Author: ivtrades

  • Condor Selling

    The condor is basically a combination of a bull call spread and a bear call spread. Essentially, options with consecutive strike prices, buying options with a lower exercise price, and options with higher exercise price. The condor is generally created using the same numbers of short and long calls (or puts). You will nee to…

  • Collar Buying

    This is when you own shares in a particular stock and then you sell Calls against it and then buy Puts. You would use this strategy when you think that the stock rice is a little overdone and you are expecting some downside. This has limited risk due to the long put option, but also…

  • Closing Sale

    This is an order that you would place to offset an existing long position. For example, If you buy a call option to open a new position, you would then need to offset or close that position with a closing order. This is an order to sell-to-close.

  • Closing Purchase

    A closing purchase is an order that you place to offset an existing short position. For example, If you sell a call option to open a new position, you would then need to offset or close that position with a closing order to buy. In other words, you would buy-to-close.

  • Cash Secured Put

    This is when you sell Put options with the intention or to take delivery of the underlying shares. Cash is deposited in the account and, if the stock price falls to the strike price of the put option, you get the delivery of the shares into the account once the Options expire.

  • Calendar Spread

    A Calendar spread is when you sell an option and buy another one with a more distant expiration date. This can be created with either puts or calls. For example, let’s say you wanted to play Netflix with calendar spread because you figure that the stock has dropped too far too quickly and will bounce…

  • Butterfly Spread

    This is basically a combination of Bull Spread and Bear Spread. The main feature of this strategy us that your risk is fixed and your upside/profit is capped. Selling options with the same strike price and also buying options with the same expiration months, but higher and lower strike prices. Generally, the butterfly is in…

  • Box Spread

    A Box Spread is simply a combination of two vertical spreads. These spreads are used by professional Options traders who are trying to take advantage of a situation where the cost of the spreads (both verticals) is less than what the verticals would be worth when they expire. They consider this to be a type…