How To Sell Bear Call Spreads: Beginners options tutorial on how to make money when stocks drop
Summary
TLDRIn this video, the speaker discusses strategies for making money in the stock market, particularly during downturns like the one experienced in September. They focus on selling bear call spreads, a technique used to profit from a market decline or sideways movement. The speaker outlines the process of setting up a bear call spread, which involves selling an out-of-the-money call option and buying a deeper out-of-the-money call option to hedge. They emphasize the importance of having sufficient capital to cover potential losses and highlight the historical tendency of the market to decline in September. The video also covers the potential pros and cons of this strategy, including the statistical favorability of the trade and the need for a capital-intensive approach.
Takeaways
- 📉 The video discusses strategies for making money from the stock market, particularly during downturns like the one experienced in September.
- 🐻 The presenter introduces the concept of selling bear call spreads as a strategy to collect premiums while waiting for market uncertainty to pass.
- 💰 It's emphasized that this strategy is not a 'get rich quick' scheme, but can yield modest returns, such as a couple of hundred dollars from selling contracts.
- 💼 The presenter advises ensuring that one's portfolio can handle this strategy and having sufficient capital to cover the purchase of 100 shares of the underlying stock if needed.
- 📈 The video references historical data suggesting that September tends to be a down month for the stock market, with an average drop of around 0.8%.
- 📊 Technical analysis of the S&P 500 is provided, noting a potential retrace upwards to previous support levels, despite the current downward trend.
- 🔄 The concept of setting up a bear call spread involves selling a call option contract first and then buying an out-of-the-money call option contract to act as a proxy for 100 shares.
- 📆 The video provides a step-by-step guide on how to set up a bear call spread using the thinkorswim platform, with Google (GOOGL) as an example.
- 🤑 The presenter outlines two scenarios for the expiration day: if the stock price stays below the strike price, or if it rises and triggers a buy stop order to cover the position.
- 🚫 The video concludes with a discussion of the pros and cons of setting up a bear call spread, including the need for capital to cover potential share purchases and the risk of gap-ups in stock prices.
Q & A
What is the main strategy discussed in the video for making money from the stock market?
-The main strategy discussed in the video is selling bear call spreads, which involves collecting premiums by selling call options contracts while expecting the stock market to drop or trend sideways.
Why is it important to have capital to cover 100 shares of the underlying stock when selling bear call spreads?
-Having capital to cover 100 shares of the underlying stock is important because it allows the trader to convert the bear call spread into a covered call if the stock price rises above the strike price, thus managing the risk of potential losses.
What does the video suggest about the stock market's typical performance in September based on historical data?
-The video suggests that historically, September has often been a down month for the stock market, with an average drop of around 0.8 percent based on data from 1950 to 2022.
How does the speaker plan to handle the situation if the stock price rises above the strike price of the bear call spread?
-If the stock price rises above the strike price, the speaker plans to buy 100 shares of the stock at a specified price (buy stop order) to cover the potential obligation from the sold call option contract.
What is the significance of the RSI level mentioned in the video in relation to the stock market's behavior?
-The RSI level of around 33 mentioned in the video is significant because it is a level at which the S&P 500 has historically tended to bounce back, indicating potential reversals in the market trend.
Why does the speaker recommend watching cover call videos before this video on bear call spreads?
-The speaker recommends watching cover call videos first because the concepts and strategies involved in setting up a bear call spread are similar to those of a covered call, and understanding the latter will make the former easier to grasp.
What is the role of the Federal Reserve's interest rate decisions in the stock market's performance as discussed in the video?
-The video discusses that the Federal Reserve's decision to keep interest rates high to tame inflation has led to a negative reaction in the stock market, causing many stocks to sell off.
What is the 'Santa Claus rally' mentioned in the video, and how does it relate to the stock market's performance in November and December?
-The 'Santa Claus rally' is a term used to describe the typical rise in the stock market during November and December, where portfolio managers often reallocate portfolios and buy more shares to show positive performance to clients before the end of the year.
How does the video describe the process of setting up a bear call spread using Google as an example?
-The video describes setting up a bear call spread by first buying an out-of-the-money call option contract to act as a proxy for 100 shares, then selling a call option contract at a higher strike price to collect a premium. The goal is for the stock price to not reach the higher strike price by expiration.
What are the pros and cons of setting up a bear call spread as outlined in the video?
-Pros include the strategy being statistically favorable as it can profit from the stock going down, sideways, or not rising enough by expiration. Cons include the need for capital to cover 100 shares if the stock rises, the risk of a gap up causing the buy stop order to be triggered too late, and the strategy being more capital-intensive.
Outlines
📉 Stock Market Strategies During Downturns
The speaker introduces the concept of making money from the stock market, particularly during downturns like the one experienced in September. They discuss the strategy of selling bear call spreads, which involves selling contracts to collect premiums while awaiting market stability. The speaker emphasizes the importance of having the necessary capital to cover potential obligations and suggests watching previous videos on covered calls for better understanding. They also highlight the need to watch the entire video to grasp the pros and cons of setting up a bear call spread. The video then delves into the current stock market situation, influenced by the Federal Reserve's decision to maintain high interest rates to combat inflation, leading to a negative reaction and a downward trend in the market. The speaker uses the example of the SPY ETF to illustrate the market's performance and potential support levels, suggesting a possible market retrace. They also reference historical data to show that September has typically been a down month for stocks, while October and the subsequent months may see positive returns, setting the stage for the bear call spread strategy.
📈 Setting Up a Bear Call Spread with Google as an Example
The speaker demonstrates how to set up a bear call spread using Google as an example. They explain their personal bias towards Google's short-term decline despite a long-term bullish outlook. The strategy involves selling a call option contract at a strike price the speaker doesn't expect to be reached within a set timeframe, in this case, 145 dollars. To execute this, the speaker first buys an out-of-the-money call option to act as a proxy for 100 shares, allowing them to sell the in-the-money call option and collect the premium. The speaker guides viewers through the process on the thinkorswim platform, showing how to select the appropriate expiration dates and strike prices. They also discuss the importance of setting a buy stop order to purchase 100 shares if the stock price rises接近 the strike price, ensuring they can fulfill the contract if necessary. The video provides a step-by-step guide on how to carry out this trade, including the calculations involved and the rationale behind each step.
🔍 Contingency Planning for Bear Call Spreads
The speaker outlines the possible outcomes on the expiration date of the bear call spread. If the stock price remains below the strike price, both the bought and sold contracts expire worthless, allowing the trader to keep the entire premium. This scenario is statistically favorable as it allows for profit regardless of the stock's movement. The speaker also addresses the second scenario where the stock price rises and triggers the buy stop order, necessitating the purchase of 100 shares. In such a case, the trader can still profit from the difference between the buy and sell strike prices, in addition to the premium collected. The video emphasizes the importance of having capital to cover the potential purchase of shares and the trader's willingness to hold the shares long-term. The speaker also mentions the potential risks, such as a gap up in the stock price that could lead to buying shares at a higher price than anticipated.
🚀 Pros, Cons, and Personal Strategies for Bear Call Spreads
The speaker concludes by discussing the pros and cons of setting up a bear call spread. They highlight the statistical favorability of the trade, the potential for profit in various market conditions, and the opportunity to convert the spread into a covered call if the stock rises. However, they also acknowledge the risks, including the possibility of an unrealized loss if the stock price drops after purchasing shares, and the capital intensity of the strategy. The speaker shares their personal approach to setting up bear call spreads, emphasizing the importance of being bullish on the long-term prospects of the stock. They invite viewers to ask questions and suggest topics for future videos, encouraging engagement and further learning. The video ends with a call to like and subscribe for more content.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Bear Call Spread
💡Premium
💡Covered Call
💡Expiration Date
💡Strike Price
💡Theta
💡Federal Reserve
💡RSI (Relative Strength Index)
💡Gap
💡Buy Stop Order
Highlights
Discussion on making money from the stock market during downturns, specifically in September.
Introduction to the strategy of selling bear call spreads to collect premiums during market uncertainty.
Emphasis on not treating this strategy as a get-rich-quick scheme and the importance of portfolio readiness.
Explanation of the need for capital to cover the purchase of 100 shares of the underlying stock.
Recommendation to watch cover call videos for better understanding before implementing bear call spreads.
Analysis of the stock market's reaction to the Federal Reserve's decision to keep interest rates high.
Technical chart analysis indicating a potential market retrace and support levels.
Historical data review showing typical market performance in September and October.
Step-by-step guide on setting up a bear call spread using Google as an example.
Explanation of the order of operations for setting up a bear call spread versus a covered call.
How to sell a call option contract without initially owning the shares through the use of an out-of-the-money option.
Demonstration of selling a bear call spread on the thinkorswim platform for Google stock.
Discussion of the two possible scenarios on the day of expiration and how they affect the trade.
Pros of the bear call spread strategy, including its statistical favorability and potential for capital gains.
Cons of the strategy, such as the risk of an unrealized loss if the stock price moves unfavorably.
Advice on setting up a bear call spread on a stock that one is bullish on long term.
Encouragement for viewers to ask questions and suggest topics for future videos.
Transcripts
so you hear a lot of people say they
know how to make money from the stock
market especially when the stock market
drops and that's exactly what's
happening right now in the month of
September so in this video I'm going to
talk about how people do this and some
strategies that you can use in your
portfolio too specifically with selling
bear call spreads or setting up bear
call spreads this is a strategy that I
personally use for myself and with my
students and we like to sell these
contracts to other people to collect
some premiums while we wait for this
uncertainty in the stock market to pass
now I am going to preface by saying that
no this is not a get rich quick scheme
yes you are going to make some money
maybe a couple hundred dollars from
these contracts that you sell but you
need to make sure that your portfolio is
able to do so you also want to make sure
that you have the capital to cover
yourself to buy 100 shares of the
underlying stock so that this way you
can convert your bear call spread into a
covered call and if you haven't seen my
cover call videos yet I would watch
those first before you watch this video
because then it's going to to make much
more sense and make sure that you watch
this video all the way until the very
end because I'm going to talk about the
pros and cons about setting up a bear
call spread and this is something that
you need to be aware of all right
without further Ado let's get started so
first of all what's been happening in
the stock market well this week the
Federal Reserve said that they were
going to keep interest rates high right
now is because they still want to tame
inflation so the stock market kind of
reacted negatively and a lot of the
stocks in the S P 500 sold off if you
take a look at spy which is an ETF that
tracks the S P 500 we've been on this
upward Trend where we've been bouncing
off of this support line in blue right
here and we finally broke it right here
and we've been kind of trending
downwards now here's the thing folks
just by looking at the technical charts
I do think that we are going to retrace
back upwards and there are some
indicators here because yeah we might be
on some sort of support line horizontal
support line at the 430 dollar level you
can see that we bounce off of this back
in June 2023 and we might be bouncing
off of it again right here and we can
also take a look at the RSI you can see
that the RSI right now is around 33
meaning that this is usually the level
that the S P 500 likes to kind of bounce
off of and we bounce off of this RSI
level back in August 18 2023 and again
back in March 2023 and so on and so
forth in the past so it is possible that
we might retrace back upwards and even
try to fill in this Gap that we had the
last day or so however with that said
this doesn't mean that we are absolutely
going to bounce up it is still possible
that we continue the sell-off because
this red Candlestick is pretty strong it
is possible that we break through and
maybe even drop down to maybe like the
420 dollar level here but that's okay
because you're watching this video and
we actually want the stock market to
drop or even trend sideways so that this
way we can collect some premium from
selling our bear call spread and if you
want to take a look at some of the
historical data you can go to
moneychemp.com to see how well we
performed on a monthly basis and just
kind of play around toggle some of these
buttons here if I click on September you
can see that all the way from 1950 to
2022 we typically have some sort of down
month on average we usually drop around
point eight percent you can see that
back in 2022 we dropped eight percent
2021 we've dropped four percent twenty
twenty four percent and then so on so
forth now this doesn't mean that we
always drop because there are some up
years too but if you take a look at the
overall historical data we've had around
32 up years but 41 down here and in
October you can see that we usually have
a positive return however you can also
see that in the last couple of reasons
years back in 2020 we've had a negative
three percent drop 2018 a negative seven
percent drop so I don't know we might
have a negative year in October too but
if we were to take a look at that
long-term history we might have some
sort of positive return and typically as
we enter November and December where we
have some sort of Santa Claus rally we
typically have a rise in the stock
market a lot of portfolio managers will
start to reallocate their portfolios and
start to buy more shares so this way
they can show their clients what it is
that they purchased and then they want
to make their clients happy because of
course if they make money then they also
make a percentage of that too okay so
let's talk about selling bear call
spreads and how to do this step by step
which I'm going to show you on my think
or Swim web platform for my example that
I'm going to use today I'm going to use
Google the ticker symbol is g-o-o-g-l
and you can see that Google has been on
an upward rise we've been kind of in
this upward channel right here ever
since the end of 2022 last year and
beginning of 2023 and we've been kind of
undulating to upwards here now you can
see that of course just like with the
rest of the stock market Google also
dropped very violently and it's possible
that we might drop a little bit even
more all the way down to this green line
right here but of course we can always
bounce back up anything can happen in
the stock market but I like Google and
here's the thing I know it's kind of
contradicting I want to own Google for
the long term but I think that Google is
going to drop in the short term and
because I have this bias I am going to
then set up a bear call spread or sell a
bear call spread and by looking at the
charts I'm going to say or predict that
Google is not going to reach the 143
level around the 140 level in the next
couple of days and if it does that's
awesome we're going to have a plan for
it but we're just gonna say that Google
is not going to hit 143 dollars within
the next 30 to 45 days and that might
continue to drop or maybe even Trend
Sideways from now until the expiration
date which again I'll talk about in a
bit so this is how you set up a bear
call spread very similar to a covered
call where you have to do two steps step
one you're going to buy 100 shares and
then step two you sell the call option
contract against the 100 shares and you
collect the premium with a bear call
spread it's very similar but the problem
with a cover call is if you buy the 100
shares and the underlying stock drops
then you're going to have an unrealized
loss in your portfolio because you're
holding the 100 shares so to kind of
counteract that what you can do is you
can set up a bear call spread and do the
order of operations opposites from
setting up a covered call Tray so with a
cover call you're going to buy 100
shares and then you're going to sell the
call option contract but with a bear
call spread what we're going to do is
we're going to reverse that and we're
going to sell the call option first and
then if we need to cover ourselves then
we'll buy the 100 shares so hopefully
you can see it's the opposite order of
steps for a covered call okay so I know
where you're going to ask me Steve how
can you sell that call option contract
if you don't have the 100 shares
initially that's actually a good
question and that's what a bear call
spread is so instead of just sell
selling the call option contract first
which you actually can do unless you're
approved for options for level trading
which I don't recommend what you need to
First do is buy a call option contract
first something that is way out of the
money which I'll talk about in a little
bit and then you can sell the call
option contract when you buy that first
out of the money call option contracts
it's going to be a proxy or a
substitution of 100 shares once you have
that option contract you can then sell
another call option contract just like
what you would do for a covered call and
then collect that premium hopefully this
all makes sense but if it doesn't don't
worry because I'm going to do it step by
step in the next couple of minutes so
hang on tight okay so I'm on the
thinkorswim web platform right here and
I'm going to type in my ticker symbol
Googl which is the ticker symbol for
Google I'm going to go to the option
chain which is basically again like what
I've said in my past videos it's a
Marketplace of where people like to buy
and sell their option contracts I'm
going to go out for further in
expiration today usually I like to
choose an expiration that's around 30 to
45 days away but I'm going to make an
exception and choose a further out
expiration dates so this way I can get
more extrinsic value I'm going to choose
the November 17th expiration which is
around 57 days away I'm going to open
that up and remember how I said that
with Google I don't think it's going to
really reach 143 dollars within the next
couple of days so because of that I'm
going to take a look at the option chain
and look under the strike price of
around 143 dollars or somewhere around
there well 143 dollars doesn't show up
here so I'm going to go up in price and
choose the 145 dollar strike price right
here and this is the price that I don't
think Google is going to really reach
within the next couple of days this is
the call option contract that I'm going
to sell at so remember with the option
chain call options are usually denoted
on the left hand side all the put
options on the right hand side and
because we're selling a bear call spread
we're going to focus our attention on
the left hand side I'm going to take a
look at the strike price of 145 and
because I'm selling a call option
contract I'm going to look under the bid
column not the ask column I'm going to
line it up and I can see that I can sell
a call option contract for 158 dollars
per contract and then I'm going to click
on this okay so going back to that
initial question of Steve how can you
sell a call option contract if you don't
own 100 shares first and that's exactly
what we're going to talk about right now
I need to First buy another out of the
money call option contract which is
going to acts as a proxy a substitution
of 100 shares so then this way I can
then sell the call option contract
against it so going back to the option
chain I'm going to scroll all the way
down here and I'm going to choose a
further out of the money call option
contract maybe around the 175 dollar
strike price right here so you can see
that because now that I'm buying a call
option contract I'm going to look under
the ask column and I can buy this call
option contract for nine dollars so
here's what's happening step number one
I'm going to buy a call option contract
the 175 dollar strike price for nine
dollars this is going to act as a 100
share proxy just like with a cover call
so this way I can then sell my call
option contract against it step number
two I'm then going to sell this 145
dollar strike call option contract and
collect 158 dollars from it so if you do
the math 158 dollars collected minus
nine dollars that's going to be around
149 that we make that we are going to
collect as our premium I'm going to make
sure that all my toggles are correct I
am selling one call option contract for
the November 17th expiration for 145
dollar strike price and this is a call
option and then I'm also buying a call
option with the same expiration dates at
the 175 dollar strike price and this is
also a call option here I'm going to
click on review and submit and boom I
should be able to collect around 149 150
155 dollars right here it's based on
what the bid ask spread is but that's
how much credit I'm going to collect and
then I can hit send and I'm done okay so
this is where it gets really important
this is where I talk about the
contingencies of what is going to happen
on the day of expiration because really
two things are going to happen so
scenario number one if Google stays
below 145 dollars by the time of
expiration that's actually very good for
us because what's going to happen is
both of the contracts that we have the
one that we bought and the one that we
sold are all going to Decay by Theta
they're all going to expire worthless
meaning that we can keep the entire
premium of 140 150 and hopefully
everyone can see that this is a
statistically favorable trade because
Google can go up down or sideways and
still make money so why is this it's
because if Google continues to Trend
downwards that's good for our bear call
spread because that's what we want the
underlying stock to do or if the stock
just Trends sideways then our call
option contracts are going to Decay by
Theta even if Google starts to Trend
upwards if it doesn't Trend upwards fast
enough by the time of expiration to our
strike price then yeah both of our
contracts are going to Decay by Theta
and expire worthless so this is the
optimal strategy where we want the
underlying stock to Trend sideways go
down or maybe even if it goes up it
doesn't really hit the 145 dollar strike
price by the time of expiration okay so
here's scenario number two if the stock
starts to Trend up to 143 144 dollars
before it hits the 145 dollar strike
price what we need to do is I'm going to
buy 100 shares of Google so this way I
can deliver them to the other party for
145 dollars again if you don't know what
I'm talking about it's okay you can
watch my cover call videos that I made
in the past and I have a whole bunch of
them on my channel so when I set up this
bear call spread what I usually like to
do as my third step is I like to set a
buy stop order so how do I do this well
I'm going to go to the top right hand
corner I'm going to click on buy and I'm
going to buy 100 shares of Google only
if Google starts to rise up this means
that I'm going to change my market order
into a stop order or a buy stop order
and remember my strike price was 145
dollars I'm then going to want to
purchase 100 shares of Google at 144
dollars so I'm going to type that price
in right here 144 dollars a hundred
shares of them I'm then going to change
this day order into a GTC or a good till
cancel I'm going to click on review and
then submit so what does this mean this
means that if Google starts to rise up
and it starts to hit
143 144 dollars then my brokerage is
automatically going to buy 100 shares of
Google for a hundred and forty four
dollars and again this is why I said in
order to place his trade you want to
make sure that you have the capital to
buy a hundred shares of Google to cover
yourself when it hits 144 dollars that's
awesome and if it continues to move on
upwards that's very good for us because
then we're going to make some capital
gains because we bought the shares for
144 dollars and we sold the strike price
a call option strike price for 145
dollars we're going to sell all of our
shares for a hundred and forty five
dollars each this means that we're going
to make a 100 profit because we bought
the shares for 144 and we're selling
them for 145. this is a one dollar
difference and one times 100 shares is a
100 capital gain not only do we get the
100 capital gain we also made the
premium from the credit spread or the
bear call spread the 100 plus the 150
dollars worth of premiums or 140
whatever it is that we get then all
together that's a 240 250 dollar profit
right there and if the stock continues
to rise then that's actually good for us
because remember that call option
contract that we purchased maybe just
maybe that call option contract that we
purchased at the 175 dollar strike might
go up in value too because remember
whenever we buy a call option and the
underlying stock goes up then that call
option is most likely going to increase
in price because it's a derivative of
what the underlying stock does if the
underlying stock goes up call options
typically like to rise up if the
underlying stock drops then the call
option will typically like to drop as
well so let's talk about the pros and
cons of this trade Pro number one this
is a statistically favorable trade
because remember we can kind of win in
all three directions of the underlying
stock if it drops that's good for us if
Google starts to Trend sideways Theta
eats away from the contracts and the
same thing with if the stock Rises up
but not as aggressively all the way to
the strike price that we choose if it
doesn't hit that strike price by
expiration we also quote unquote win two
and pro number two is if the stock does
go up and goes above our strike price
we're able to cover ourselves convert
our bear call spread into a covered call
and then we can make another 100 capital
gain or whatever it is that we choose as
our buy stop order and then make some
more money on top of the premium that we
collected from the bear call spread this
is a strategy that a lot of
institutional Traders like to place on
where they set up a whole bunch of bear
call spreads they sell the call option
contracts where the stock market just
typically just Trends sideways and let
Theta Decay away from their co-option
contracts and they can just collect all
these premiums okay so let's talk about
the cons to this trade it is very
possible that the stock goes up and then
maybe it'll trigger our buy stop order
where we'll purchase 100 shares for 144
dollars and then all of a sudden the
stock just drops this is going to give
us an unrealized loss because then we're
going to have a hundred shares of Google
and then the underlying stock drops and
this is why again I like to say I want
to set up a bear call spread on a stock
that I am bullish long term so this way
I don't mind holding on to 100 shares
the second con is sometimes with the
stock market it is possible that we
might have a gap up this means that if
we set up a buy stop order at 144
dollars and all of a sudden Google
releases very good news and then the
price shoots up above 144 dollars it
just skips over 144 dollars maybe it'll
be at 143 dollars one day and then jump
up to 145 dollars the next day then our
buy stop order might be triggered too
late and we might instead buy our shares
for 145 146 dollars instead or wherever
it ends up the next day compared to what
we wanted to buy the shares for which is
144 dollars and I guess the third con
for this is it's a more Capital
intensive trade just like with a covered
call because remember you need to have
the capital to buy 100 shares to cover
yourself just in case the stock goes up
and hits the strike price by the time of
expiration and going back to what I said
earlier you want to be bullish on it in
the long term and you want to be willing
to purchase 100 shares and if this is
something that you don't want to do I
would not set up this bear call spread
in this fashion and yes this is how I
set up my bear call spreads and what
works for me and I know there are a lot
of Traders out there where maybe the
width of their spread might be a little
bit smaller some people like to make
theirs wider but this is typically what
I like to do all right that's pretty
much it for this video thank you so much
for watching if you have any questions
about this trade let me know in the
comments below if you have any ideas on
any future video topics you can also let
me know in the comments and I'm going to
try my best to make them in the future
if you found a lot of value in this
video feel free to give me a like And
subscribe and I will see you all in the
next video bye everyone
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