Delta
When identifying trades it is essential to look at the delta of the option legs. In particular it is important to calculate the net delta of the bear call spread. The net delta is calculated by the delta of the bought call option minus the delta of the sold call option. The net delta will always be positive. The net delta indicates if the share price decreases quickly what the value of the bear call spread will be worth. For example, if a bear call spread had a net delta of 0.20, and the share price decreased by $1.00, the bear call spread would have decreased by 20 cents.
Vega
The volatility affect on a bear call spread is varied. When looking to enter a bear call spread you look to sell an out-of-the-money call option. The idea is to sell a call which has a relatively high volatility and therefore trading above its theoretical value. The bear call spread can be traded when volatility is high on the call option which allows the spread to be higher above the current share price so the stock would have to increase further before affecting the trade.
Theta
Credit spreads are trades that take advantage of the time decay nature of options. The effect or time decay is a positive for this trade. When the share price is below the sold call if the share price and volatility remain constant this value of the position will reduce and therefore increase your profit. If the stock price is closer to the lower strike price of the sold call, profits generally increase at a faster rate as time passes. Alternatively, if the underlying stock price is closer to the higher strike price of the bought call, profits generally decrease at a faster rate as time passes.
To receive ASX Option Recommendations or to learn more about Bull Call Spread, Bull Put Spread, Bear Call Spread, Bear Put Spread Strategies please request the Option Spreads eBook by contacting us on 1300 368 316 or info@totaloptions.com.au

Posted on March 9th, 2010
admin