Wednesday, February 12, 2025
Unusual options activity placed Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) into the spotlight last week. It turns out a massive options trade of 150,000 contracts traded in a spread, with about $16 million of capital required. This one trade accounted for nearly half the options traded on the day. It appears the position may be […]
The iShares JP Morgan USD Emerging Market Bond ETF (EMB) is an asset allocation fund for those wanting exposure to emerging market government bonds. The ETF pays a reasonable dividend but it doesn’t generally move all that much. A well-capitalized trader is likely trying to boost returns on the low-volatility product by utilizing a covered […]
Last week I spent two days on the road. While driving, I like to listen to business news from CNBC and Fox Business, via SiriusXM radio. I especially like listening to the opinions, and everyone sure has one. My takeaway from listening is that we’re entering a great period for buy and hold investors – […]
When we talk about tech stock investing, we hear discussions of all sorts about different measures used for picking stocks. For example, some tech investors use year-over-year revenue growth. Others subscribe to a theory that has been floating around for many years, that the secret to picking tech stocks was looking at the percentage of […]
Forget oil—the real money is in natural gas. Or at least that’s the message coming from a pioneer of the U.S. shale revolution, Chesapeake Energy (CHK). From Prince to Pauper to Prince Again? Once upon a time—when its stock was valued at more than $35 billion and its CEO, Aubrey McClendon, had the biggest pay […]
“Trade with the trend” is a common phrase used by traders. Meaning, only trade in the direction of the current trend i.e. if stocks are going up, only trade long… if stocks are going down, make bearish trades. I agree for the most part. But, as you’ve noticed in the last couple weeks… bear market […]
Hedging against downside protection can be expensive. Using options can alleviate some of the cost by utilizing a spread trade, such as a butterfly. A trader recently placed a large put butterfly on for August in SPDR S&P ETF (SPY) options. The trade only cost 20 cents in premium but could pay out significantly more […]
When one of my recommended high-yield stocks does a secondary share issue, I always get questions about what is going on. The significant share price drop and share dilution of a secondary issuance make investors wonder if the stock remains a good investment. So today, I thought it would be good to review secondary stock […]
Over the past year, making money in the stock market has been tough. Inflation is spinning out of control, the Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates for the first time in years, and big tech has finally begun to fall out of favor. Look back at what would have happened if you had put […]
Using covered calls on index ETFs is a popular way to produce additional cash flow from holding stocks. For instance, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) is not only the most heavily traded ETF in the world, but it’s also commonly used for covered call trades. A large block of covered calls seemingly traded last […]
