Buy Write with no risk, is it possible?

Discussion in 'Options' started by michaeltrader789, Oct 20, 2018.

  1. Is it possible to sell buy writes with no risk and just collect premiums?
    For example, if I will sell 100 buy write and hedge my position by shorting futures on stocks (and if date of expiration of options and futures will be the same). Does that mean that we are selling buy writes and collecting premium with low risk or no risk? What potential risk I can head? I’m new to this , can’t find enough information on this in the internet.
    So, is it possible? Is it a common strategy, why there is no information about this in the internet?
     
  2. drm7

    drm7

    If the stock spikes far above the strike on your written options, your stock will be called away, and you will be left with a naked short position on your futures contract (which is now underwater).
     
  3. tommcginnis

    tommcginnis

    ☼ Reward follows risk. Always. No getting around it. TANSTAAFL and all that.

    "If the stock spikes far above the strike on your written options, your stock will be called away, and you will be left with a naked short position on your futures contract (which is now underwater)."
    ☼ And why? Because you've hedged a hedge. The BUY of the BuyWrite was your hedge on the Write. By shorting an associated future contract, you're now exposed to topside risk (which had been cut off by the presence of the Buy-ed stock.

    You need to put this onto a profit/loss chart, and plot it all out, before you get near the Trade buttons. The future contract of your "hedge" amounts to a 45°, negative-sloped line that essentially counters, dollar-for-dollar, the 45° positively-sloped line of the stock.

    The reason the OP hasn't seen it? It doesn't make sense to do. (Under most circumstances.)

    [​IMG]
     
    Reformed Trader likes this.
  4. It sounds like you're buying SPY, shorting a call, and shorting enough futures to eliminate the delta risk of the overall position.

    If that's the case, you've synthetically constructed a short straddle. There's no delta risk when you put the position on, but that changes after a few minutes when the SPY moves, as you are exposed to gamma.

    It's probably easier to work through an options textbook than to do Internet searches. Here's one that's relatively easy to read:

     
    tommcginnis likes this.
  5. kmoney

    kmoney

    This is possible if you use European options but you’ll find that the return before commission expenses will be at best equal to the risk free rate unless the options are massively misspriced
     
    Windlesham1 and tommcginnis like this.
  6. I think it was UBS who had 10 years of failing with buy-writes -covered calls are a problem because of the underlying-at some point it will tank and you cannot recoup your losses for years,while you have limited upside potential. It's how we all start with options.
     
    Reformed Trader, tommcginnis and DTB2 like this.
  7. As a liquid alt, the trade has better diversification characteristics when it's put on with no delta, but that's probably too complicated to explain in a PowerPoint presentation.
     
  8. Daal

    Daal

    About the only thing you will find in your broker with no risk are treasury bills, and even then there is some risk
     
    Reformed Trader likes this.