I like to keep a few delta neutral trades active in the portfolio at all times (if I can). It's a good diversifier and also benefits from sleepy or sideways markets that tend to not help any of my directional trades.
So I regularly scan my list of the most active optionable ETFs to pick out the ones with the highest implied volatility and charts that look like the potential for sideways action setting up (ideally). And once again, for the 3rd month in a row, The utilities sector is standing out for me.
The last two strangles worked out. This time, we're gonna do a slightly different twist.
Last week, the guys published a bullish piece on Chinese internet stocks. Since then, a bunch of them have already taken off and I don't feel like chasing here. However, one name that wasn't mentioned is setting up for a potential "catch up" trade and the time feels right to jump in.
In the latest All Star Charts Monthly Conference Call, JC laid out a number of bullish trades. In the week or so since that call, a number of the stocks mentioned have since pulled back. Does that mean the trades are dead?
Not necessarily.
Nothing goes up in a straight line. And if you're a believer that our current pullback is just a result of sector rotation and a reload for a later resumption higher, then you've got to be a lover (as I am) of opportunities to enter the strongest stocks as they pause and/or pull back a bit.
With that in mind, we're putting a trade on in a Pharma stock that has the wind in it's sails.
Don't fight the tape. The markets are moving higher, whether we agree with it or not.
That said, we want to be long the strongest stocks. This is trendfollowing 101.
Last week, Steve Strazza put up a bunch of ideas in semiconductors which have been leading the way. Many are now breaking out so we're going to put on an options trade to take a jump into this trend.
Ok, I have to be honest here. I'm not incredibly bullish at these prices. As much as I try to divorce myself from the news cycle and the fundamentals, its hard to think NOW is the time to get long.
That said, only price pays, and charts and declining volatility in many stocks is telling different stories.
The beautiful thing is I can express bullish trades with options and clearly define my risk. Here's one that looks like a good risk reward:
In a recent blog post, JC highlighted some bullish stocks that he can simply no longer ignore. Regardless of whether or not we feel the upside may be close to exhausting itself in the broader markets, there are some setups that are screaming for attention.
For the past week or so, it's been a feeling to me that markets are setting up for some sideways chop with any directional bias being to the downside from here.
Meanwhile, options volatilities still remain elevated across the board (though well off the March highs) reflecting a lingering fear among market participants of another shoe to drop as the Coronavirus scare continues to effect human health and the global economy.
Against this backdrop, I'm looking for some delta-neutral credit spread strategies to employ. When doing so, I like to scan the most liquid ETFs and look for the ones exhibiting the highest premiums.
So now that all the "FANG" stocks have reported earnings and their price performance has essentially dragged equities indexes higher over the past month, now what?
It would seem that the "new" economy we live in -- one where we order everything online for fear of walking into stores -- would benefit the companies that provide the infrastructure and transportation to make that happen. Fundamentally, that makes sense. But we're chart readers here, and the charts are telling us something different.
The guys at ASC are out with a piece this week highlighting the weakness under the hood in some of the biggest sectors in the US Stock Market. Read it here.
One of the poster children for weakness we want to get short ahead of another possible leg down is setting up right now.