Trading AAPL Option Strangles 101

We have discussed the straddle options strategy in the past, a strategy that traders  can use when the market is volatile but direction is uncertain. Another play similar to the straddle is the option strangle. In a straddle, the investor is betting on both sides of a trade by purchasing options with the same strike price and the same expiration date, on the same underlying. A trader can create a similar trade, but with a lower price by trading a strangle instead. Rather than purchasing a put and a call at the same strike (as in the straddle), the investor purchases a put and a call at different strikes, still with the same expiration. By using a put and a call that are out-of-the-money, a trader pays a lower initial premium. However, this comes with a caveat – the stock will have to make a much larger move than it would if a straddle were employed. The investor is, arguably, taking a larger risk (because a bigger move is needed than with a straddle), but is paying a lower price. If this all sounds confusing to you, I would invite you to checkout the Options Education section on our website.

The Particulars
Like a straddle, a strangle has two breakeven points. To calculate these points simply add the net premium (call premium + put premium) to the strike price of the call (for upside breakeven) and subtract the net premium from the put’s strike (to calculate downside breakeven).  If at expiration, the stock has advanced or dropped past one of these breakevens, the profit potential of the strategy is unlimited (yes, unlimited). The position will take a 100% loss if the stock is trading between the put and call strikes upon expiration. Remember that the maximum loss an investor can take on a strangle is the net premium paid.

Example Trade
To create a strangle, a trader will purchase one out-of-the-money (OTM) call and one OTM put. We can use Apple (AAPL) as an example which at the time of this writing (October 2012) is trading at around $670. The trader would buy both an October 675 call and an October 665 put. For simplicity, we will assign a price of $12.50 for both – resulting in an initial investment of twenty-five bucks for our investor (which is the maximum potential loss).

Should the stock rally past $675 at expiration, the 665 put expires worthless and the $675 call expires in-the-money (ITM) resulting in the strangle trader collecting on the position. If, for example, the intrinsic value of the call at expiration is $29, the profit is $4 (intrinsic value less the premium paid).  The same holds true if the stock falls below $665 at expiration, it then is the put that is ITM and the call expires worthless. The danger is that the stock moves nowhere by the time option expiration occurs. In this case, both legs of the position expire worthless and the initial twenty dollars, or $2,500 of actual cash, is lost.

Notice that the maximum loss is the initial premium paid, setting a nice limit to potential losses. Potential profits on the strangle are unlimited which can be very rewarding.

About Dan Passarelli

Dan Passarelli, is the author of the book Trading Option Greeks and the president of Market Taker Mentoring LLC. Market Taker Mentoring provides personalized one-on-one mentoring for option traders. Dan started his trading career on the floor of the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) as an equity options market maker. He also traded agricultural options and futures on the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT). In 2005, Dan joined CBOE’s Options Institute and began teaching both basic and advanced trading concepts to retail traders, brokers, institutional traders, financial planners and advisors, money managers, employees of the SEC and Federal Reserve bank, and market makers. In addition to his work with the CBOE, he taught options strategies at the Options Industry Council (OIC). Dan has been featured on television and radio and has written numerous articles in the financial press. Dan can be reached at dan@markettaker.com. He can be followed on Twitter.