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I don't know what the minimum balance is (used to be $500) but Scottrade provides Dow Jones news (DJNS) for free for account holders. A number of years ago I used DJNS on TD Ameritrade @ $39,95 a month. Scottrade was a much better deal (g) but the nice thing about TD was that you could...

I would suggest looking elsewhere. Options are primarily derivatives of price so they'll loosely track the underlying. Other than the most liquid ones (high volume), they're apt to zig zag around the price curve because B/A spreads can narrow and widen, IV can fluctuate and the last trade may...

That's good advice. Sooner or later everything bites ya but sometimes you can get lucky and stumble onto something that channels for a good stretch of time.

Long straddles are a tough way to make a buck, with or without your magical scanner that allegedly finds high probability stocks ready for sharp moves. You want some BB respect? Post an ongoing list of stocks about to move. Otherwise, sell your product elsewhere.

CC writers are generally selling the call for the premium and usually aren't concerned with vega. The underlying is their issue and as long as it cooperates, they don't care how high or low IV goes as long as the call expires and they get to write again and again.... The OP is doing...

If it was that simple, there'd be no one living inland,

How can I find entry point's and exit points? Now that's the $64 question ------------------------------------ Can I tell you here and now where the entry and exits are? Hardly. But if you've traded intraday for awhile, you know there's a feel for a stock in play. As it moves on volume...

Your account value doesn't drop because of the dividend so there should be no margin implications. IOW, the stock drops $8.50 on ex-div date but your account is immediately credited with a pending $8.50 dividend which you'll receive on the payment date. AFAIK, the more relevant event is...

It might, it might not. Same holds true for Fibonacci, candlesticks, fundamental analysis, risk management, programming, astro, tea leaves, ad nauseum.

What's so hard to comprehend? If one does most any strategy position in real size and the worst possible scenario for the position occurs, would you expect a good result ?? Add in a dose of money mismanagement and you're really cookin your goose.

I'll probably catch flak for this but I don't think that your everyday retail investor who employs basic positions really needs the Greeks. If you're doing a covered call (or equivalent) or a vertical and employing a stop, it's pretty clear where that is. OTOH if one has a combination of...

It's been pointed out here a gazillion times that the synthetic is better so let's make it a gazillion and one: Selling a naked put is equivalent to doing a covered call. So this rocket scientist of an advisor has clients incur 4 commissions (plus B/A loss) when it can be done in as few as...

If you're adding contracts to your position, you have greater exposure. #3 is a separate animal because it's a different stategy. Like everything, if you get the timing and direction right, it works. If not, you know the answer. There's no easy answer to #1 versus #2 because there are...

I don't know what the bean counters say the convention should be but for an overnight play, the risk is a lot closer to the debit cost (from your example) than the maximum loss. The overnight risk is dependent on the amount of IV collapse. If it's small, it will tend to be less thatn the...

No argument there. As mentioned, in the OP's narrow context, a backspread is apt to be a better choice than a long call. But in the real world, also agreed that consistent timing and direction is unlikely. My two cents for these high flying EA's is that the sale of near month high vol against...

Be careful. Fomex-Fomex may want to split hairs about whether that spread is ITM or deep ITM. LOL

The CBOE has a margin calculator: http://www.cboe.com/tradtool/mCalc/default.aspx

The OP is making an overnight directional bet on an earnings play where he expects a big move. Granted, it's a huge expection. IMO, there are better ways to play the EA but in the context of the OP's bet, I agree with him that the backspread can be a better choice than the outright long call.

It always amuses me how wrong all the option authors are and how right you think you are