Options news you can use for Tuesday, July 24, 2018

Swan Global Investments, our long-time partner for the Advisors Option, has an event every year that brings together leaders from the industry to promote an open dialogue to discuss and share ideas on some of the most challenging issues facing investors. We are pleased to bring you audio from this event. Part 1: Perspectives on Risk Management Seeking Solutions for Endowments, Foundations, and Pensions Moderator: Gib Watson III, CIMA - Managing Partner, Trident Wealth Management Consulting, LLC Panelists: Samuel Gallo, CPA, CAIA - CIO, University System of Maryland Foundation Carlos Chujoy, CFA - CIO, Employment Retirement System of Texas Sean P. McChesney - Vice President, Hedged Strategies Research, Fund Evaluation Group, LLC

OIC instructor Bill Ryan joins host Joe Burgoyne in a discussion about protection strategies. Then, Mark Benzaquen from OIC’s Investor Services talks about how his group can help with your options-related questions.   

Volatility Review: A look back at the week from a volatility perspective More trade war! Trump threatens $500B more tariffs, the market shrugs. VIX Cash - 12.50 VVIX - 100 VIX Options - ADV: 460k, VIX call/put: 3.1/1, Total 5.42m (4.09m Calls, 1.34m Puts) VXX - 31, ADV: 255k Earnings: Netflix and Microsoft Volatility Voicemail: Listeners have their say QOTW: Trading Options during earnings season can be challenging. Some live for it while others avoid it. Do you hold Options positions through Earnings announcements? If so, what is your approach? Or do you prefer to trade just before/after the event? Or is it all too risky? 28% - Yes, Short Premium 20% - Yes, Long Premium 25% - No, Too Risky 27% - I trade around the event QOTW, part deux: Yup it's earnings season once again. Options traders are gearing up for a busy season. Which names do you think will dominate your options trading this season? NFLX AMZN TSLA GOOGL Listener questions and comments: Question from BigDawg - Are there any of the proprietary vol indicators out there that you guys follow regularly? Question from Lil Vig - Is VXX the greatest trading vehicle ever created? So much sweet erosion. Crystal Ball: Your prognostication headquarters Last week: Mark L. -12.20 Andrew -12.25 Guest - 11.99 Next week: Mark L. - 12.23 Andrew - 12.22

Options news you can use for Monday, July 23, 2018

Trading Block: A review of the week in trading Amazon and Apple: The race to $1 trillion. Earnings! Thursday - Microsoft Friday - GE, Honeywell MSFT (after the bell) - $104.70, ATM straddle: $3.70, approx. 3.5% Odd Block: Bullish risk reversal in Discovery Communications Inc. (DISCA), Rolling call speeds in Omnicom Group Inc. (OMC), Call 3-way in Hanesbrands Inc. (HBI) Strategy Block: Uncle Mike Tosaw discusses options pairs vs. stock pairs. Mail Block: Listeners weigh in Volatility Flash Poll: $VXX is back in the erosion zone. Many short vol traders are anxiously waiting for it to break the 30 handle. When do you think $VXX will finally break 30? This week? Next Week? Never? Let us know below: Week Ending Fri 7/20 Week Ending Fri 7/27 Week Ending Fri 8/3 Never! I'm Long Vol! Last week's option question of the week: Yup it's earnings season once again. Options traders are gearing up for a busy season. Which names do you think will dominate your options trading this season? 17% - $NFLX 44% - $AMZN 22% - $TSLA 17% - $GOOGL Around The Block/This Week in the Markets: Jul 19 - Jobless Claims

Options news you can use for Friday, July 20, 2018

Topics This Week Include: Silver/Gold Crude Equities/Russell Futures Options Feedback Question from Daniel - Saw what looked like a gold fly in the TWIFO report but Nick from QuikStrike said he didn't see it in the block reports. Why is that? Are all trades not reported in the block trade reports? Question from Yancy - I heard it said that there are 20 active names and about 75 tradeable names in the equity options market for retail and that's about it. How does it shake out in futures options?

In this episode, Mark is joined by Mark Davies and John Standerfer, the CEO and CTO of S3. They discuss: What does S3 do? Volume and volatility are back Liquidity and execution issues Too many options symbols? More exchanges TCA in the options market Crypto obsession And more....

In this episode, Mark is joined by Rob D'Arco, CEO at Rival Systems. They discuss: How was Rival formed? What does Rival do? What are the new functions customers can expect at Rival? Liquidity and the plight of market makers Generating new business And more...

We are in the heart of earnings season, and next week a lot of the FANG stocks will announce. Let's take a look at a diagonal spread in GOOGL. You can find more in The Options Playbook, which is always available on OptionsPlaybook.com, in on the Amazon Kindle edition. Specifically: Why a diagonal spread? What is a diagonal spread? Setting up a trade GOOGL announces earnigns on 7/23 Selecting the strikes and expirations What do we want to happen? What do we want to avoid? What is the risk? Reward? Remember margin! Do you have a question that you want answered on a future episode? Send them to Brian at [email protected], or to the Options Insider at [email protected].

Options news you can use for Thursday, July 19, 2018

Options news you can use for Wednesday, July 18, 2018

In this episode, Mark is joined by Derek Urben, CFO and Director of Business Development at Coinigy. They discuss: His background in the crypto space Why Wisconsin? Why use Coinigy? The benefits of decentralization Can you use the platform just for charting? Data services Who manages the wallet? Physical and digital security How is tether operated and regulated? Participating in ICOs

Trading Block: A review of the week so far from a trading perspective Amazon.com down on its biggest day of the year. The trade war continues to scare no one. Earnings! Monday - Netflix Tuesday - Goldman Sachs, Johnson & Johnson, United Wednesday - IBM, eBay, American Express Thursday - Microsoft Friday - GE, Honeywell NFLX - ATM Straddle: $35, approx. 9% Odd Block: Bullish stupid in Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (CLF). Risk reversal in Interpublic Group of Companies Inc. (IPG). Put roll in QEP Resources Inc. (QEP). Mail Block: Listeners have their say Options question of the week: Yup it's earnings season once again. Options traders are gearing up for a busy season. Which names do you think will dominate your options trading this season? NFLX AMZN TSLA GOOGL Listener questions and comments: Question from FlyGuy - Hey what do you guys do with your long calendar spreads? Do you close out the short leg if the stock doesn't move then keep the long leg or just close the whole spread out? Question from Flyer - What are some of the best ways to trade put options? Around the Block/This Week in the Markets: Jul 17 - Industrial Production Jul 18 - Housing Starts, Beige Book Jul 19 - Jobless Claims Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is set to deliver the semiannual monetary policy statement on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Options news you can use for Tuesday, July 17, 2018

Volatility Views 313: Talking Short Volatility Volatility Review: Today's guest is David Lincoln, ex-CBOE Market Maker and Host of The Short Vol Show on YouTube. A look back at the week from a volatility perspective: What trade war? The market has rallied almost non-stop post Trump trade war VIX Cash - 12.50, 1.25 point lower than last week. VVIX - 101, almost unchanged from last week. VIX Option - ADV: 496k, VIX call/put: 2.8/1, Total 7.89m (5.82m Calls, 2.07m Puts) Risk reversals keep popping up. VXX - 31.6, 3 points lower than last week. VIX ETF love affair endures as volatility falls Volatility Voicemail: Options question of the week, part one. Traders generally fade volatility going into holidays (today notwithstanding). What's your favorite vehicle when you want to wager on the dark side of volatility? Short-term or Long-term - that's up to you. 27% - Short VIX Futures 17% - Long $VIX Puts/Spread 33% - Long $VXX Puts/Spread 23% - Short $VIX Calls/Spreads Options question of the week, part two. Trading options during earnings season can be challenging. Some live for it while others avoid it. Do you hold options positions through earnings announcements? If so, what is your approach? Or do you prefer to trade just before/after the event? Or is it all too risky? Yes, Short Premium Yes, Long Premium No, Too Risky I trade around the event Listener questions and comments: Question from Vixland -Why would these puts gain value? $VXX never crashes down. Please explain. Love the shows. KEEP IT UP! Comment from Beachlot - With on the story from Bloomberg last week. They should be embarrassed writing a story on a 70k vol trade. Question from BT Burg - What is the best way to trade these inverse VIX ETFs going forward? If I'm long XIV does it make sense to always have some VIX calls in my back pocket just in case? Doesn't that get expensive really quick? What about spy puts? Or should I just have puts on the inverse ETF in case the counterparties get cold feet? Crystal Ball: Wild and reckless prognostication Last week: Mark L. -12.50 Mark S. -12.90 Guest -  13.63 This week: Mark L. - 12.20 Andrew - 12.25 Guest - 11.99

Topics this week include: Crude Equities/Russell Metals/Gold Ags/Soybeans Futures Options Feedback: Listeners weigh in Comment from L Sert - Missed Nick on the show. What's his thought on the big $150 crude prediction? Question from P Kell - Looking at CME TWIFO page and trying to figure it out. What do the numbers in the 25D and 25D QuikSkew columns mean? Apologize if you've answered this before but just discovered the show.

In this episode Mark is joined by Eric Gravengaard, CEO at Athena Bitcoin, Inc. They discuss: Eric's history in finance Making the leap from options to crypto assets Shifting the crypto trading mecca Waiting for your trades in the crypto ether Physical location risk The Athena "floor" for Bitcoin traders Bitcoin ATMs and who needs them When can we expect to get Bitcoin options? Thoughts on crypto manipulation

Options news you can use for Monday, July 16, 2018

Trading Block: Earnings! Tuesday – PepsiCo Thursday - Delta Airlines Friday - JPMorganChase, Citi, Wells Fargo, PNC Bank Plus, crude is taking it on the chin this week. Odd Block: Call love in D.R. Horton Inc. (DHI), call vertical in PagSeguro Digital Ltd (PAGS), put/call palooza in Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB). Strategy Block: Uncle Mike Tosaw discusses premium buying vs selling. Mail Block: Options question of the week Options during earnings season can be challenging. Some live for it while others avoid it. Do you hold options positions through earnings announcements? If so, what is your approach? Or do you prefer to trade just before/after the event? Or is it all too risky? Yes, Short Premium Yes, Long Premium No, Too Risky I trade around the event Around the Block/This Week in the Markets: Jul 13 - Import and Export Prices, Consumer Sentiment

Options news you can use for Friday, July 13, 2018

We are back into earnings season. Let's take a look at a skip-strike butterfly in NFLX. You can find more in The Options Playbook, which is always available on OptionsPlaybook.com, in on the Amazon Kindle edition. Specifically: A review of the Boeing calendar spread from last time What happened since the paper trade was put on? Looking ahead to NFLX earnings Where is NFLX now? What is the expected move? What happens if we are wrong? What is the maximum return? Reward? Do you have a question that you want answered on a future episode? Send them to Brian at [email protected], or to the Options Insider at [email protected].

Options news you can use for Thursday, July 12, 2018

Options news you can use for Wednesday, July 11, 2018

Trading Block: The trade war scares no one…? Earnings: Tuesday - PepsiCo Thursday - Delta Airlines Friday - JPMorganChase, Citi, Wells Fargo, PNC Bank SPX is celebrating its 35-year anniversary. Odd Block: Rolling put spread in iShares Russell 2000 Growth Index (IWO), vertical roll in Endo International PLC (ENDP) and small verticals in Amgen, Inc. (AMGN) Mail Block: Listeners have their say Options question of the week: Traders generally fade vlatility going into holidays (today notwithstanding). What's your favorite vehicle when you want to wager on the dark side of volatility? Short-term or Long-term - that's up to you. 27% - Short VIX Futures 17% - Long $VIX Puts/Spread 33% - Long $VXX Puts/Spread 23% - Short $VIX Calls/Spreads Another options question of the week: Trading options during earnings season can be challenging. Some live for it while others avoid it. Do you hold options positions through earnings announcements? If so, what is your approach? Or do you prefer to trade just before/after the event? Or is it all too risky? Yes, Short Premium Yes, Long Premium No, Too Risky I trade around the event Listener questions and comments: Question from Splitsville - Why is long put/covered call a "collar" while short put/long call is a "risk reversal." Never understood that one. Question from Alto - Which do you think has a better chance of happening - no more earnings calls or after hours options trading? And which do you think would be more impactful for options traders? Do you have a preference? Around the Block/This Week in the Markets: Jul 10 - JOLTS Jul 11 - PPI Jul 12 - Jobless Claims Consumer Price Index, Treasury Budget Jul 13 - Import and Export Prices, Consumer Sentiment

Topics this week include: Metals Crude Equities/Russell Ags/Soybeans Crypto/Bitcoin Futures Options Feedback: Listners chime in Comment from Trade_The_Swing -Today is sunny as trade tariffs begin, yesterday was cloudy as trade tariffs were about to start, tomorrow will be hot weather cause tariff war de-escalate, all this tariffs noise is beyond silly. Comment from Son of Algos - #BuckleUp #TradeWar No #MAGA Just massive debt, shrinking system liquidity & Trump plunging the West into the Dark ages. Comment from Leveq - I agree with your other listener that it's the brokers putting the brakes on weeklies. I don't even see them listed on my platform. Wth? Question from Desmond - What is the one thing you think people really should know, but don't about the differences between futures options and equity options?

Volatility Review: What trade war? The market rallies despite the fact that the trade war has begun. Market review: VIX Cash - 13.75, 1.25-points lower than last week. VVIX - 103, almost unchanged from last week. VIX Options - ADV: 496K, VIX call/put: 2.7/1, Total 7.04m (5.16m Calls, 1.88m Puts) A lot of VIX risk reversals hitting the tape today. VXX - 34.6,0.5-points lower than last week. Volatility Voicemail: Flash poll Which product or complex will experience the greatest #Volatility going forward as a result of this trade war? Gold? Crude Oil? Equities? Soybeans? Soybeans Gold Crude Oil Equities Options question of the week: Traders generally fade volatility going into holidays (today notwithstanding). What's your favorite vehicle when you want to wager on the dark side of volatility? Short-term or Long-term - that's up to you. Short VIX Futures Long VIX Puts/Spread Long VXX Puts/Spread Short VIX Calls/Spreads Listener questions and comments Question from LVist - Are you guys as surprised as me by VXX's stubbornness? It refuses to break the 30 handle. Question from Casey - Is it me or is the vol space much more boring after VIX/SVXY? Those were my two favs. Seems like there's not much to take their place. What's the new short vol play? Crystal Ball: Your prognostication headquarters Last week: Mark L. -12.55 Mark S. -12.95 This week: Mark L. - 12.50 Mark S. - 12.90 Guest - 13.63

WWoO 49: Panel - Options Pros Talk Put-Call Parity and More This rebroadcast of OIC’s webinar panel on Put-Call Parity covers whether understanding these price relationships helps the decision-making process.

Options news you can use for Friday, July 6, 2018

Originally posted on July 7th, 2017 Trading Block: VIX ends near the top of the range. It was up to 13.05 at its highest. Tesla down 7.2% yesterday, due to concerns of slowing Model S and Model X sales. The numbers are out: OCC announced today that cleared contract volume in June reached 387,597,223 contracts, a 2% increase from the June 2016. Odd Block: TSLA Jan 2019 50 puts and Jan 2018 20 puts continue to trade. Back and forth trading in Tesla Motors (TSLA). Puts trade in LG Display Company LTD. (LPL) Strategy Block: Uncle Mike Tosaw discusses the recent silver environment. Mail Block: Options question of the week Blue Apron $APRN is down over 10% from its #IPO price. Assuming #Options were listed, what trade would you make? Buy Dec 10 Call for $1 Buy Dec 9 Put for $1 Sell Dec 10 Call for $1 Not Touching $APRN Listener Questions: What's on your mind? Question from Sal06 - Do you think AAPL $147 call for June 30th is a good idea? Question from Nelly2 - Just so I am clear on the spread assignment thing. If I am in SPX, then I just get cash if the index closes inside my spread. But if I am in a stock, then I get the stock? Around the Block: WTH is happening in North Korea? VIX responds in kind. S&P 2400. Non-farm payrolls. Google fine.

Today we are bringing you the best of Options Playbook Radio.  Originally posted December 28th, 2017 Mark and Brian are back to answer listener questions. In particular: 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. #Options #QOTW - Now it's a party! #Bitcoin futures are live on both @CMEGroup & @CBOE. But everyone's asking us the $1M question - "When will we get #Bitcoin #Options?" So we thought we'd ask you - When will we be able to trade #options on these futures? 52% - Q1 2018, 19% - Q2 2018, 14% - Q3 2018, 5% - Q4 2018 Question from L Penguin - I have a question for the option playbook. I'm a new options trader and I want to buy a LEAP call bc it looks like the stock is going to go to up in the next 12 months, but I don't want to commit yet. I also want to generate income while I hold that position. What are your thoughts on selling the call while I have the leap? Also, this stock has an attractive dividend that I'd like to capture. Is this even possible? Interested in your thoughts, thanks!...I was thinking about buying a deep in the money call for the LEAP, and then depending on where the stock is trading at the time, sell closer to the money. Question from VLL98 - What happens to my options if the company declares bankruptcy? Can I still exercise my calls and buy the stock at the strike price? Do you have a question that you want answered on a future episode? Send them to Brian at [email protected], or to the Options Insider at [email protected].

Options news you can use for Thursday, July 5, 2018

Trading Block: Canadian revenge tariff are on the docket today. VIX cash sits above 17. OCC Cleared Contract Volume up 6% in June - the highest June for total options volume on record. It's SPX's 35-year anniversary. Odd Block: July 4 calls in Limelight Networks, Inc. (LLNW), Funky multi-leg in BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust (BPT), Rolling puts in (FLO). Strategy Block: Uncle Mike Tosaw discusses trading short put spreads Mail Block: Options question of the week Traders generally fade volatility going into holidays (today notwithstanding). What's your favorite vehicle when you want to wager on the dark side of volatility? Short-term or Long-term - that's up to you. Short VIX Futures Long $VIX Puts/Spread Long $VXX Puts/Spread Short $VIX Calls/Spreads Around the Block: 'Murica. Mired in tariff talk. Negotiating trade deals is tough!

Options news you can use for Tuesday, July 3, 2018

Volatility Review: Looking back at the week from a volatility perspective VIX Cash - 15 VVIX - 104 VIX Options - ADV: 496k, VIX call/put: 2.7/1, Total 6.78m (4.96m Calls, 1.81m Puts) VXX - was 40, now 35. Hedge Fund That Made 6,000% on VIX Jump Bets on Next Blow-Up - What is UVXY? UVXY: Big ETF Outflows Options Questions of the Week: We ask, you answer This Week's Question: Crude Oil has been on a tear this week. We know that many of you are trading options on this hot commodity. Quite simply - which options product are you using to slake your thirst for Crude Oil? WTI? USO? XLE? WTI USO XLE Other Last Week's Question: Let's have some fun. These "entertainment" stocks are pricing in big moves. Gun to your head: Which July ATM straddle would you rather own in your portfolio? WWE? DIS? WYNN? SEAS? WWE July ATM Strad: 7 WYNN July ATM Strad: 12 SEAS July ATM Strad: 2 DIS July ATM Strad: 5 Listener questions and comments: Question from Btburg:What is the best way to trade these inverse VIX ETFs going forward? If I'm long XIV does it make sense to always have some VIX calls in my back pocket just in case? Doesn't that get expensive really quick? What about spy puts? Or should I just have puts on the inverse ETF in case the counterparties get cold feet? Question from BFolk - I like the suggestion of a short 30 or 60-day call 1x2 in VXX to hedge my longer term puts. How did that strat work out this week? Something like sell near OTM buy 2 farther OTM same month. May help motivate me to put some on this week. Question from Folfox - @Options Do you prefer iron condor vs. iron butterfly? (I know 1 strategy won't work every time, but what scenario is preferred). Question from RevTimTom - What's your favorite way to trade skew? Question from Gglee - Buying collars means buying skew and paying up. So does it stand that the best spy trade is selling skew by selling 25 delta puts and buying 25 delta calls? Maybe add a cheap hedge with 5 or 10 delta put in case worst comes to pass? Right now I can sell the SPY Oct 25D put for .55, buy the Oct 25D call for .55 and then buy put hedge for about .20 net outlay. Thoughts? Crystal Ball: Your prognostication headquarters Last week: Mark L. -12.05 Mark S. -11.55 This week: Mark L. - 12.55 Mark S. - 12.95

Topics this week include: Crude Equities/Russell Ags Gold Bitcoin Futures Options Feedback: Listeners take over FlashPoll: Crude oil has been on a tear this week. We know that many of you are trading options on this hot commodity. Quite simply - which options product are you using to slake your thirst for Crude oil? WTI? USO? XLE? WTI USO XLE Other Listener questions and comments: Comment from Olivetrader2 -I may have the key to the weeklies mystery or I may be captain obvious. If I want to trade weeklies I need to ask for weeklies options limits to my clearing firm. Regular options limits don't apply. I use @Trading_Tech. I never asked for them because my trading results are usually not good around expiration. And weeklies = more expirations. Question from Leif - Is the use case for Russell 2000 options the same as S&P and Nasdaq - primarily covered calls and protective puts? Question from Tatuf - It looks like crude is setting up to be a decent candidate for call ratio spreads (short 1, long 2). Certainly would have worked out well over past few weeks. Am I just blinded by recentness or does skew data support this long term? OTM calls typically aren't bid too aggressively in WTI. Question from CRHabib - Can CME put out straddle runs on the bitcoin futures contract? That would be fascinating and quite useful.

Options news you can use for Monday, July 2, 2018

Trading Block: A review of the week in trading VIX Cash - started at 18.99, ended at 16.70 Earnings: Nike after the bell - $71.70, ATM straddle - $3.40, approx. 5% Odd Block: Size money call roll in Devon Energy Corp (DVN). Call vertical in CVS Health Corp (CVS). Size puts in PowerShares DB US dollar Index (UUP) Strategy Block: Uncle Mike discusses selling a call spread versus selling a call. Mail Block: Question form Jack Daniels trades: Pump me up $WWE don't fade! Huge TV deal billionsss. Let's go. Question from BuddyBoy79: Can you please explain what relative strength and weakness mean as they pertain to options trading? Around the Block/This Week in the Market Jun 28: Jobless Claims, GDP Jun 29: Personal Income, Consumer Sentiment

Options news you can use for Friday, June 29, 2018

Options 101: Calendar & Diagonals This strategy combines a longer-term bullish outlook with a near-term neutral/bearish outlook. Variations? Profit/Loss and breakeven Volatility, time decay and assessment risk Calendars vs Diagonals - when should you use one over the other? Using long dalendars during earnings The Buzz: What news do informed advisors need to know? OCC cleared contract volume increased 8% in May. Google search data reveals options trading search interest is roughly half of what it was in 2004. Office Hours: Listeners weigh in Options question of the week: Google Trends is full of interesting, and surprising, data. When you analyze the "options" search data you uncover some surprising results. Which brings us to this week's question: Which "sub region" is currently ranked 1 for overall "options" interest by Google? Illinois California New York Maine Listener questions and comments Comment from TMal - So I have this exact thing going on right now, put diagonal with different futures underlying. 90-day difference, the Vegas act totally different, throw some futures spread risk in there, hard to quantify exactly what's causing the changes in the P/L, futures spread? Vol spread? Net deltas? Net thetas? It's complicated stuff. Nuances indeed holy cow. Plant the seed and let it grow naturally. Comment from AKeats - Just discovered the radio show, and I am absolutely hooked! Great content! Question from Brad K. - I'm learning a lot from you guys - particularly about the value of hedging. I also took your advice and switched to an advisor who uses options much more actively. Now I'm starting to spread my wings to the commodities particularly crude oil. I want to hedge my oil exposure with WTI options. Does the Swan DRS on crude use WTI or USO options? Also I would please like to know the panel's thoughts on trading options on commodities vs. equities. Any major differences I should be aware of? Thanks again and please keep the education coming our way.

Tariff turmoil is rocking the market and is beating up some stocks, including Boeing (BA). You can find more in The Options Playbook, which is always available on OptionsPlaybook.com, in on the Amazon Kindle edition. Specifically: Implied volatility is spiking because of talk of tariffs BA announces earnings on 7/25 Stock has fallen about 40 points over the last month Putting on a long call spread Selecting strikes and expirations What is the total cost? What do we want to happen? What is the maximum risk? Reward? Rolling and adjusting options Do you have a question that you want answered on a future episode? Send them to Brian at [email protected], or to the Options Insider at [email protected].

Options news you can use for Thursday, June 28, 2018

On Strategy Spotlight, Joe Burgoyne covers the intricacies of Backspreads with Dave Whitmore of E*TRADE and then meet Joe Cusick, OIC's Director of Institutional Outreach as he discusses his background in the industry and some of his OIC initiatives. Plus, Joe will answer listener questions.

Trading Block: Trump's trade war spooks the market. Again. Bitcoin manipulation via tether. Who out there is trading or interested in Crypto? What are you trading? Odd Block: Call writing frenzy in Campbell Soup Company (CPB). Call palooza in Market Vectors Oil Services ETF (OIH). Call love in Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCAU). Mail Block: Listeners take over Options question of the week. Let's have some fun. These "entertainment" stocks are pricing in big moves. Gun to your head: Which July ATM straddle would you rather own in your portfolio? $WWE $DIS $WYNN $SEAS #DegeneratePremiumBuyers #PalmsIn #FearNoTheta 17% - $WWE July ATM Strad: $7 37% - $WYNN July ATM Strad: $12 16% - $SEAS July ATM Strad: $2 30% - $DIS July ATM Strad: $5 Listener questions and comments: Comment from SecretlyPsyched: Is it possible to short-sell a campaign? Or how about an entire state party? Some sort of derivative strategy? Question from Nowledg3ispowerl: So turns out you guys are absolutely right. I have a very poor understanding of options. What's the best podcast episode for beginners? Comment from the chat room re: TSLA. Question from HeyBartenderman: Hi. I have a question for you. If I'm interested in buying options in a stock, what's the best way to go about finding the best strike/expiry?...Basically, if I sold a stock for a nice profit, but then wanted to participate in a move higher should it keep going up (for example $IQ). Or if I've been watching something, and think it's about to break out, but don't know exactly when, which options should I be looking at? Weeklies, monthlies, leaps, etc....When is it better to do one length of option over another, I think is basically the question I have. Thanks. Around the Block: Will they or won't they re: trade wars.

Options news you can use for Tuesday, June 26, 2018

Options news you can use for Monday, June 25, 2018

Volatility Review: A look back at the week from a volatility perspective Fiddy cent returns Seagull spread? VIX cash: 14.64 Tweaks to VIX VVIX: 107.50 Google interest: Top five states with the most interest in volatility (Mark S. got 2/5) Google interest: Top five states with the most interest in VIX VIX options Big call and put strips The VXX whiff of weirdness Volatility Voicemail: Listeners have their say Options Question of the Week: Let's have some fun. These "entertainment" stocks are pricing in big moves. Gun to your head: Which July ATM straddle would you rather own in your portfolio? WWE? DIS? WYNN? SEAS? #DegeneratePremiumBuyers #PalmsIn #FearNoTheta WWE July ATM Strad: $7 WYNN July ATM Strad: $12 SEAS July ATM Strad: $2 DIS July ATM Strad: $5 Listener questions and comments: Question from Rick S.: What exactly does it mean to roll positions the week of expiration? Question fro Telly0: Are there any long VIX vehicles that don't erode to zero? Comment from JTack: Looks like call front spreads (short 1 near OTM, long 2 farther OTM) in VXX are the best way to hedge long term VXX puts. That way you're covered against a blowup but you're not shelling out a ton for straight up calls or verticals. Crystal Ball: Wild and reckless prognostication Last guess: Mark L. 11.85 Andrew: 11.80 Mark S. 11.55 This week: Mark S. 11.55 Mark L. 12.05