When you have been trading futures, options, stocks and commodities for over 20 years, it can be easy to forget what it was like starting out. In this article I will share with you some of my secrets that I wish I had known when I started trading.
Much of what you read about Financial [...]
Is there really such a thing as options trading strategies that work? Surely, there is. All you have to do is discover and learn a few of these trading principles and techniques. While some concepts give us a full view of technical terms, learning the following practices can very well give you tons of rewards [...]
Most people will tell you that day trading stock options is extremely risky and shouldn’t be attempted by new traders. And they are right, to an extent. Trading options can be risky even for professional traders with 20 years experience.
However, trading stock options can be a great way to leverage your investment. For a [...]
Written on 15th February 2008 (see below for further updates)
I thought I’d provide an example of a Bull Call Spread (BCS) using the Commonwealth Bank as an example. There is a lot of volatility in the market at the moment. If you have studied my course then you will know that high volatility [...]
Option trading is typically associated with three different investor types. There are hedging strategies employed by large institutional investors, income-producing strategies for cash flow investors, and more aggressive trading strategies favored by speculators.
But where the does the long term investor fit in? Are there any option trading strategies that the conservative investor can employ [...]
Option is a legal agreement between buyer and seller to buy or sell security at an agreed price in a certain period of time. It is quite similar to insurance that you pay an amount of money in order that your property is protected by the insurance company. The difference between these two is option [...]
There are various strategies to employ when a speculator wishes to take a directional position in an underlying contract. If the trader correctly anticipates the move and takes an appropriate position he can expect to show a profit. However this is not always the case as if the trader is successful in selecting the correct [...]
What is the difference? Some may shout.
There is indeed a very BIG difference. I used to search for options strategies all the time as I thought it will make me a better trader. But does it really help a trader to trade better?
My answer is Yes (30%) and No (70%). Most “options strategies” [...]
One will commonly hear or read the following “rule of thumb” for options spread trading:When implied volatility is high, sell credit spreads and when implied volatility is low, buy debit spreads.Unfortunately, this is simply not true. The credit spread and its corresponding debit spread at the same strike prices will always have virtually identical returns [...]
The Butterfly is an option position that is composed of 2 vertical spreads that have a common strike price. In other words, butterfly trading involves an opening position where options (either calls or puts) are bought (or sold) at 3 different strike prices. The way in which these options are created makes the butterfly a [...]