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Following is an old post on the status of my portfolio from a different thread, that I happened to run across. Just for kicks look at a chart of the S&P 500 from March 2007. I think there is a remarkable similarity between my portfolio back then(as describe in the old post) and today’s...

What an excellent opinion of this strategy. I agree with every word of your entire post. This is the third time that I have been in the middle of an "unexpectedly" brutal crash in my portfolio. I cannot deny that I've made management mistakes, since the proof is right in front of your eyes...

From my post on 05-21-08 01:13 PM: “This is one of those days (oil hitting 133, gold at 930, DOW down 450 pts in 2 days) that I could look back on, several months from now, and think, "Wow, my account was at an all time high, why didn't I liquidate everything and just sit in cash and wait...

No trades today. New low for my liquidation value of my account at 179K. Now my risky positions number 14. I mentioned before that (by observation) when volatility increases and stocks tank, the spreads obviously are worth less, and cost less when buying. So I was able to make some...

Back to the question posed by Ath1. And Nicktan. And BeatingtheS&P. What I have noticed in past trading is the disappointment I’ve felt when watching a stock that had a temporary setback and taking a loss as I sold the spreads, only to watch it recover a week later. What I was trying to...

Today’s activity: SOLD 3 DBA JAN 25/35 @ 7.6 Stock at 36.18, cost basis 6.85, gross profit 225 (exited today cause stock only $1 deep, and I can use the money better.) SOLD 5 MOS SEPT 70/75 @ 4.8 Stock at 123.71, net profit 560.5 (early out opportunity) BUY 6 GLD MAR...

Ammo’s post above is his third attempt to get me to consider protective puts. He also posted the ideas on 5/29 and 6/12. He is persistent. I’m actually coming around a little bit. The quick math I did in my previous post did impress me and it is taking some time to soak in. The...

Sunday: Prompted by ammo, I’m looking at protective strategies. Example using APA and yahoo option data for today. I can buy a bull call spread position: 5 APA JAN 80/85 for 3.8. APA price is 109.6. This gives me an expected gross profit of 600, for an invested $1900. With a...

ammo Your excellent post deserves a thoughtful reply, and I will work on that. For now, I think your perception of the overall risk in my portfolio is much higher than my perception. I don't feel at all out of control, and I'm interested to see how my reasoning works out during the next...

Thursday Activities: none Sometimes day-to-day activity fogs the bigger picture. Had a chance to look back at my July buying activity. It wasn’t too bad. I was disappointed yesterday that I had no resources to capture these great low prices, but if fact I have been doing a pretty good...

Monday Activity: none Tuesday Activity: none Wednesday Activity: SOLD: 5 UNG OCT 42/47 @ 2.3 Stock at 45.65, net LOSS 567 SOLD: 5 UNG JAN 40/45 @ 2.4 Stock at 45.50, net LOSS 611.53 BUY: 5 RIG JAN 100/105 @ 4.1 Stock at 137.08, expected gross profit 450...

Economically spreaking, last week's crunch on energy and commodities was like a stiff wind coming in, stiring up the trees and dust, and leaving without any damage. After my portfolio low of 189K on Thursday, there was a small recovery on Friday, and a full recovery today (from last weeks...

Try again on file.

Attached is the excel file showing my spread positions. I can also look at the positions relative to current stock prices, so I can judge the relative safety of my position. By way of explanation, here is the first two spread positions for AEM: 4 AEM NOV 45/55 5 AEM JAN 40/45...

July 17 Activity: BUY 6 CVX 70/75 @ 3.9 Stock at 86.5, expected gross profit 660 Well today was the dreaded day and it has come and gone. Not to say it won’t return tomorrow. All my spreads have been put strongly to the test the last few days. Can’t deny there has been some...

July 16 activity: SOLD: 3 GRMN OCT 35/40 @ 3.55 Stock at 46.64, net LOSS 83.40 (exited position on strength today, to exit without much loss. I felt today’s market gain was without legs (I hope I’m wrong!), and don’t feel strong about GRMN’s near term growth. So, I was...

I'm not as afraid as those holding long positions on these stocks. I'm invested at levels 20% below the longs, that is the whole point of the DITM strategy. I'm investing in oil and energy stocks at prices as if oil were priced at $80 to $90 per barrel. I have a lot of confidence in the...

July 15 Activity: BUY 3 SLB JAN 70/80 @ 7.6 Stock at 97.28, cost = 760*3 + 4.2 comm = 2284.2 Expected gross profit 720 BUY 5 APA JAN 80/85 @ 4.05 Stock at 119.4, cost = 2025 + 7 comm Expected gross profit 475 ******** Busy day today. Oil drops down to...

I would argue that if testing a spread strategy, legging into the spread would be a questionable tactic, adding another variable to your methodology. Unless you can find a verifiable strategy to get better fills, you are adding an un-needed risk factor. Maybe better to just enter a spread when...

Thanks for your comment. I've been watching TEX. Recently reduced from 8 to 4 spreads. I'm holding the 4 spread position for now because the fundamentals are sound (P/E around 6), and even technicals are pointing to a rise. Earnings come out July 24, and I haven't decided yet to hold or...