Hedging shares with options

I'm in a bit of a dilemma when trying to hedge my stocks with call and put options.

I am trying to figure out how many put options I would need to purchase to hedge 1,000 shares of MD stock by 50% . Each put that I want to purchase has -.50 delta.
How do I construct a 50% hedge?

Basically I want to buy enough put options that will protect the shares by at least 50% in case the stock goes down

 

The ATM strike should have a delta closest to 0.50.

 

Every ATM put (50% delta) "protects" 50 shares. If you want to protect half your position (i.e., protect 500 shares), buy 10 ATM puts.

You might have more predictable results buying fewer ITM puts with higher delta, but you'll pay more.

This is not advice. I'm just trying to work within your model.

 

thanks for the responses guys. i appreciate it