weekly Options Trading

Trade options with a shorter term expiration period—typically one week or less—is known as weekly options trading. The right, but not the duty, to purchase or sell an underlying asset (such as stocks, indices, or commodities) at a fixed price within a given period based on option contracts is provided by options.

Weekly options provide a short-term trader with more frequent trading opportunities and the possibility of faster returns than longer-term options, which may have a termination length of several months or more. Active traders and investors who want to profit from sudden changes, occasions, news, or from an earnings report about a specific stock are especially fond of them.

You’re delving even farther into the fast paced stock market with weeklys. Making choices and taking advantage of lucrative possibilities seems like you’re in a race against time. keep reading if you want to find out how weekly options work.

What is Options Trading and How Does It Work

When searching for a trading opportunity, traders should pay close attention to termination dates, as they are a crucial aspect. Because they have an impact on the possibility of making a profit or incurring a loss. Weekly options trades function similarly to monthly options. They’re made available many weeks ahead of time. Investors who were previously limited to just 12 options expirations on the third Friday of each month will be able to enjoy 52 expirations in a year.

Weekly options are short-live alternatives that typically match the usual contracts offered on that product with the same product specifications. Investors might potentially profit from the expectation of higher prices by swing trading with weekly options. Allowing traders to capitalize on short-life news has made these options so popular.

  • Weekly options expire every Friday as opposed to the third Friday of every month as monthly options do.
  • Weekly options trade begins publication on Thursdays and ends on Friday, eight days later.
  • Trading weekly options on Friday is now widely used in trading, enabling marketers to gain from breaking news.
  • Numerous weekly choices are available for ETFs and major indexes.

The classic call option as we know it today was first launched by the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) in 1973. The put option was first presented in 1977. Given that trading volume has steadily increased over the years, they have proven to be very popular. Thirty-two years after the call option was first introduced, the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) started a weekly options pilot program in 2005.

Options contracts have uniform terminology, and trading transactions are made simple. After more than 40 years, weekly options became a new derivative in the development of options trading.

Trade Weekly Options

Making the most out of these short-term approaches is possible. A range of weekly options trade suggestion services are available from Schaeffer’s Investment Research, such as Schaeffer’s Weekly Options Countdown, Schaeffer’s Weekly Volatility Trader, and Schaeffer’s Weekly Options Trader. These weekly options trade advisory services all offer detailed entry and exit guidelines, and you can find a full list of all the available Weeklys there.

Financial products known as options are predicated on the value of underlying securities, such stocks. Options contracts give the buyer the choice to purchase or sell the selected underlying asset at a price specified in the contract, either at the contract’s expiration date or within a specific time frame, depending on the type of contract they hold.

To let subscribers learn from the pros and still make money on their trading portfolios, all of these trading weekly options recommendation services include clear entry and exit instructions for each trade in addition to in-depth commentary outlining the reasoning behind each trade.

Types of Options Trades

here are some examples of options trades. Please note that every strategy has a unique threat-reward profile and is appropriate for a range of trades and investor goals. Before you trade options, it’s critical to fully comprehend the features and possible hazards associated with any approach. let’s check some of the ways to trade weekly options:

  • Call option: They grant the buyer the right, but not the responsibility, to purchase the commodity at the striking value on or before a given date (the option’s expiration dates).
  • Put Option: These options grant the buyer the right, but not the responsibility, to sell the underlying asset at the set price.
  • Long Straddle: Purchasing a call and a put option with the same set value and termination date is known as a long straddle. Whether the stock rises or falls, this approach benefits from high price volatility.
  • Bear Put Spread: Purchasing a put option with a higher exercise price. With little chance, this method makes money from a modest decline in the stock price.
  • Covered Call: Selling a call option in opposition to a long position is known as a covered call strategy in weekly trading. It is a conservative options strategy that is generally employed by stockholders who wish to increase the income they receive from their investments. The premium that traders earn from the buyer when they sell a call option gives them an instant cash inflow. Before the option expires, the buyer of the call option has the option to acquire the asset (such as stocks, or commodities) at the designated fixed price.

Weeklys strategies

By aiming to target exposure to particular events, an options trader can incorporate weekly options into their strategy in a few different ways. let’s review some of the weekly options strategies.

Aiming for the frequency of expiration

Covered calls are one of the weekly options trading strategies which are used by certain marketers against equities they own. In these situations, weekly options may be preferred by certain marketers to potentially benefit from the theta associated with shorter-term options. Although the premium is usually lower, sellers and buyers might repeat the method every week in an attempt to offset the reduced premium.

Aiming for greater theta

Conversely, a trader may want to consider selling options or options spreads if they believe the market has priced in an excessive move following an economic or earnings release. Around earnings releases, for instance, some options traders may choose to sell an iron condor, a defined-risk strategy made up of a short vertical call spread and a short vertical put spread.

Aiming for the frequency of expiration date

A trader may anticipate that the trade cycle as a whole will move more than usual in response to an economic report, or they may believe that a stock may move disproportionately in response to an earnings release or other news announcement.

A trader may want to consider purchasing a call or put option if they believe they can predict the future direction of a company. Conversely, a trader may think about utilizing weekly options to place a straddle4 or a strangle5 if they know the possible size of the move but not its direction.

Pros & Cons of Weekly Options Trading

Weekly contracts are identical in terms of their specifics, but because of their shorter expiration, they may be identified with some advantages and disadvantages:

Advantages

  • Quicker Deterioration of Time

The closer an option comes to termination, the larger the daily time decay (“theta”)1, even though the premium can be smaller.

  • More Frequent Trading Opportunities

One of the main advantages of weekly options is the increased frequency of trading chances and increasing trading volume. Weekly options allow traders to participate actively and profit from potential price swings on a weekly basis due to their shorter expiration duration. Due to the increased frequency, traders can profit from any catalysts that may emerge within a week, such as short-lived trends or news stories. More frequent opportunities to enter and exit positions may allow traders to improve their trading techniques and react faster to the changes.

  • Fast Price Fluctuations

While implied volatility and the cost of the underlying stock can both affect an option’s pricing, short-term, at-the-money options typically have a delta2 that is more sensitive to changes in the underlying price. Put differently, these options carry greater value threats during volatile times due to their higher gamma3 values.

  • Lower Premium

The shorter the time to expiration, for a call or put option with any specified price, the lower the premium will typically be. So, compared to purchasing an option expiring on the third Friday of the month, purchasing a weekly option that expires on the first or second Friday of the month typically entails paying less in premiums. The quantity of premium collected is frequently smaller for people who are interested in selling options.

therefore, if your predictions are wrong and the movement is against you; simply, you have to forfeit one week’s worth of premium while using the weeklys.

  • Limited Risk Exposure

This is one of the benefits of several trading approaches, such as options trading. Through the application of diverse risk management approaches, business people can safeguard themselves against potentially substantial losses. Options traders, for instance, can use techniques like buying puts or setting tight stop-loss orders to limit their highest possible loss on a trade. Because their losses may be managed within predetermined bounds, marketeers feel more secure and confident due to the limited threat exposure. Also, it frees them from the continual anxiety of sharp swings in the trade cycle to concentrate on their trading goals and tactics.

Disadvantages

  • Increased Volatility Risk

Due to the shorter time horizon for the Commodity to move in the intended direction, weekly options are more susceptible to short-term value volatility. If the trade doesn’t go as planned, unexpected changes in the market can lead to large losses.

  • Greater Probability of Time Decay

Weekly options have a more noticeable time decay factor than longer-term options, thus marketers must see rapid movement in the asset to counteract the impacts of time decay.

  • Diminished Liquidity

When compared to regular monthly options, weekly options could have less liquidity.

  • Costs

In certain situations, trading weekly options’ costs may also be an issue. Weekly options are one example of a more frequent trading schedule that may lead to higher transaction costs and reduced total earnings.

  • Shorter Duration Limits Adjustment Time

If the economic situation swings negatively, traders will have less time to respond and change their positions. This may make it more difficult to apply management strategies or make tactical changes.

Weekly vs. Monthly Options

As you know, call and put options can now be bought and sold on monthly (“serial” or “third-Friday”) contracts as well as weekly expirations (“weeklys”) on Fridays that aren’t serial. Weekly options have the same trading hours as monthly options. Equity options are available from 9:30 am to 4:00 pm ET.

Weeklys are short-term instruments intended to provide option traders with more focused exposure to market events, like the publication of economic data and earnings announcements. Additionally, certain options approaches are created for the short term because the threat dynamics of options alter as they get closer to expiration. This is how weekly options function and how they could be included in a portfolio.

Weekly options typically have more frequent termination dates than trading monthly options, which is the primary distinction between them. Although weekly options are by definition riskier due to their short duration, an option with three days remaining is probably just as dangerous regardless of whether it is classified as a weekly or serial option.

Weekly options expire on the same Friday as the third. A trader may exercise a long option (or be assigned a short option) at any point on or before expiration into 100 shares of the underlying stock at the exercise price. Standard deliverable options have a multiplier of 100. Weekly options expire on Friday unless it is an exchange holiday on Friday, in which case they expire on Thursday.

Setting Up a Strategy for Weekly Options Trading

When a trade is losing money, there is another benefit to adopting the weekly options technique to close off positions. As a general rule, you can think about withdrawing if a deal drops by 60%, though this isn’t always advised.

It is crucial to take into account the volatility of the market and the likelihood that price movement may change quickly and dramatically enough to justify sticking on your position. If you stay in, you could be able to turn a profit in the best-case situation, break even, or leave with a reduced loss.

Increasing the stake in trades that are displaying a loss is another weekly options trading strategy that can be used. You can lower the cost per contract of your investment by acquiring another contract of the same option at a cheaper price. This implies that you can enhance your outcome and break even or turn a profit more easily with even a slight increase in pricing. However, doubling down often ends up being a wise move. On the downside, it also means that you run the probability of losing all of the additional capital. You might think about doubling down once again if the price keeps falling!

Risk Management with Weekly Options Trading

Here is the most common and conventional means of balancing risk disparity.

You would get 200 shares of a $50 stock if you invested $10,000 in it. Alternatively, you might purchase two contracts of call options in place of the 200 shares. You still own the same number of shares but pay less money by buying the options. Stated differently, the number of shares that may have been purchased with the investment funds determines the number of options.

Let’s say you choose to spend $41,750 on 1,000 shares of XYZ at a price of $41.75 each. But for $1,630 per contract, you may purchase 10 call option contracts with an in-the-money strike price of $30 instead of buying the stock at $41.75. The 10 calls included in the options transaction will require a total capital outlay of $16,300. This amounts to a savings of $25,450 overall, or around 60% of the price you would have paid to purchase the shares.

There are various ways to employ these $25,450 in savings. Initially, it can capitalize on additional prospects, offering you increased variety. Second, it can earn money market rates just by sitting in a trading account. Interest can be accumulated to produce a “synthetic dividend.”

Consider a scenario where the $25,450 in savings grows by 2% a year in an account. Throughout the option, the account will earn $509 in interest annually, or roughly $42 each month.

Utilizing Technical Analysis to Boost Your Win Rate in Weekly Options Trading

Technical analysis can be used to trade options by examining past price and volume data of the asset to determine possible entry and exit points. Technical indicators like Bollinger Bands, relative strength index (RSI), and moving averages are frequently used by marketers to spot trends, momentum, and probable reversal points in the price of the underlying asset. Based on the anticipated movement of the commodity, this research can assist options traders in making well-informed decisions about whether to buy or sell options. It’s crucial to remember that technical analysis is only one tool in a trader’s toolbox, and while trading options, other elements like fundamental analysis and market sentiment should also be taken into account.

Conclusion

For traders who would prefer to draw fifty-two returns annually rather than twelve, weekly options may be advantageous. Weeklies present a great opportunity for traders to profit from significant volatility. The weekly options are a delicate game to play because of their short-term nature, even though the criteria are comparable to those of standard options.

Since weekly options have a short term, well-informed judgments can be taken in light of current events. It offers numerous other benefits and is also reasonably priced. To trade profitably, make sure you plan your trading strategy thoroughly in advance.

  • Is trading weekly options profitable?

Weekly options trading can yield enormous profits, but if all stock and market conditions are not taken into account before trading and during the trade, such earnings could also be quite volatile. For traders of all stripes to generate steady profits, they need to apply the best trading tactics available.

  • Can I trade weekly options?

Weekly options might be an excellent option for an active trader who wants to purchase options at the best price and execute trades quickly and frequently.

  • When should I trade weekly options?

The shorter the time to expiration, for a call or put option with any strike price, the lower the premium will typically be. So, compared to purchasing an option expiring on the third Friday of the month, purchasing a weekly option that expires on the first or second Friday of the month typically entails paying less in premiums.