optionstrader's  Instablog

These last two weeks were brutal for my open positions. The market's resilience surprised me. Nearly every piece of news this week was negative, but the market was still able to climb and hold onto much of its gains. Bestbuy missed, FedEx warned, housing starts and building permits plummeted, Greece's debt was downgraded to junk, and jobless claims came in much worse than expected. The previous two weeks saw retail sales contracting and a pathetically low number of jobs added by the private sector.

The only consolation is that the gains for July options should be excellent. REITs are still sitting near their 52-week highs. I do not believe that will last long.


All numbers are rounded to the nearest percent.

Profit or loss = (selling price - $0.75 per option contract) / (buying price + $0.75 per option contract) - starting principal (100%)

Original positions:

I earned a 3.4125/2.4075 - 100% = 42% profit on the HD Jun 2010 35 put

I earned a 5.1925/3.8575 - 100% = 35% profit on the QQQQ Jun 2010 49 put

I earned a 5.9925/4.1075 - 100% = 46% profit on the COF Jun 2010 44 put

I earned a 4.0925/3.1575 - 100% = 30% profit on the BAC Jun 2010 19 put

I incurred a 1.5925/2.2075 - 100% = 28% loss on the F Jun 2010 13 put

I incurred a 100% loss on the C Jun 2010 3 put

I incurred a .0625/.2675 = 77% loss on the C Jun 2010 4 put

42 + 35 + 46 + 30 - 28 - 100 - 77 = -52/ 7 options = 7% loss


Newer positions:

I incurred a 1.2625/1.9775 = 36% loss on the BAC Jun 2010 17 put

I incurred a 1.4525/1.5975 = 9% loss on the HD Jun 2010 33 put

I incurred a 100% loss on the COF Jun 2010 41 put

I incurred a 100% loss on the QQQQ Jun 19 2010 46 put

I was still holding F Jun 2010 13 put, C June 2010 4 put, and C Jun 2010 3 put at the time. Each had a 1/7 share.

-36 - 9 - 100 - 100 = -245/ 7 options = 35% loss

Total Net Loss = 42%

Cumulative effect = previous cumulative effect (198%) - 42% = 156%