I initiated two new naked put option positions this past week even as the market edged higher and volatility continued to come in. The new short put option positions are both in stocks that were taken to the woodshed on earnings disappointments – one a retailer and the other a tobacco wholesaler (see details below). [...]
I made a variety of options trades this week, even as the market firmed up and volatility declined. I initiated two new short options positions – I sold covered calls against a core long position in an energy pipeline company and naked puts against another oil driller (see details below). I also closed out several [...]
I sold more put options this past week as volatility spiked higher amidst fears of a “double dip” in the economy and as stocks experienced further weakness. The latter was accompanied by a chorus of technical pundits predicting much lower prices to come, but the truth is the technical picture will continue to look bad [...]
I’ve made a number of options trades in recent weeks – some to reduce risk, others to take advantage of new option selling opportunities resulting from increased volatility. This week I mostly (but not entirely) took a step back while waiting for the market to further tip its hand. At the same time I’ve been [...]
I made several options trades this week as option volatility continued to drop back down to more normal levels. Considering the possibility that this could be just a prelude to another spike higher, I elected to continue to selectively reduce risk in some of my existing short naked put option positions (see below) by adjusting [...]
