Options are versatile
investment tools. They can be used for both bullish and bearish
strategies. But what separates options from all other investment tools is that
they can also be used for neutral strategies. Those are appropriate when:
· You do not have an opinion on
market direction.
· You believe that the markets
will be relatively unchanged over the near term.
Let's discuss some of those
strategies.
Note: This article is
intended for the novice options trader. More experienced traders can find
additional information by clicking the links below.
Market-Neutral
Option Strategies
Important note: Unless you
are a very experienced trader, always enter these orders as
"spreads." A spread order tells your broker that
· The order contains two or
more different options (each option is a "leg")
· The order requires that the
broker fill each leg, and not just one. By entering a spread order
with two legs, you will never find that you bought or sold one of the legs.
If you don't know how to
enter such orders, ask your broker's customer service department how to
enter an option spread order.
Calendar
Spread. The
trader buys one option (call or put) and sells another option of the same type
(i.e., call or put) with these restrictions:
· The option bought expires
after the option sold (i.e., it is "longer-dated")
· The underlying asset is the
same for both options.
· The strike price is
the same for each option.
The longer-dated option always costs more than
the near-term option.
Thus, the calendar is a debit
spread.
Fact: Shorter-term
options decay (i.e., lose value) more quickly than longer term options.
(See Theta)
Rationale for buying a
calendar spread: When time passes and the stock price remains essentially
unchanged, the spread gains value because the option that you bought loses (or
gains) value more slowly than the option that was sold.
Therefore, the price of the
spread (the difference between the price of the two individual options)
increases. This spread is appropriate when you believe that the stock price
will remain near its current level.
Risk:
· If the stock price moves far
away from the strike price, then the spread loses money because calendar
spreads are worth more when the options are at the money.
· When the stock price runs
higher, the nearer-term option gains value more rapidly than the option that
you own (this is due to gamma).