Anyway, if this the right place, can someone tell me the best
brokerage site to use for getting into this? I know a bit about
trading stocks and have had some success and I would like to test out
options...
Any help would be great!
Thanks!
This is the right newsgroup.
> Anyway, if this the right place, can someone tell me the best
> brokerage site to use for getting into this? I know a bit about
> trading stocks and have had some success and I would like to test out
> options...
Any broker with a reasonably low commission for options should be just
fine.
What type of option trades are you thinking of using?
--
Ron
Well, I dont really know. I have invested in a few stocks like IBM
and AMD, so I was thinking of trying one of these, but I don't really
know enough yet to try. I just want to make an account and see if
they have a 'play' version I can test out. The whole idea that things
expire is a little nuts for me.
These are the guys I am using for stocks, but I would have no clue how
to apply that to options:
http://comprehensivetechnicals.com/?symbol=Ibm
Also, do you have to buy in 'lots'? Is there anyway to invest in
smaller blocks?
Thanks,
lock
> Well, I dont really know. I have invested in a few stocks like IBM
> and AMD, so I was thinking of trying one of these, but I don't really
> know enough yet to try. I just want to make an account and see if
> they have a 'play' version I can test out. The whole idea that things
> expire is a little nuts for me.
If you hold the shares, sell some covered calls against them. For
example, you might sell the AMD Jul 15 calls for $0.40. On one
contract you will get $40 minus commissions, but will be committed to
sell the stock for $15.00 on July 20, or earlier if the price of the
stock exceeds $15.00.
> These are the guys I am using for stocks, but I would have no clue how
> to apply that to options:http://comprehensivetechnicals.com/?symbol=Ibm
Options don't trade frequently, so it's difficult to test strategies.
> Also, do you have to buy in 'lots'? Is there anyway to invest in
> smaller blocks?
Each contract covers 100 shares and you can't go smaller AFAIK. Think
of options as a way of supplementing your investment income, gaining
leverage, or reducing risk depending on your goals.
--
Ron
I think that a factor of two is about all that is safe. For example,
COP has gone up a little over 10% per year in the last two years. If
you buy a $40 Jan 2009 leap for $40.60 at the end of one year the
stock should be about $89 making the option worth at least $49 giving
you a profit of $8.40 (a 20% profit). To get any leverage, deep in the
money LEAPs nead to be available.
--
Ron