Asymmetric Returns with a Directional Condor
The objective of any trader or investor is to achieve the greatest return for the least amount of risk. This is what you hear hedge fund and money managers referring to as “asymmetric returns”. One of the benefits of using options to participate in a directional view is the limited risk exposure of the purchased...
European Central Bank QE and the U.S. Dollar
Last Thursday Mario Draghi confirmed the suspicions of many…that the European Central Bank was preparing a Quantitative Easing type policy package for its next meeting scheduled for June. Considerations will include cuts in interest rates and other measures with a focus on stimulating lending to small and medium size...
Understanding The VIXC
If you spend a little time surfing around the Montreal Exchange site you will eventually make your way to the MX Indices tab. At the top of the menu you will find a link to the VIXC, which is the S&P/TSX 60 VIX or volatility index. The VIXC reflects the 30 day implied volatility of S&P/TSX 60 front month and next month...
Options Action on Bombardier
From time to time I like to take a look at the “Most Active Options” ranking on the Montreal Exchange home page. It was no surprise to see that 6 out of the 10 were mining companies this morning. Since Richard Croft already posted and interesting article on this sector the other day entitled Gold, Where’s the...
Generate Cash Flow with Less Capital – Consider Credit Spreads
Many investors seek to enhance cash flow in their portfolios. For the option educated, this can involve the implementation of the Covered Call strategy or selling Naked Calls or Naked Puts. The objective is to collect a credit through the sale of an option contract with the expectation that it will expire worthless. This can...
Is Blackberry Back in Favour or Just Getting Squeezed?
Blackberry (TSX:BB) has enjoyed a fairly impressive snap back over the last few weeks. Since the beginning of December, shares have climbed from $6.00 to $10.00, or a whopping 66%. The turnaround can be attributed to a couple of things. John Chen took over as CEO back in December , signing a manufacturing agreement that set the...
Canadian Banks Topping Today’s Most Active
After demonstrating how to take a confident stance on Toronto Dominion Bank using a protective put in last weeks blog titled Repositioning Using Puts , we see that a number of Canadian banks are starting the week off strong, occupying 6 of the 10 spots on today’s Most Active Options list: If an investor had a specific...
Repositioning Using Puts
One of the challenges with the current market is that stocks have been extending gains on a month over month basis with very few pull backs. This is great if you had the foresight to position yourself early. However, the probability of a correction increases everyday that the market pushes higher, diminishing the near-term...
Understanding Synthetics
Despite sounding somewhat complex, a synthetic option strategy simply refers to combining an option contract with the underlying security to arrive at the same risk/reward profile of a specific options only position. It is not always the intention of the investor to implement a synthetic position. More often then not, the...
TransAlta Signals a Technical Buy
This week I’m looking at TransAlta (TSE:TA) as a buying opportunity. Not only did TransAlta options make the most active list last week, an analysis of the price chart reveals a number of technical attributes supporting a continuation to the upside for the stock. TransAlta is a non-regulated electricity generation and...
Jason Ayres
CEO and Director of Business Development
R.N. Croft Financial Group
62 posts
0 comments
The information provided on this website, including financial and economic data, quotes and any analysis or interpretation thereof, is provided solely for information purposes and shall not be construed in any jurisdiction as providing any advice or recommendation with respect to the purchase or sale of any derivative instrument, underlying security or any other financial instrument or as providing legal, accounting, tax, financial or investment advice. Bourse de Montréal Inc. recommends that you consult your own advisors in accordance with your needs before making decision to take into account your particular investment objectives, financial situation and individual needs.
All references on this website to specifications, rules and obligations concerning a product are subject to the rules, policies and procedures of Bourse de Montréal Inc. and its clearinghouse, the Canadian Derivatives Clearing Corporation, which prevail over the content of this website. Although care has been taken in the preparation of the documents published on this website, Bourse de Montréal Inc. and/or its affiliates do not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information published on this website and reserve the right to amend or review, at any time and without prior notice, the content of these documents. Neither Bourse de Montréal Inc. nor any of its affiliates, directors, officers, employees or agents shall be liable for any damages, losses or costs incurred as a result of any errors or omissions on this website or of the use of or reliance upon any information appearing on this website.
BAX®, CADC®, CGB®, CGF®, CGZ®, LGB®, MX®, OBX®, OGB®, OIS-MX®, ONX®, SCF®, SXA®, SXB®, SXF®, SXH®, SXM®, SXO®, SXY®, and USX® are registered trademarks of the Bourse. OBW™, OBY™, OBZ™, SXK™, SXJ™, SXU™, SXV™, Montréal Exchange and the Montréal Exchange logo are trademarks of the Bourse. All other trademarks used are the property of their respective owners.
© 2024 Bourse de Montréal Inc. All Rights Reserved.