Think Like An Option Trader

THE SECRET TO PROFITING FROM OPTIONS: THINK LIKE A PROFESSIONAL OPTION TRADER, NOT A STOCK TRADER! Understand the unique dynamics of options trades and markets Practical, concise insights based on actual option trading scenarios Master trade selection, risk management, and more By professional options trader Michael Benklifa, best-selling author of Profiting with Iron Condor Options Want to win in options? You must think like a professional option trader. Step #1: Get rid of the habits you learned in stock trading: they’re killing you! Step #2: Understand the real dynamics of options markets: they are radically, fundamentally different. Example: When stock traders look at price, they see information. Option traders see probability, time, and volatility. Example: Stock trading is about having an information advantage. Option trading can be about exploiting a lack of information. Example: Stocks either go up or they don’t. Option trades can be structured for a 90% probability of success. With dynamics like these, option trading is like nothing else. Through practical, simple examples, Michael Benklifa will help you understand what’s really going on here…so you can consistently build trades that earn profits and control risk!

The world's fastest growing trading markets are options markets. Options offer a world of opportunities that are simply unavailable to the stock trader. Trading stocks is like owning a "hammer," but trading options is like owning the whole toolbox. Why, then, do so many investors lose money in options? They lose because they trade options the way they've always traded stocks. To succeed, you must understand options the way professional options traders do. This book will help you do precisely that. When stock traders look at price, they see information. Options traders see probability, time, volatility -- and perhaps even a lack of information. Stock trading is about having more information than the other guy. Options trading can be about exploiting the lack of information. Stock trades have a 50% chance of success: stocks go up or they don't. Options trades can be structured for 90% probability of success. The very nature of trading is transformed by these radically different dynamics. Michael Hanania Benklifa reveals those dynamics and shows exactly how to take full advantage of them. Benklifa manages millions of dollars in options trades through his own firm. Here, he reveals how he approaches these trades, offering practical, concise and actionable insights based on actual scenarios. If you've struggled to profit from options... if you're intrigued by options, but hesitant... if you're succeeding with options but want to do better... this is the book you've been searching for.

In this book, a hedge fund manager and an option trading coach show you how to earn steady, reliable income selling options by managing your option trades and running your option portfolio as a real business with consistent, steady returns. Packed with real-world examples, the authors show you how to manage your own “one man” hedge fund and make consistent profits from selling options by applying the basic framework and fundamental business model and principles of an “insurance company”. This framework helps you to apply your option trading strategy to a solid, predictable, business model with consistent returns. For someone who has some knowledge of trading options and wants to become a consistent income earner. The authors provide a complete “operations manual” for setting up your business. Gain pearls of wisdom from both a professional options trader and coach, and from a hedge fund manager focused on managing an options based portfolio.

In Volatility Trading, Sinclair offers you a quantitative model for measuring volatility in order to gain an edge in your everyday option trading endeavors. With an accessible, straightforward approach. He guides traders through the basics of option pricing, volatility measurement, hedging, money management, and trade evaluation. In addition, Sinclair explains the often-overlooked psychological aspects of trading, revealing both how behavioral psychology can create market conditions traders can take advantage of-and how it can lead them astray. Psychological biases, he asserts, are probably the drivers behind most sources of edge available to a volatility trader. Your goal, Sinclair explains, must be clearly defined and easily expressed-if you cannot explain it in one sentence, you probably aren't completely clear about what it is. The same applies to your statistical edge. If you do not know exactly what your edge is, you shouldn't trade. He shows how, in addition to the numerical evaluation of a potential trade, you should be able to identify and evaluate the reason why implied volatility is priced where it is, that is, why an edge exists. This means it is also necessary to be on top of recent news stories, sector trends, and behavioral psychology. Finally, Sinclair underscores why trades need to be sized correctly, which means that each trade is evaluated according to its projected return and risk in the overall context of your goals. As the author concludes, while we also need to pay attention to seemingly mundane things like having good execution software, a comfortable office, and getting enough sleep, it is knowledge that is the ultimate source of edge. So, all else being equal, the trader with the greater knowledge will be the more successful. This book, and its companion CD-ROM, will provide that knowledge. The CD-ROM includes spreadsheets designed to help you forecast volatility and evaluate trades together with simulation engines.

Equity and index options expire on the third Friday of each month. As that moment approaches, unusual market forces create option price distortions, rarely understood by most investors. These distortions give rise to outstanding trading opportunities with enormous profit potential. In Trading Options at Expiration: Strategies and Models for Winning the Endgame, leading options trader Jeff Augen explores this extraordinary opportunity with never-before published statistical models, minute-by-minute pricing analysis, and optimized trading strategies that regularly deliver returns of 40%-300% per trade. You’ll learn how to structure positions that profit from end-of-contract price distortions with remarkably low risk. These strategies don’t rely on your ability to pick stocks or predict market direction and they only require one or two days of market exposure per month. Augen also discusses: · Three powerful end-of-cycle effects not comprehended by contemporary pricing models · Trading only one or two days each month and avoiding overnight exposure · Leveraging the surprising power of expiration-day pricing dynamics If you’re looking for an innovative new way to reignite your returns no matter where the markets move, you’ve found it in Trading Options at Expiration. “Learn and profit from Jeff Augen’s book: It clearly explains how to take advantage of market inefficiencies in collapsing implied volatility, effects of strike price, and time decay. A must-read for individuals who are options oriented.” --Ralph J. Acampora, CMT, Director of Technical Analysis Studies, New York Institute of Finance “A fantastic, insightful book full of meticulously compiled statistics about anomalies that surround option expiration. Not only does Augen present a set of effective trading strategies to capitalize on these anomalies, he walks through the performance of each across several expirations. His advice is practical and readily applicable: He outlines common pitfalls, gives guidance on timing your executions, and even includes code that can be used to perform the same calculations he does in the text. A thoroughly enjoyable read that will give you a true edge in your option trading.” --Alexis Goldstein, Vice President, Equity Derivatives Business Analyst “Mr. Augen makes a careful and systematic study of option prices at expiration. His translation of price behavior into trading strategy is intriguing work, and the level of detail is impressive.” --Dr. Robert Jennings, Professor of Finance, Indiana University Kelly School of Business “This book fills a gap in the vast amount of literature on derivatives trading and stands out for being extremely well written, clear, concise, and very low on jargon--perfect for traders looking to evolve their equity option strategies.” --Nazzaro Angelini, Principal, Spearpoint Capital “Instead of considering macro-time strategies that take weeks to unfold, Jeff Augen is thinking micro here--hours or days--specifically the days or hours right before expiration, and harnessing grinding, remorseless options decay for profit. He builds a compelling case for the strategy here. The concept of using ratio spreads plus risk management for as brief a period as one day--open to close--to capture expiring premium is worth the price of admission alone. A superb follow-up to his first book. Must-read for the serious options student.” --John A. Sarkett, Option Wizard software

In Options Made Easy, Second Edition, Guy Cohen clearly explains everything you need to know about options in plain English so that you can start trading fast and make consistent profits in any market, bull or bear! Simply and clearly, the author reveals secrets of options trading that were formerly limited to elite professionals–and exposes the dangerous myths that keep investors from profiting. As you set out on your options journey, you'll learn interactively through real-life examples, anecdotes, case studies, and pictures. Guy Cohen is your friendly expert guide, helping you pick the right stocks, learn the right strategies, create the trading plans that work, and master the psychology of the winning trader. Master all the essentials–and put them to work Options demystified so that you can get past the fear and start profiting! Learn the safest ways to trade options Identify high-probability trades that lead to consistent profits Design a winning Trading Plan–and stick to it Understand your risk profile and discover exactly when to enter and exit your trades Choose the right stocks for maximum profit Screen for your best opportunities–stocks that are moving–or are about to move Discover the optimum strategies for you Match your trading strategies to your personal investment goals No bull! The realities and myths of the markets What you must know about fundamental and technical analysis

Strategies, tools, and proven solutions for minimizing risk and volatility in option trading The Option Trader Handbook helps readers better understand trade management by providing a thorough compilation of the numerous trade adjustments, hedges, and enhancements that can be made to stock or option positions using derivatives. Dr. George Jabbour is the Director of the Master of Science in Finance (MSF) Program at The George Washington University as well as a professor of derivatives, financial engineering and investments. Dr. Jabbour has published various articles in professional financial journals and regularly speaks at conferences in the United States and abroad regarding option pricing models, financial management, and risk management. He also is a managing director of Global Asset Investments, LLC, an asset management and derivative consulting firm, and CEO of Global Finance Associates, Inc., a financial training, consulting and research company. Dr. Jabbour regularly conducts seminars in option trading and valuation, and is a very active equity and derivative trader. Philip Budwick has a law degree and a Master of Science in Finance and frequently writes articles on option trading strategies and investments. Mr. Budwick is a managing director of Global Asset Investments, LLC and a managing member of Budwick InvestmentGroup, LLC, an option trading and investment software firm. He also conducts discussion groups and offers option investment training through Option Trading Coach, LLC and is an active option and stock trader.

A brand new collection of powerful insights into successful option trading… 2 pioneering books, now in a convenient e-format, at a great price! 2 remarkable books help you earn consistent option profits as you tightly control risk! Options offer immense potential both for high profits and more effective risk management. Now, in this 2-book collection, two of the world’s most effective option traders identify the skills and techniques you need to earn consistent profits in these challenging, high-opportunity markets. In Options for the Beginner and Beyond, Second Edition, Dr. W. Edward Olmstead teaches options through brief, carefully-paced lessons on option concepts and trading strategies, crystal-clear definitions, and plenty of real trades. Every lesson builds on its predecessor, explaining options in plain English, and guiding you all the way to advanced strategies covered in no other introductory tutorial. Drawing on extensive experience teaching options and editing a leading options newsletter, Olmstead shows how to systematically maximize profits and protect capital. From choosing brokers to working with “the Greeks” and Black-Scholes, it’s all here. This new Second Edition integrates new coverage of weekly options, and presents updated tax strategies you simply must know. Then, in Think Like an Option Trader , Michael Benklifa reveals the secret of success in option trading: thinking like a professionaloption trader, not a stock trader. You’ll learn how to get rid of the massively counterproductive habits you learned in stock trading, and understand the radically different dynamics of option markets. Then, using practical, simple examples, Benklifa helps you master trade selection, risk management, and much more. Leveraging realistic, up-to-date knowledge of how option markets really work, you can consistently build trades that earn profits, limit risk, even structure trades for a 90% probability of success! From option trading experts Dr. W. Edward Olmstead and Michael Benklifa