold
#SPXcampaign
Sold to Open $SPX Nov 16th 2465/2440 put spreads for 1.50
VXX game trades
#VXXgame
BTC $SVXY Dec 105 call for 8.20. Sold in the 90/210 strangle (pre-split) for 6.45 (effective price) in May.
Sold SVXY Dec 90 put for 6.25
Sold SVXY Dec 75 put for 1.65
#LongPutDiagonal BTC $VXX Nov 3rd 42 put for 6.90. Sold for 6.75 as a previous roll.
SPX puts closed
#SPXcampaign Closed on GTC order: $SPX Oct 27th 2465/2440 put spreads for .20. Sold for 1.45 at end of Sept.
