As much as I like to pat myself on the back for good moves I make, I have to admit it when I’ve made a bad series of trades. The following is taken from the trading journal I was keeping before I started this blog. That’s why the fomat might look a little funky. The ALL…
Options Trading – Fun
The first days after options expiration are always fun for me. If things have gone well at expiration, I have half of my portfolio’s cash ready for new options trades. I try to sell options 1-2 months out with the goal that I have something invested at all times. Selling all options to expire in…
Barron’s Review: AMTD
Barron’s had an article this weekend that highlighted the prospects of TD Ameritrade Holding Corp (NASDAQ: AMTD). AMTD closed on Friday at 15.79. I agree that the downside is limited due to potential merger activity, but looking at the chart AMTD is below its 10, 50 and 100 day moving averages. Only the 20 day…
ROI Spreadsheet for Naked Puts
I just added a new spreadsheet to my Excel Spreadsheets page. I use this one to help me track my ROI in two ways when writing naked puts. The top section shows me what I have in play now. This data shows what type of return I expect to get on each individual trade and what annualized return…
Beginner Investor Series – Focus
One of the most important first steps for a beginning trader or investor to make is to have money to invest. That may sound like it is too simple to consider, but many potential investors spend more time wishing they could invest rather than doing something about it. “You have to have money to make…
AAPL Covered Calls and Naked Puts
AAPL (Apple, Inc) is off its highs from late last month and seems to be finding support just above 90. The long term trend line for AAPL points up using the lows from August, late February and this week. Also, using the high from October and the lows from February might provide further support around…
The End Is Near (for April Options)
April options expire on Friday, giving three trading days for me to wait and see how I’ll fair. I keep an eye on my portfolio daily, but a week before expiration I can get a better idea what I’ll be dealing with after expiration. I didn’t have access to a computer for the past four…
Barron’s Article – Bracing for Trouble?
Barron’s had an article in the April 2nd issue on page 44 that covered the thoughts of Larry Jeddeloh, founder of an independent research service, TIS Group. Jeddeloh is calling for a 15-20% pull back this year in all indexes. He makes some valid points for why this could be coming. The usual suspects are…
Grupo Televisa SA (NYSE:TV) is Dipping
As I predicted in my post from a few days ago, TV has dropped below 30. The May 30 put jumped 25% to $1.00. I think it might have a little more room to drop now that TV has dropped below its 10 day moving average. This one is worth watching since I think it’s…