Your Inside Source for Options Information

December 18, 2017

Featured Interview

Options Insider Radio Interviews: Exploring the Irrelevant VIX with OptionMetrics

Posted November 27th, 2017

In this episode, Mark is joined by David Hait, founder of OptionMetrics, LLC.

They discuss:

• Is VIX irrelevant? The Pros and Cons of VIX, the Market's Fear Gauge
• Are the answers lurking in the VIX futures term structure?
• What would an ideal VIX look like?
• Single name volatility products?
• Skew analysis and volatility
• Findings and takeaways from ORC 2017
• The Risk Premium That Never Was: A Fair Value Explanation of the Volatility Spread?
• Thoughts on Bitcoin
• And more

Upcoming Economic Reports

A preview of what may move the market this week

Options Insider Radio Network 

Episodes you may have missed from Options Insider Radio last week

Option Block 677: Bitcoin Is Destroying the World

Posted December 15th, 2017

Trading Block: Volume is a little lighter in XBT now. Taleb is not a fan of Bitcoin, at least not without options.

Apparently Bitcoin is destroying the world.

Question of the week: Everyone's caught Bitcoin fever these days. The first "real" futures launched at CBOE. Our question is simple - are you going to trade them this week?

• Heck Yes!
• Hell No!
• I already traded them
• Sticking w/Coinbase et al

Odd Block: Closing vertical w/ puts in Time Warner Inc. (TWX). Closing upside calls in Symantec Corp. (SYMC). Size ITM put roll in Sanchez Energy Corp. (SN)

Mail Block: Options question of the week

Options during earnings is a coin flip. But you know you love to do it. What's your earnings options MO?

• Buy Calls/Call Spreads
• Buy Puts/Put Spreads
• Sell Puts/Put Spreads
• Fly/Iron Fly/Iron Condor

Listener Questions: What's on your minds?

• Comment from Tom - Let's be honest. If any of us had size bitcoin we would have sold out ages ago and probably be kicking ourselves right now.
• Question from GiddyFranciscan - Sell in May and go away. What option strategy benefits from the profound market malaise that occurs over the summer?
• Question from KBX32 - What is the cheapest way to hedge my portfolio with options?

Around the Block/Economic Reports:

• Dec 15 - Industrial Production

 

Options Bootcamp 72: Busting Options Expiration Myths

Posted December 14th, 2017

Basic Training: Expiration Mythbusting

• What is expiration? Why do options expire? What does Triple Witching mean? Quadruple Witching?
• How does expiration impact the Greeks? How has expiration changed with the advent of the weeklys?
• Myth: Is it true that options control the stock market on expiration Friday?
• What happens when you exercise an option? American vs. European exercise? Can you exercise options early? Should you? How does auto-exercise work?

Mail Call: Fall in for listener questions

• Question from Christina Rico - Will we ever have daily options?
• Question from Ian Nichol - Love the show. What do you guys (and lady) think of this VXX debacle with FINRA and Wells Fargo? Seems like a few of the folks at Wells Fargo should have been listening to this show.
• Question from TradeHer - How do we get more ladies into #options?

 

Options Playbook Radio 187: Huddle Up

Posted December 14th, 2017

Mark and Brian are back to answer listener questions. In particular:

• Question from Ariell - Why should I ever buy puts? I can use a stop order in the stock for free and then put that extra capital to work in my trading account. By my math using stops instead of puts can boost your account 5-10% per year. That?s a lot of cheese.
• Question from The Financial Grynch? - Do you REALLY reckon long options is profitable?
• Question from Lonesome - Could you explain Theta and how it helps/hurts options traders? Should anyone ever buy OTM options?
• Question from Tom Matt - What happened to minis? Are they ever coming back?

Do you have a question that you want answered on a future episode? Send them to Brian at theoptionsguy@invest.ally.com, or to the Options Insider at questions@theoptionsinsider.com.

 

 

Option Block 676: Everyone Has Bitcoin Fever

Posted December 12th, 2017

Trading Block: We are living in the Bitcoin futures world. At 5:00 pm CT on Sunday, XBT futures opened at $15,000 and 890 contracts were traded by 7:15 pm. Total volume Sunday overnight was a reported 3,001 contracts, with nearly 20 trading firms actively participating.

Apparently Bitcoin is destroying the world.

Options Question of the Week: Everyone's caught Bitcoin fever these days. The first "real" futures launched today on CBOE. Our question is simple - are you going to trade them this week?

• Heck Yes!
• Hell No!
• I already traded them
• Sticking w/Coinbase et al

Odd Block: More Jan 2019 50 "catastrophe" puts in Tesla Motors Inc. (TSLA). Put-palooza in GameStop Corp. (GME). Call love in Nucor Corporation (NUE). Cheapie call roll in Glu Mobile Inc. (GLUU).

Mail Block: Last week's option question of the week

The war for Bitcoin derivatives is heating up again. CME Group is launching futures on 12/18. CBOE just announced a 12/10 launch date. Not enough? Nasdaq also announced futures with a planned Q2 2018 launch. With so many choices-How will you trade Bitcoin in 2018?

• 50% - CBOE Futures 12/10
• 28% - CME Futures 12/18
• 3% - Nasdaq Futures Q2 2018
• 19% - "Old School" Bitcoin

Listener questions and comments:

• Question from WillyCat9 - Hi Mark great show keep up the good work! I am used to a diagonal call spread being buying a longer term call with lower strike while selling a shorter term call with higher strike, much like a covered call. However, the TOS platform option scanner often generate a diagonal spread with buying shorter long call while selling the longer term. Can you explain the difference between the two? Why is the TOS identifying selling the longer term while buying the shorter term as high probability trade? I want to trust the TOS scanning result but it seems kind of risky. Would love to hear your thoughts, Thanks!
• Question from Taj Penaso - Hi, will there be options for bitcoin once the futures are traded?? Or just the futures until there are tradeable ETFs available? Thanks

Around the Block/Economic Reports:

• Dec 12 - PPI, Treasury Budget
• Dec 13 - CPI, FOMC Meeting
• Dec 14 - Jobless Claims. Retail Sales
• Dec 15 - Industrial Production

 

This Week in Futures Options 81: What Is the Biggest Options with the Retail Crowd?

Posted December 11th, 2017

Topics this week include:

• Crude
• Gold
• Winners: Soybean Meal, Class 3 Milk
• Losers: Nat Gas, Oats

Futures Options Feedback: Options question of the week

The war for Bitcoin derivatives is heating up again. CME Group is launching #futures on 12/18. CBOE just announced a 12/10 launch date. Not enough? Nasdaq also announced futures with a planned Q2 2018 launch. With so many choices-How will you trade Bitcoin in 2018?

• CBOE Futures 12/10
• CME Futures 12/18
• Nasdaq Futures Q2 2018
• "Old School" Bitcoin

Listener questions and comments:

• Comment from Mark Clyde Brant: Who is listing options first? Probably CBOE!
• Many thx to Nick @QuikStrike1 for the heads up about miners bitcoin recycling and selling calls thereby dampening call skew! Keep the inside BTC skinny coming!
• Question from Chilic - Love the TWIFO. Good info. Back to collars - do you guys think bitcoin will be as favorable to collars as other commodities like precious metals?
• Comment from JonasGrumble - Last night, my 19yr old daughter texted me "Have you invested in #Bitcoin yet?" I think we are near a top. Can you say #Shoeshinegirl?
• Question from B98 - I know straddle runs are big thing in the indexes. Don't hear them used much in the ags or metals though. Why's that?
• Question from Baspin - Is gold still the leading candidate for you guys when you're lining up collar trades?
• Question from JacksonTill - What's the biggest #option with retail crowd? WTI? Emini? Gold? Something else?

 

Volatility Views 284: Is Bitcoin Going to the Moon...or Higher?

Posted December 11th, 2017

Volatility Review: This week we are featuring guest co-host Bill Valentine of Valentine Ventures.

The numbers:

• VIX Cash, VVIX - 96, CBOE Skew Index ? 131
• VIX Options: ADV - 758k, VIX call/put: 3.6, Total 12.7m (9.95m Calls, 2.79m Puts)
• Bitcoin launching on 12/10.
• Question from Tortega - Not a vol question, but what's the deal with the Bitcoin futures and the Gemini index they are based on?

Volatility Voicemail: Options question of the week

The war for #Bitcoin #Derivatives is heating up again. CME Group is launching futures on 12/18. CBOE just announced a 12/10 launch date. Not enough? Nasdaq also announced futures w/ for a planned Q2 2018 launch. With so many choices-How will you trade #Bitcoin in 2018?

• 52% - CBOE Futures 12/10
• 27% - CME Futures 12/18
• 3% - Nasdaq Futures Q2 2018
• 18% - "Old School" Bitcoin

Listener questions and comments:

• Comment from Mark Clyde Brant - Who is listing options first? Probably CBOE! But Chicago is taking control of BTC exactly as Al Capone took control of booze distribution. He taught the city well!
• Question from NomNom - I was excited about #bitcoin but this is giving me pause.

Crystal Ball: Wild and reckless prognostication.

Last week:

• Mark L. - 10.25
• Mark S. - 11.25
• Russell - 42.5

This week:

• Mark L.- 9.75
• Mark S. - 9.15
• Bill - 10.0
• Ghost of Russell - 35

Where to Find Options Insider Radio?

Do you know all the ways you can access Options Insider Radio

Do you want to be a part of the fun?

This is when you can access the LIVE shows this week:

Monday:

Option Block LIVE at 3pm Central

Thursday:

Option Block LIVE at 3pm Central

Friday:

Volatility Views LIVE at 12pm Central

This Week in Futures Options LIVE at 1:30 Central. As always, you can join in the fun at http://mixlr.com/options-insider/