Turnaround Tuesday – Will CNBC Apologize to America?
by Phil - July 6th, 2010 8:24 am
I wasn’t worried, were you?
Actually, we were worried enough this weekend to revisit "5 Plays that Make 500% if the Market Falls" as we took off our very profitable April 28th disaster hedges in last week’s dip, leaving us net long and just a little nervous going into the weekend. As I mentioned last week, I find myself in the very strange situation during capitulation cycles of having to push back against general Member sentiment as even the most experienced traders tend to fall victim to the combination of market and media manipulation when it’s as relentless as it has been for the last 10 sessions as the markets dropped 7.5%, pretty much without a break.
We first noticed the all-out media attack on the markets way back on June 15th, when CNBC featured the tag-team combination of Pimpco’s Mohaned El-Erian and Nouriel "Doctor Doom" Roubini – one who is pushing his bonds and one who is pushing his book and both of whom can be counted on to spin things as negatively as possible. That very effectively put the breaks on the rally from 9,800 on June 7th to 10,450 (6.6%) on June 15h and ran us back down to lower lows as EVERYTHING that happened since then was put into a negative light. I won’t rehash all the idiotic statements made by Cramer or the Fast Money crew or the rest of the Criminal Narrators Boosting Commodities – it’s either obvious to you or you’ll never see it at this point.
CNBC has been woking the markets over since May 21st, when I first pointed out how negative their coverage had shifted. Over the weekend, we discussed the workings of the game and the players that CNBC work for and, wouldn’t you know it – this morning, timed for lunch in the EU, Dr. Doom Roubini is their very special guest – AGAIN! El-Erian and Gross were kind enough to warn people this morning that "shares are no bargain as the recovery fades" and Barton Biggs is telling anyone who will listen that he liquidated half his tech holdings last week. Funny how they don’t tell you WHEN they are buying or selling, just a mention after the fact to "help you" make the right decision.
“The psychology of the stock market couldn’t be worse, yet the valuation probably couldn’t be a whole lot better,” said Phil Orlando, the New York-based chief equity…
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DiggBullish Players Gorge on Apple Calls
by Option Review - June 22nd, 2010 4:06 pm
Today’s tickers: AAPL, APC, GE, CCL, EMC, RAH, EEM, WAG, FTR, OMX & JPM
AAPL – Apple, Inc. – Bulls sank their teeth into Apple call options today in order to position for continued appreciation in the price of the underlying through August expiration. The iPhone maker’s shares increased as much as 2.10% during the trading session to secure an intraday high of $275.97 perhaps on news the firm sold 3 million iPads in the first 80 days since the product was introduced to the U.S. marketplace. Apple optimists expecting shares to surpass yesterday’s new 52-week high of $279.01 purchased 1,100 calls at the August $280 strike for a hefty premium of $14.64 apiece. Investors long the calls are positioned to profit if Apple’s shares rally 6.75% over today’s intraday high of $275.97 to trade above the average breakeven point at $294.64 by August expiration. Bulls anticipating more significant share price gains by August expiration purchased approximately 2,500 calls at the higher August $290 strike for an average premium of $9.70 each. Investors long the August $290 strike contracts make money if the iPod maker’s shares surge 8.6% to exceed the average breakeven price of $299.70 by expiration day. Finally, uber-bulls bought 2,000 calls at the higher August $300 strike for an average premium of $7.38 a-pop. Traders holding the August $300 strike calls stand ready to accumulate profits as long as Apple’s shares jump 11.4% to trade above the average breakeven point on the calls at $307.38 by expiration day in August. Nearly 200,000 option contracts changed hands on Apple, Inc. by 3:00 pm (ET), with call options trading 1.35 times to each single put option in play.
APC – Anadarko Petroleum Corp. – Shares of the independent oil and gas exploration and production company which holds a 25% stake in BP’s leaking well in the Gulf of Mexico dropped 4.35% late in the session to stand at $41.56 as of 3:15 pm (ET). Despite the decline in the price of the underlying today one optimistic option strategist positioned himself to one day bask in the light at the end of the tunnel by enacting a bullish debit call spread in the November contract. APC’s shares plunged 53.4% from a high of $74.14 on April 20 – the day the leak was triggered – down to a 52-week low of $34.54 on June 9, 2010. Since bottoming out on…
Wonderful Weekly Wrap-Up
by Phil - June 12th, 2010 8:28 am
I love it when a plan comes together!
Last week, I felt like I was going to have to call Animal Control to help me fight off the bears. As I mentioned in last week’s Wrap-Up, all 14 misses (out of 55 trade ideas for the week) we had were bullish plays that we were grabbing on the way down. On Friday we went bullish on USO, SSO, DIA, TBT (well, we’re always bullish on TBT), AET, ABX, Copper Futures and even poor BP. Those followed up on bullish plays we had taken on Thursday on TSRA, USO, MEE, FCX, EEM, ERX and XOM. We went into the weekend still bearish but we were excited about flipping back to bullish. My closing comment in the Wrap-Up was: " I’m hoping for a blow-off spike down on Monday with heavy volume, hopefully followed by a recovery over the next few days" and, gosh darn it, wouldn’t you know that’s EXACTLY what we got.
I don’t MAKE the markets do these things, I simply tell you what is going to happen and how you can make money on it… Needless to say, we had a LOT of fun this week at PSW! Last weekend, however, was such a bearish frenzy in the MSM that it was making our Members nervous and THAT I do not tolerate so I wrote : "The Worst-Case Scenario: Getting Real With Global GDP!" to illustrate why I felt our bottoms would hold and I began a Top 20 Buy List on Sunday and boy did we get some fabulous entries this week!
Monday Market Movement – Will We Survive?
As I said on Monday Morning: "I already stuck my neck out calling a bottom so now we’re just waiting patiently." We were disappointed to have not gotten a stronger statement from the G20 over the weekend but it was just the Finance Ministers, so we weren’t expecting too much until the big boys meet at the end of the month. While we were in a buying mood, I cautioned against getting too bullish until we took back our anticipated "weak bounce" levels, which were the orange lines on Monday’s Multi-Chart:
I pointed out (on another Multi-Chart) that Europe was already gathering strength so we were pretty confident things would go our way but, as I said in the 9:50 Alert to Members, SOX 340 and TRANQ 2,000 had be taken back before we could feel confident. My outlook for the day was:…
Fast and Furious Four-Day Wrap-Up
by Phil - June 5th, 2010 7:12 am
Wheeeee, what a ride!
Like any good car race, the lead changes often in the markets. Yesterday the bears took the lead as the combination of Hungarian debt issues and a disappointing jobs number were like a tire blow-out for the bulls, who were forced to pull in for a pit stop. Fortunately, we had our seat belts on and had assumed the crash position as I had warned Members on THURSDAY Morning at 10:04:
Watch that 666 line on the RUT – we don’t want to lose that or even show weakness there… ISM a bit disappointing, now we’ll see what holds but I’m out of short-term, unhedged, upside plays here.
I felt strongly enough about it that we also posted it on Seeking Alpha, to warn as many people as possible, under the heading: "Phil Calls Short-Term Top." I don’t post live trade ideas on Seeking Alpha but in Premium Member Chat (and you can subscribe here) I followed right up at 10:17 Thursday morning with the following trade idea:
BGZ (large-cap bear) is at $15.27 and I like them as a hedge here with the (June) $14/16 bull call spread at .75, selling the July $14 puts for .95 and that’s a net .20 credit on the $2 spread with about $2.70 in margin so you can do a 10 contract spread for a $200 credit and $2,700 in margin (according to TOS standard) with a $2K upside if the market even twitches lower. Worst case is you own BGZ as a hedge to a dip below Dow 10,600 (your put-to area) at net $13.80 (9% lower than current price).
That’s what hedged trade ideas look like in our Member Chat. At PSW, you need to put some time in LEARNING how to trade and, more importantly, how to hedge. This is a fairly complicated options play but we take it BECAUSE IT WORKS! There are many, many simpler ways to play that don’t work (or carry far more risk) but we prefer to teach our Members how to do the things that do work. As it stands, just 48 hours later, BGZ is up 10% on Friday to $16.89 (so the spread is now 100% in the money) and June $14/16 bull call spread is now $1.50 while the July $14 puts are Down to .60 so net .90 already on the spread that already paid…
Emerging Markets ETF Optimist Buys Ratio Call Spread
by Phil - June 1st, 2010 4:19 pm
Today’s tickers: EEM, PFE, XLF, DELL, NWL, QCOR, SHOO, EWZ, SLB, DOW & TEX
EEM – iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index ETF – Contrarian options activity on the EEM, an exchange-traded fund designed to produce investment results that correspond to the price and yield performance of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index, points to optimism the fund’s shares may rebound sharply by July expiration. Shares of the emerging markets ETF are down 1.10% to stand at $37.68 just before 3:30 pm (ET). One bullish strategist positioning for a rally in the next couple of months purchased a ratio call spread on the fund. The investor picked up 3,000 calls at the July $38 strike for an average premium of $2.05 each, and sold 6,000 calls at the higher July $41 strike for a premium of $0.73 apiece. The net cost of the transaction amounts to $0.59 per contract. The trader responsible for the ratio spread makes money as long as shares of the EEM rally 2.41% to surpass the effective breakeven price of $38.59. Maximum available profits of $2.41 per contract pad the investor’s wallet if, by expiration, shares of the emerging markets fund rally 8.80% to $41.00. Shares of the EEM last traded at $41.00 back on May 4, 2010.
PFE – Pfizer, Inc. – Shares of the research-based global pharmaceutical company earlier rallied slightly to an intraday high of $15.42, but slipped lower in afternoon trading to stand 0.40% lower on the day at $15.17 as of 2:45 pm (ET). Bullish options activity took place on the stock despite the slight share price erosion suggesting one investor expects Pfizer’s shares to rebound sharply by September expiration. The optimistic individual purchased a debit call spread, picking up roughly 4,000 calls at the September $17 strike for an average premium of $0.30 each, and selling about the same number of calls at the higher September $19 strike for an average premium of $0.06 apiece. The investor paid a net $0.24 per contract to establish the spread. Pfizer’s shares must rally 13.65% over the current price of $15.17 in order for the investor to break even on the transaction at $17.24. Shares must surge 25.25% to exceed $19.00 before the trader accrues maximum available profits of $1.76 per contract.
XLF – Financial Select Sector SPDR – A put spread on the XLF, an exchange-traded fund designed to yield investment results that correspond…
Emerging Markets Bear With Butterfly Wings Dominates EEM Puts In Afternoon Trading
by Option Review - May 24th, 2010 4:32 pm
Today’s tickers: EEM, ETFC, CVA, CSCO, CMCSK, XLI, CATM, AXL & ASML
EEM – iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index ETF – An enormous bearish put butterfly spread comprised of 240,000 put options cast a gloomy shadow over the emerging markets fund late in afternoon trading. Shares of the EEM, an exchange-traded fund designed to provide investment results that correspond to the price and yield performance of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index – an index created to measure equity market performance in the global emerging markets, are down 0.35% at $37.21 as of 3:30 pm (ET). The massive bearish transaction on the fund suggests one big player is bracing for a potential 19% pullback in the price of the underlying shares by June expiration. The butterfly spread spans the June $25/$30/$35 strikes, with 60,000 puts picked up at the June $25 strike for a premium of $0.11 each [wing 1] and another 60,000 puts purchased at the higher June $35 strike for a premium of $0.88 apiece [wing 2]. The body of the butterfly involved the sale of 120,000 puts at the central June $30 strike for a premium of $0.27 a-pop. The net cost of the spread amounts to $0.45 per contract. The EEM’s shares must slip beneath the upper breakeven price of $34.55 before the investor starts to make money ahead of June expiration. Maximum available profits of $4.55 per contract pad the investor’s wallet if shares of the underlying fund fall 19.35% from the current price to settle at $30.00 at expiration. Shares of the EEM last traded below $34.55 back on August 19, 2009, and touched a 52-week low of $30.12 back on June 23, 2009. The investor responsible for the giant transaction only ever risks losing $0.45 per contract, but stands ready to amass more than 10 times that amount – $4.55 per contract – if shares nose-dive down to $30.00 ahead of expiration day next month.
ETFC – E*Trade Financial Corp. – A massive three-legged options combination play initiated on financial services firm, E*Trade Financial Corp., suggests one investor sees shares of the provider of online brokerage services trading within a narrow range through expiration in January 2011. ETFC shares are up 2.05% at $1.49 as of 2:30 pm (ET). The big options player initiated a sold strangle, selling 30,000 calls at the January 2011 $2.0 strike for $0.21 apiece and shedding 30,000 puts at…
Goldman Sachs Put Provokes Interest
by Option Review - May 21st, 2010 5:48 pm
Today’s tickers: GS, ACAS, EWZ, EEM, & ALL
GS – Goldman Sachs – Proving that option trading constantly offers opportunities for investors, today’s trade on actively traded investment banker, Goldman Sachs falls under the “did-you-know?” category. Of course we all know about the SEC’s recent clampdown on the banker and the embarrassing revelations about what Fabulous Fab’s emails to his girlfriend said, yet the share price remains buoyant at $142.54 and has rallied 4.7% in today’s activity. So the outlier trade involving a 2,000 lot spread in the January 2011 contract drew our attention. On the bold face of things the spread appears to be a bearish play just like any other put spread, but the investor plumped for the $50 and $25 strikes to play Goldman’s fortunes. But upon a review of time and sales data it appears that this investor wrote the spread by selling 2,000 puts at the $50 strike for $1.40 in exchange for 2,000 puts priced at $1.00 at the $25 strike. Assuming that Goldman’s shares don’t face a wipeout to the tune of 65% between now and expiration in seven months, this investor gets to keep $1.00 per contract for a total premium of $200,000. We didn’t know that. The elevated reading of options implied volatility – near 83% in the case of the $50 strike put – has clearly set this investor’s mind racing.
ACAS – American Capital Ltd. – Growing fears over a double-dip recession and what impact the strains to liquidity around the world’s credit markets have taken a hefty toll on American Capital. The company puts together employee and management buyouts using debt and equity financing. Arguably the company might suffer more than others if equity prices remain in the doldrums on account of a debt crisis in Europe. The recent recovery in its share price to $6.65 went up in smoke this week with shares slumping on Thursday to $4.37. One investor appears to have taken advantage the drop to place a bullish call spread using 7,500 call options in the November contract. The purchase of intrinsically valued $4.00 strike calls is matched against the sale of an equal amount of $5.00 calls. Resumption to normal business conditions would presumably see shares recover through this leaving the investor with a 55 cents per contract gain having spent a net 45 cents today to place this trade. Option implied volatility…
Frenzied Bearish Options Activity Ensues as Visa, MasterCard Shares Take a Big Hit
by Option Review - May 18th, 2010 4:20 pm
Today’s tickers: V, MA, JPM, COF, EEM, STX, MDC, DPS, MYL & LEN
V – Visa, Inc. – Shares of the world’s largest payments network are down sharply by 7.75% to stand at $68.92 as of 2:55 pm (ET) after Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D – RI) suggested Monday that the U.S. should cap interest rates on credit cards. Other credit card companies such as MasterCard and Capital One Financial Corp. are also suffering significant share price erosion this afternoon. Bearish options investors flooded the May contract with pessimistic plays, while more optimistic traders appear to be positioning for a rebound in Visa’s share price by June expiration. Investors bracing for continued bearish movement in the price of the underlying stock picked up 3,600 now in-the-money puts at the May $70 strike for an average premium of $1.15 apiece. Buying interest spread to the lower May $65 strike where 1,400 puts were purchased at an average premium of $0.36 each. Finally, uber-bearish traders scooped up 1,290 puts at the May $60 strike – the lowest strike price currently available in the front month – for an average premium of $0.16 apiece. Investors long the May $60 strike puts make money if Visa’s shares plummet 13.15% from the current value of $68.92 to breach the average breakeven point to the downside at $59.84 by expiration on Friday. Bearish traders also ravaged May contract calls, selling roughly 7,000 lots at the May $75 strike to take in an average premium of $0.71 per contract. Investors also shed 2,000 calls at the May $70 strike to receive an average premium of $2.47 apiece. Call sellers retain the full premium received today as long shares of the underlying stock do not exceed $70.00 ahead of expiration. Finally, optimistic options investors are positioning for a rebound in the credit card company’s shares by purchasing 1,800 calls at the June $70 strike for an average premium of $4.71 each. Shares must rally 8.4% over the current price of the stock before June $70 strike call buyers start to make money above the average breakeven price of $74.71. Bullish call buying activity spread to the higher June $72.5 strike where 2,500 calls were picked up for an average premium of $3.64 per contract. Investor uncertainty, as measured by the overall reading of options implied volatility, is net up on Visa today with volatility rising 16.5% to 52.68% as…
Smart virtual Portfolio Management III – The $1,000,000 virtual Portfolio (Members Only)
by Phil - May 15th, 2010 6:35 am
You can’t lose what you don’t have.
The reverse is true for people with Millions in a stock virtual portfolio. Phil points out that the reson you don’t run a large hedge fund trying to make 100% gains is that the people who invest in those funds are more interested in what we call "preservation of capital" rather than generating wealth. Generally, the people who have $1M of investable cash to play the markets have already achieved a great deal of success, often by taking their own risks along the way. For most of us, $1M is hard to come by and, while we want to put that money to work – we certainly don’t want it wondering off and joining the circus.
As a high net-worth investor, you need to decide how to diversify your assets to suit your long-term goals. We’re not going to get into that here – let’s just say that if you want to gamble and go for some of our "more exciting" plays, perhaps allocate a portion of the virtual portfolio to those. Whether that’s 5% or 10% or 30% is up to you but it is good to fence off your risk to a sensible, manageable amount that you really can afford to lose while keeping the bulk of your market allocation well diversified and well-hedged.
I have my own 5% Rule. Phil’s famous 5% Rule deals with the predictable movement of stocks in their trading ranges but my 5% Rule, which Phil also agrees with is simply "Do not put more than 5% of your virtual portfolio in the stock of any one company!” This is so much easier said than done for many reasons!!
[1] Transition to Large Numbers
Moving from a 5 or 6 figure account to a 7 figure account has a profound impact on many traders. In fact, our friend Dr. Brett refers to the effect “performance anxiety” can have on a virtual portfolio and notes that one of the causes is the responsibility felt by traders as larger dollar amounts are traded. Phil advocates a system of "purging" Short-Term virtual Portfolio gains when they gets too large and shifting money into safer investments in a Long-Term virtual Portfolio – it is good to have a strategy for balancing out your holdings, not just target goals.
While it might be acceptable to put 15% of your $10,000 virtual portfolio on that long call you just KNOW will…
Bears Bombard Homebuilders ETF
by Option Review - May 5th, 2010 4:16 pm
Today’s tickers: XHB, MTH, AIG, THC, RL, GPS, ITMN, EEM & EWZ
XHB – SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF – Shares of the XHB, an exchange-traded fund designed to track the performance of the S&P Homebuilders Select Industry Index, are trading 3% lower this afternoon to stand at $18.29 as of 2:50 pm (ET). Pessimistic positioning by one options strategist suggests shares of the underlying fund could continue to decline ahead of June expiration. The investor initiated a three-legged options combination play, essentially selling call options to finance the purchase of a debit put spread on the fund. The pessimistic player established the trade by purchasing 12,000 puts at the June $18 strike for a premium of $0.79 apiece, spread against the purchase of the same number of puts at the lower June $17 strike for $0.44 each. The third leg of the transaction involved the sale of 12,000 calls at the June $20 strike for a premium of $0.36 a-pop. The investor responsible for the bearish play pockets a net credit of one penny per contract, and keeps it as long as shares trade below $20.00 through expiration day. Maximum potential profits available to the trader – including the net credit received – amount to $1.01 per contract and pad the investor’s wallet if shares of the underlying fund decline another 7.05% from the current price of $18.29 to breach the $17.00-level by June expiration.
MTH – Meritage Home Corp. – The homebuilding company, like the homebuilders ETF, enticed bearish options investors late in the trading session. Meritage Home’s shares are down sharply by 5.35% to $22.11 as of 3:00 pm (ET). But, Meritage is not the only one suffering today as shares of rival firms Pulte Group Inc., Lennar Corp and D.R. Horton, Inc., also declined significantly along with the price per share of the SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF. Pessimistic options players expecting MTH’s shares to continue lower in the next several months purchased at least 4,300 puts outright at the September $20 strike for a premium of $1.60 per contract. The confirmed purchase of the these contracts represents just a portion of the more than 10,000 puts exchanged at that strike today where previously open interest stood at just 377 lots. Put-buyers make money if Meritage’s shares plummet 16.75% below the current price of $22.11 to breach the effective breakeven point to the downside at $18.40 by September…
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Philip R. Davis is a founder Phil's Stock World, a stock and options trading site that teaches the art of options trading to newcomers and devises advanced strategies for expert traders...
Ilene is editor and affiliate program
coordinator for PSW. She manages the Favorites backup site
(