Profitable Option Trading...
Building Wealth Using the Power of Credit Spread Options
August Trades Expiring on the 15th
All our Bull Put trades expired worthless on Friday the 15th. We earned 4.3% this month on all these trades. So far for all of 2008 (8 months) our total return for all 32 trades is 22.8%. My goal is to finish the year with a total return of 40%. This can be achieved if we earn an average of 4.3% in each of the next 4 months (Sep, Oct, Nov Dec).
| Trade Initiated and Filled | Expired |
Index |
Spread Type |
Initial Credit |
Margin Required |
Status |
Profit % |
| August Trades Filled and Open | |||||||
|
Ordered 7/19 Filled 7/21 |
8/15/2008 | IWM |
Bull Put |
$8 |
$192 |
Expired Worthless |
4.2% |
|
Ordered 7/19 Filled 7/21 |
8/15/2008 | RUT |
Bull Put |
$40 |
$960 |
Expired Worthless |
4.2% |
|
Ordered 7/19 Filled 7/21 |
8/15/2008 | NDX |
Bull Put |
$130 |
$2370 |
Expired Worthless |
5.5% |
2008 Monthly Trade Performance:
January was my worst month ever trading credit spreads. We had to roll 2 Bull Put spreads to February but these could be at risk unless the markets start recovering when interest rates are lowered. This is not a good start to the new year because now we have to trade more conservatively with better risk management strategies to insure a loss like this is never repeated.| Month | Winning Trades |
Losing Trades |
Total Trades |
Winning Trades-Total All Credits per Contract |
Loosing Trades-Total All Net Debits per Contract |
Net For Month |
Total Margin Required for per Contract |
Monthly Return % |
| Jan | 2 | 1 | 3 | ($85) | $550 | $465 | $4,415 | (10.5%) |
| Feb | 5 | 5 | ($158) | ($158) | $3,842 | 4.1% | ||
| Mar | 4 | 4 | ($274) | ($274) | $4,700 | 5.7% | ||
| Apr | 3 | 3 | ($170) | ($170) | $4,330 | 5.8% | ||
| May | 3 | 3 | ($260) | ($260) | $4,240 | 6.1% | ||
| Jun | 3 | 3 | ($143) | ($143) | $3,557 | 4.0% | ||
| Jul | 5 | 5 | ($174) | ($174) | $3,526 | 4.9% | ||
| Aug | 5 | 5 | ($308) | ($308) | $7,200 | 4.3% | ||
| YTD 2008 | 30 | 1 | 32 | ($1,572) | $550 | ($1,022) | $35,810 | 22.8% (A) |
(A) The YTD return of 22.8% can be calculated 2 ways: 1) The Total Net of $1,022 divided by the Total Margin of $35,810 X 8 Months = 22.8% or 2) The Total Net of $1,022 divided by the the average of the Total Margin, or $4,481 ($35,810/8) = 22.8%.
July Trades Expired Worthless 7/19/2008
All July trades expired worthless on Friday the 19th. These trades were very challenging. The markets dropped fast in May and again in June. Then they recovered and dropped again. Trading Iron Condor’s in a Bear Market is not easy but achievable if the trades are conservative. My August trades will be very conservative with lots of distance and returns averaging 3%. It’s going to be hard to enter any safe trades earning more than 3% this month. When this Bear Market is over trading Iron Condors will be much easier and more profitable.
| Trade Initiated and Filled | Expired |
Index |
Spread Type |
Initial Credit |
Margin Required |
Status |
Profit % |
| July 2008 | |||||||
|
Ordered 6/15 Filled 6/16 |
7/19/2008 | RUT |
Bull Put / Rolled to Bear Call |
$5 Net Credit |
$995 |
Expired Worthless |
.05% |
|
Ordered 6/15 Filled 6/16 |
7/19/2008 | NDX |
Iron Condor |
$160 |
$2340 |
Expired Worthless |
6.8% |
|
Ordered 6/15 Filled 6/20 |
7/19/2008 | QQQQ |
Bull Put / Rolled to Bear Call |
$9 Net Credit |
$191 |
Expired Worthless |
4.7% |
| Total | $174 | $3,526 |
4.9% |
||||
June Trades Expired Worthless 6/20/2008
All open June trades expired worthless today. This is the 5th month in a row that all trades expired worthless. I want this trend to continue so that we have a decent 30% or better return for the year.
| Trade Initiated and Filled | Expired |
Index |
Spread Type |
Initial Credit |
Margin Required |
Status |
Profit % |
| June 2008 | |||||||
|
Ordered 5/18 Filled 5/19 |
6/202008 | RUT |
Iron Condor |
$60 |
$940 |
Expired Worthless |
6.4% |
|
Ordered 5/18 Filled 5/19 |
6/202008 | NDX |
Bull Put |
$75 |
$2425 |
Expired Worthless |
3.1% |
|
Ordered 5/11 Filled 5/12 |
6/202008 | DIA |
Bull Put |
$8 |
$192 |
Expired Worthless |
4.2% |
| Total | $174 | $3,526 |
3.9% |
||||
5/18/2008: The 2 RUT Bull Put trades and our NDX Iron Condor expired worthless last week. This month we earned 8.7% on the NDX trade. The markets appear to be settling down to a more normal trading pattern of slowly rising. This pattern is perfect for Iron Condor trading when the trades are safe with a lot of distance.
May Trades Expired Worthless 5/16/2008
| Trade Initiated and Filled | Expired |
Index |
Spread Type |
Initial Credit |
Margin Required |
Status |
Profit % |
| May 2008 | |||||||
|
4/26/08 and 4/27/08 |
5/16/2008 | RUT |
Bull Put |
$30 |
$970 |
Expired Worthless |
3.1% |
|
4/20/08 and 4/21/08 |
5/16/2008 | RUT |
Bull Put |
$30 |
$970 |
Expired Worthless |
3.1% |
|
4/30/08 and 4/21/08 |
5/16/2008 | NDX |
Iron Condor |
$200 |
$2300 |
Expired Worthless |
8.7% |
| Total | $260 | $4,240 |
6.1% |
April Trades Expired Worthless 4/18/2008
4/20/2008: All 3 trades initiated in March and April expired worthless. Unfortunately the rollover trade which was safe until the last day before expiration was exercised for loss. Refunds for 3 months are being sent to subscribers who has this trade exercised. The rolling of trades in trouble to new risky trades will not be done anymore. Instead a much more conservative strategy will be taken to just exit the trade, assume the loss, and recover a part of this loss with a new very safe spread or Iron Condor trade expiring in the next month.
| Trade Initiated and Filled | Expired |
Index |
Spread Type |
Initial Credit |
Margin Required |
Status |
Profit % |
| April 2008 | |||||||
|
3/30/08 and 4/11/08 |
4/18/2008 | SPX |
Bull Put |
$35 |
$965 |
Expired Worthless |
3.6% |
|
3/30/08 and 3/31/08 |
4/18/2008 | NDX |
Bull Put |
$85 |
$2415 |
Expired Worthless |
3.5% |
|
3/30/08 and 3/3108 |
4/18/2008 | RUT |
Iron Condor |
$50 |
$950 |
Expired Worthless |
5.3% |
| Total | $170 | $4,330 |
3.9% |
March Trades Expired Worthless 3/202008
3/21/2008: All 3 Iron Condor trades and our SPX Bear Call trade expired worthless. Even though the markets rose and fell by 200-400 points during the holding period our trades remained safe and have now expired. I am very happy with the 5.8% monthly performance.
| Trade Initiated and Filled | Expired |
Index |
Spread Type |
Initial Credit |
Margin Required |
Status |
Profit % |
| March 2008 | |||||||
|
2/27/2008-2/28 |
3/20/2008 | NDX |
Iron Condor |
$165 |
$2335 |
Expired Worthless |
7.1% |
|
2/23/2008-2/25 |
3/20/2008 | IWM |
Iron Condor |
$14 |
$186 |
Expired Worthless |
7.5% |
|
2/27/2008-2/28 |
3/20/2008 | RUT |
Iron Condor |
$65 |
$935 |
Expired Worthless |
6.9% |
|
2/17/2008-2/19 |
3/20/2008 | SPX |
Bear Call |
$30 |
$970 |
Filled and Open |
3.1% |
| Total | $274 | $4,700 |
5.8% |
February Trades Expired Worthless 2/15/2008
2/15/2008:
I am very pleased that the conservative trades this month all expired. These
were very safe trades which is why the monthly return was 4.1% ($158/$3,842).
This market is still very volatile so earning 4% is OK in my play book. My goal
is 5% a month which I can achieve when completing at least 2 Iron Condor trades
in a month. This month we had 1 Iron Condor trade completed.
| Trade Initiated | Expired |
Index |
Spread Type |
Initial Credit |
Margin Required |
Status |
Profit % |
| February 2008 | |||||||
|
2/3/2008 |
2/15/2008 |
NDX |
Bear Call |
$75 |
$2425 |
Expired Worthless |
3.1% |
|
1/28/2008 |
2/15/2008 | IWM |
Bull Put |
$10 |
$290 |
Expired Worthless |
3.4% |
|
1/28/2008 |
2/15/2008 | RUT-IC |
Bull Put |
$40 |
|
Expired Worthless |
4.2% |
|
1/19/2008 |
2/15/2008 | RUT-IC |
Bear Call |
$25 |
$935 |
Filled and Open |
2.6% |
|
1/19/2008 |
2/15/2008 | SPY |
Bear Call |
$8 |
$192 |
Expired Worthless |
4.2% |
| Total | $158 | $3,842 |
4.1% |
||||
2007 Monthly and YTD Trade Performance:
The following table summarizes the monthly trade performance for each expired month in 2007. The Total Credits, Total Net Debits and Total Margin amounts are for one contract per trade only. If you traded 10 contracts then multiply each figure by 10. For example, in October 2007 if you traded 10 contracts the total credits received would be $3,900 (10 x $390) and the total margin required to cover these trades would be $121,100 (10 x $12,110).(A) The YTD return of 34.4% can be calculated 2 ways: 1) The
Total Net of $2,597 divided by the Total Margin of
$90,563 X 12 Months = 34.4% or 2) The Total Net of $2,597
divided by the the average of the Total Margin, or
$7,930 ($90,563/12) = 34.4%.
| Month | Winning Trades |
Losing Trades |
Total Trades |
Winning Trades-Total All Credits |
Loosing Trades-Total All Net Debits |
Net For Month |
Total Margin Required for Point Spreads per Contract |
Monthly Return % |
| Jan | 4 | 1 | 5 | ($700) | $600 | ($100) | $8,720 | 1.2% |
| Feb | 6 | 6 | ($160) | ($160) | $6,340 | 2.5% | ||
| Mar | 6 | 1 | 7 | ($545) | $635 | $90 | $12,430 | (.07%) |
| Apr | 4 | 4 | ($245) | ($245) | $5,755 | 4.2% | ||
| May | 4 | 4 | ($190) | ($190) | $4,385 | 4.4% | ||
| Jun | 3 | 3 | ($225) | ($225) | $4,275 | 5.3% | ||
| Jul | 5 | 5 | ($302) | ($302) | $5,198 | 5.8% | ||
| Aug | 1 | 3 | 4 | ($1,065) | $980 | ($85) | $13,235 | .006% |
| Sep | 5 | 5 | ($390) | ($390) | $9,500 | 4.1% | ||
| Oct | 5 | 5 | ($390) | ($390) | $12,110 | 3.2% | ||
| Nov | 4 | 4 | ($270) | ($270) | $5,290 | 5.1% | ||
| Dec | 5 | 5 | ($330) | ($330) | $3,325 | 9.9% | ||
| YTD 2007 | 52 | 5 | 57 | ($4,812) | $2,215 | ($2,597) | $90,563 | 34% (A) |
| YTD 2006 | 44 | 4 | 48 | ($2,770) | $220 | ($2,550) | $61,253 | 50% |
2006 Monthly and YTD Trade Performance:
The following table summarizes the monthly trade performance for each expired month in 2006. The Total Credits, Total Net Debits and Total Margin amounts are for one contract per trade only. If you traded 10 contracts then multiply each figure by 10. For example, in January if you traded 10 contracts the total credits received would be $2,226 (10 x $226) and the total margin required to cover these trades would be $45,200 (10 x $4,520).(A) The YTD return of 50% can be calculated 2 ways: 1) The
Total Net of $2,550 divided by the Total Margin of
$61,253 X 12 Months = 50% or 2) The Total Net of $2,550
divided by the the average of the Total Margin, or
$5,104, ($61,253/12) = 50%. .
| Month | Winning Trades |
Losing Trades |
Total Trades |
Winning Trades-Total All Credits |
Loosing Trades-Total All Net Debits |
Net For Month |
Total Margin Required for Point Spreads per Contract |
Monthly Return % |
| Jan | 3 | 3 | ($226) | ($226) | $4,520 | 5.0% | ||
| Feb | 4 | 4 | ($271) | ($271) | $6,450 | 4.2% | ||
| Mar | 4 | 4 | ($215) | ($215) | $5,240 | 4.1% | ||
| Apr | 4 | 4 | ($255) | ($255) | $7,245 | 3.5% | ||
| May | 3 | 3 | ($175) | ($175) | $2,828 | 6.2% | ||
| Jun | 3 | 3 | ($245) | ($245) | $2,755 | 8.9% | ||
| Jul | 4 | 4 | ($288) | ($288) | $6,720 | 4.3% | ||
| Aug | 4 | 4 | ($305) | ($305) | $4,295 | 7.1% | ||
| Sep | 4 | 4 | ($305) | ($305) | $4,195 | 7.3% | ||
| Oct | 1 | 3 | 4 | ($140) | $195 | $55 | $6,080 | -0.9% |
| Nov | 4 | 1 | 5 | ($230) | $25 | ($205) | $7,020 | 2.9% |
| Dec | 5 | 5 | ($115) | ($115) | $3,905 | 2.9% | ||
| YTD 2006 | 44 | 4 | 48 | ($2,770) | $220 | ($2,550) | $61,253 | 50% (A) |