ION Options - One Night Specialty Classes

ION Options One Night Specialty Classes

All classes are interactive, approximately 2 hours, cost $99.

Option Pricing Model
To be scheduled. See upcoming events.
The value of an option plays an integral role in how you trade options. In order to make the best informed decision on which strategy is optimal and how to construct it in the most optimal way, an investor would be well served to understand how an option gets its value. In order to do so, an investor must go to the source... the root of option valuation. That is the Option Pricing Model.

Volatility
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The essence of an option lies in its extrinsic value. Without extrinsic value, an option is really no longer an option. With that said, the biggest contributing factor of intrinsic value is volatility. In order to trade and manage options properly, you must be able to manage extrinsic value, thus you must fully understand volatility.

Introduction to the Greeks
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Putting on a position is just one of several steps of a successful option trade. Managing that position to fruition is another. The secret of managing a position is being able to identify and define the risk of your position. The Greeks help you do just that... identify, define and quantify the risks of your position before you put the trade on!

Delta
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Most option traders start as directional traders. They learn to substitute an option for the stock to take better advantage of a stock directional move. The option price will change relative to a movement in the stock. But, different options will react differently to these stock movements. Delta, one of the option "Greeks" tells us exactly how and to what degree (numerically) an options price will change with a movement in the stock. As important as this is, Delta, tells us more than just that!

Gamma
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You must know and understand Gamma in order to determine how your delta will change with the movement of the stock. Delta, like the rest of the Greeks, is not a static number. Delta changes as the stock moves, as time passes, and as volatility moves. Gamma quantifies Delta's change.

Vega
To be scheduled. See upcoming events.
An options price is influenced by more than just one variable. The movement of volatility is one of the factors. As volatility moves, so does the price of the option. The amount of the option's price change caused by volatility movement is identified and quantified by Vega. Different options have different Vega's thus react differently to volatility movements. This is important to note when selecting the proper option to use in your selected strategy.

Theta
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Options are said to be a wasting asset. This is due to the fact that they have an expiration date. This means that an options value diminishes as time passes and expiration nears. The amount of decay on a daily basis is quantified by the Greek known as Theta. Different options have different rates of decay. Knowing and understanding this helps premium collectors choose the optimal option to sell to maximize their strategy. This is but one use of theta.

Synthetic Positions
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It is said that there is more than one way to skin a cat. This is true in the options market. There is more than one way to create the exact same position. Two positions that are identical in their profit and loss scenarios are said to be "Synthetic Positions." Understanding synthetic positions allows an investor to take advantage of volatility skews, commission costs, and bid/ask spread costs. But, most importantly, understanding synthetic positions enables an investor to adjust (morph) an existing position as the situation surrounding the stock changes.

Volatility Skews
To be scheduled. See upcoming events.
In the real market, volatility is not the same between months or strikes. Different months and different strikes have different volatility levels. The different levels are called volatility skews. These skews can set up opportunities for an investor if the investor knows how to identify them and how to take advantage of them.

Second Tier Greeks
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Beyond the first-tier Greeks are the second tier Greeks. The second tier Greeks are also important for position management purposes. The second-tier Greeks quantify the changes in the first-tier Greeks due to movements in time and volatility. Understanding how changes in time and volatility affect our position Greeks will allow us to adjust our position in anticipation of the ever-changing environment.

The Science of Early Exercise
To be scheduled. See upcoming events.
Very few investors truly understand what makes an option viable for early exercise. There is an actual mathematical formula for calculating whether an option is eligible for early exercise that is easy to learn. But beyond that, many investors are confused as to whether exercising early or being assigned early is a good thing. The answer may surprise you but it is an answer you need to know.

The Hidden Value of the Greeks
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We all know the value of the Greeks. The Greeks identify and quantify the risks of our positions for us. This is critical to position management; hedging, morphing, and rolling. But, unknown to most, there is another value to the Greeks... a hidden one. The Greeks can be used offensively, not just defensively. Knowing the Greeks will ensure you choose the right options for the optimal execution of the strategy you have selected!

The Art of Morphing
To be scheduled. See upcoming events.
Morphing is the act of changing one strategy to a completely different strategy by simply adding or subtracting a single option with one single trade. The advantage of morphing is in cutting down costs and simplicity. All strategies have a simple, quick morph that can change that position, when wrong, into a position that is in the right direction. The goal is to get out of the losing position, and quickly and efficiently into a winning position.

The Art of Rolling
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Rolling is a continuation of the existing strategy. Thus rolling differs from morphing in the fact that the idea is to maintain the same position because it is working the way we want. Both premium collection and premium outlay positions can be rolled. Further, both long and short option positions can be rolled either horizontally or vertically. As an investor, it is important to be well versed in all methods of rolling to ensure consistent profitability.

Trading the Earnings Gap
To be scheduled. See upcoming events.
Much is made about the ability to make significant profits on the morning of a company's earnings announcement. The most frequently taught and most commonly employed strategy, purchasing a straddle, is not the only way to take advantage of an earnings announcement. There are several other ways to take advantage of earnings, some even more successful and with a higher degree of profitability.

Dangers of Trading the Earnings Gap
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Making big, quick money is everyone's dream. Many say that trading the earnings gap is the technique that allows you to do this. But we all know that where there is high reward, there is high risk. Those who teach the earnings gap play never seem to mention this; they make it seem as though big money is not a possibility but a probability. The fact of the matter is that there is a low probability of success in this technique and even a greater potential of a loss. In order to increase your probability of success, you need to know where the risks or dangers of this technique lie. Proper preparation for the dangers prior to the execution of this technique is the only way to safely trade this potentially big winner.

Trading the A-B-C Charting Pattern
To be scheduled. See upcoming events.
If you want to see the power of an option, then simply take the most common charting pattern and team it up with the most simple, basic option strategy and view the results. But, if you really want to see the true power of what an option can do when managed the right way by someone trained in its proper use then come and watch the A-B-C Charting Pattern traded by using the Stock Replacement Strategy with a little rolling and a little morphing mixed in the proper way.

Open Forum Q&A
To be scheduled. See upcoming events.
There are many topics and concepts under the heading of Option Trading. Unfortunately, many questions you have are not often addressed by the instructor. The instructor's agenda is to teach what he believes you should know. The problem is that sometimes, the only thing you may need to know is a specific answer to a specific question that will tie everything together for you. Sometimes, you are just missing one little piece of information or experience that separates you from being a sometime winner as opposed to a consistent winner. Here is an opportunity to get the information you want and you need.

Put / Call Parity
To be scheduled. See upcoming events.
There is a mathematical relationship that binds all options together. Synthetic positions are a large part of that equation. Boxes and jellyrolls figure into the mix also. But behind it all, there is a foundational concept that makes all of this possible... put/call parity. The put/call parity calculation explains and quantifies the mathematical relationship between calls, puts, and stock. When you look at an option chain... all the different months and strikes, all the different puts and calls... you are really looking at one big puzzle. Put/call parity is the key that unlocks the puzzle and allows you to see the big picture.

Testimonials

"Ron does a fantastic job teaching option theory, not only the "what an option is", but how to put that knowledge to use. Add to that, Ron's invaluable insight to the "behind the scene" aspect of market action and you have an unmatched option education experience."

Dave N.
Denton, TX