Search results

IDS, I have traded ES and NQ futures in an IRA before on IB, and have also bought equity options and sold cash-secured puts. I am right that one may sell ES and NQ options in an IRA with only the CME/Globex margin requirement? Thanks.

If you want to get a feel for forex binaries, you can sign up at OANDA for an "FX Game" account. For stock indices, there is Bet On Markets. Soc Gen also offers some binaries, I think. Here is what I have learned from the "game account": the edge loss with OTC options can be rather...

Doing a calendar/reverse calendar with straddles is redundant. No need to sell/buy BOTH puts and calls; one or the other will suffice.

Is this a forum about Dr. Niederhoffer, or one about the Trading Markets research? Although traders may disagree as to the definition of "trend" or "trend trading," those who define it as 3, 4, 5 or 6 consecutive higher closes should look at the TM article. The TM research did not surprise...

Well put. Very well put.

I am not talking about margin interest, I am talking about the difference in margin between buying/selling straddles and doing the synthetic. Simply put, doing the straddle with options on both sides is cheaper than doing the synthetic under Reg T. If the stock is around 40, selling a...

Actually, the example of a synthetic straddle you cited actually has a distinct DISadvantage over a regular straddle: higher margin cost. Under reg T margin, the short stock will take up more margin than the sold option would have. Retail traders should stick to the plain vanilla straddle...

I wouldn't suggest making a habit of shorting high RS stocks hitting new highs, but it has worked this time, so far. Good for u.:-)

I'll second that! When traders talk about option selling and "probabilities", I just shake my head. If the IV increases, the probabilities change. If IV is at historic lows, the probabilities will almost certainly have to lowered over time.

Those who write/sell options better know something about gamma (and vega, and delta). Imo, even good directional traders will struggle only if they buy options (unless vol is at major lows), but can make good money by writing.

Yes, there are some similarities, but they are very different in risk. A calendar/time spread's risk is limited to the debit (the amount paid to put it on). The risk is limited because the longer term option will always have more or equal value than the shorter term one. An example of a...

One day moves usually do not mean much. Let's see what the stock does in coming days and weeks. I'd consider going short if the stock rallied but failed to penetrate the previous high and instead fell back on higher than normal volume (i.e. a "failed rally"). I cannot think of a easier...

It would look SOMEWHAT like a long calendar spread, but there are some differences. Both are long theta and short gamma, but the calendar is long vol, whereas the straddle is short vol.

If you sell 2 atm puts for every 100 shares short, it's a synthetic short straddle, one of my favorite trades.

Buying stock and then buying a put certainly provides leverage, but it is nothing new. It is called a call.

There is if you sell too much and overleverage yourself! Cheap gamma is difficult to hedge/replicate with the underlying, since deltas are being created so quickly. OTM options--the teenies that make up the so-called "credit spread"--have little gamma and are therefore at the end of the...

With the long straddle, you have a high probability of losing money, but the risk is limited to the purchase price, so I wouldn't call it "very high risk". That said, 95% of the time I'd sell straddles over buying them.

Maybe the guy has two or three times that in his home or homes. Maybe the guy had a lot of medical bills or a sick child, or several kids who just finished graduating from college. Who knows, and who cares? What someone else has in his or her account is no one else's business.