Weekly Update: July 17, 2014
Weekly Update: July 17, 2014
What To Watch
At long last, we finally had some volatility in the equities markets. Today’s Malaysian plane crash in Ukraine spooked investors over the possibility of escalating conflict in the region. The S&P 500 dropped over 1% for the first time in quite a while – but it still remains near record highs.
In other international news, the conflict between Israel and Gaza is once again heating up. It just highlights the numerous global hot spots adding to overall global economic risk.
On the home front, the economy is still looking strong for the most part. The housing recovery is still a bit touchy, but the job market is showing steady improvement. Overall, there’s not a lot of concern over domestic growth.
It’s once again earnings season, which should mean better opportunities for trades. It’s been harder than usual to find inspiring trade ideas recently, but earnings season is always a good time to find winners. Let’s see what kind of trading potential next week brings.
Portfolio Recap
Position #1: Medallion Financial (TAXI) July $12.50 Calls
Price Paid: $1.20
Current Price: $0.00
Time Until Expiration: 1 day
We couldn’t recover from the Uber beat-down in time for expiration. These calls come off the books tomorrow.
Position #2: Pacific Coast Oil Trust (ROYT) July $12.50 Calls
Price Paid: $0.95
Current Price: $0.05
Time Until Expiration: 1 day
ROYT options were already mostly worthless, but with the drop today, we should be able to let them expire tomorrow without closing them out.
Position #3: United Parcel Service (UPS) July $100 Puts
Price Paid: $1.10
Current Price: $0.00
Time Until Expiration: 1 day
These options expire tomorrow as well.
Position #4: First Majestic Silver (AG) July $10 Calls
Price Paid: $0.68
Price Sold: $0.50
We closed out our AG position today for $0.50.
Position #5: Franco-Nevada (FNV) August $55 Puts
Price Paid: $1.38
Current Price: $1.35
Time Until Expiration: 29 days
FNV has been quite volatile since we bought it. It spiked, then gapped down, and now is about even. We still have a month on these options, but may look to take profits on the next big down move.
Position #6: AGCO (AGCO) August $55 Calls
Price Paid: $0.85
Current Price: $0.85
Time Until Expiration: 29 days
AGCO hasn’t moved much at all from our entry price this week. We’ll see what happens in the coming days.
Category: OTW Weekly Updates
