How much of a hedge do you need–and how much can you afford

I try to use big up and (especially) down days in the stock market to stress test my portfolio. One of the things I look to learn from a high volatility down days is how the hedges that I’ve put on to protect my portfolio work under big stress. So, for example, on a big day down day like July 16, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 725 points, I looked to see if 1) the hedges I owned worked to reduce or better yet eliminate my downside losses, and 2) how much those hedges were costing me in opportunities for upside gains postponed.

Rebuying VIX Calls for the Volatility Portfolio

Rebuying VIX Calls for the Volatility Portfolio

Today the CBOE S&P 500 Volatility Index (VIX) dropped another 2.24% to 15.70. That puts the “fear index” back in the “complacency zone” where I’ve been looking to buy Call Options on the VIX in anticipation of a bounce back to the top of the current zone at 20 on the next “bad news” day. (Whatever the bad news might be.)

Rebuying VIX Calls for the Volatility Portfolio

Trick or trend: Time to put the volatility trade back on as VIX drops below 17 again

On Friday, August 6, the CBOE S&P 500 Volatility Index (VIX) retreated another 6.54% to 16.15. That puts the “fear index” back in the “complacency zone” where I’ve been looking to buy Call Options on the VIX in anticipation of a bounce back to the top of the current zone at 20 on the next “bad news” day. (Whatever the bad news might be.) This trade, which is not dependent on any call about a bear market or even a market correction but rather on the simple bounce from levels of extreme compliance, recommends buy the Call Option on the VIX when it breaks below !6 and then selling the Call Option when it breaks above 20.

Saturday Night Quarterback (on a Monday) says, For the week ahead expect…

Saturday Night Quarterback (on a Monday) says, For the week ahead expect…

I’m looking for answers to two big questions that earnings from Amazon (AMZN) and Caterpillar (CAT) left us with last week. In the case of Amazon, where the company reported a slide in revenue growth after a big bump in sales due to everybody ordering everything on line during the Pandemic shutdown, the question is What is the actual sales growth trend once you remove all the plus and minuses from the Pandemic? This isn’t a question just for Amazon, of course. It’s important for figuring out the valuation of everything from Las Vegas hotel and casino play MGM Resorts International (MGM) to streaming champion Netflix (NFLX) to Starbucks (SBUX). The other question left hanging at the end of the week is whether or not we’re about to see a string of companies forecasting lower margins due to rising prices for raw materials. That was the takeaway message from Caterpillar’s (CAT) earnings report.

An odd market before tech earnings #2: Selling my October VIX Call Options

An odd market before tech earnings #2: Selling my October VIX Call Options

With the major indexes all down ahead of tech earnings–and fear up–I’m pulling out my VIX options trade again. The rule here, until modified by reality (pesky little thing) is to buy when complacency drives the “fear index” to 16 or below, and to sell when fear rises and pushed the CBOE S&P 500 Volatility Index (VIX) to 20 or so. This morning selling in the market sent the VIX up to 19.85, close enough for me to 20, and I’m selling the October 20, 2021 Call Options

Rebuying VIX Calls for the Volatility Portfolio

Selling my September 15 VIX Call Options to take profits in today’s market plunge

As of 2:40 New York time the September 15, 2021 VIX Call Options with a strike at 20 (VIX210915C00020000) were trading at $5.90 a share, up 40.48% on the day on a move higher in the CBOE S&P 500 Volatility Index (VIX) of 30.35% to 24.05. I’m selling this volatility hedge out of my Volatility Portfolio with a profit of 17.5% since I added it to this portfolio on June 1.

OPEC+ is in crisis again–but since no one knows quite what the result is likely to be, we’ve had big swings in sentiment and prices in the oil market (and in banks, other commodities, and the inflation/deflation play) today

OPEC+ is in crisis again–but since no one knows quite what the result is likely to be, we’ve had big swings in sentiment and prices in the oil market (and in banks, other commodities, and the inflation/deflation play) today

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its affiliated oil producers (OPEC+) abandoned their Monday meeting after days of tense talks failed to result in an agreement on a tentative deal to increase production, and even over how to measure production. The disagreement between Saudi Arabia snd the United Arab Emirates was so heated that OPEC+ couldn’t even agree on a date for its next meeting. When these two countries last clashed in December 2020, the UAE talked of leaving OPEC. Oil prices initially jumped to its highest level in more than six years on news that OPEC+ had failed to agree to increase production. But prices then fell as traders speculated that the failure to reach an agreement on production increases would result in unplanned increases in production.

Rolling over my Call Options on the VIX as volatility fears continue to fall

Rolling over my Call Options on the VIX as volatility fears continue to fall

Investors and traders are less afraid of a drop in stocks than at any time in 2021. The CBOE S&P 500 Volatility Index (VIX), which measures how much investors and traders are willing to pay to hedge against volatility in the S&P 500, is down another 3.32% to 15.44 today, June 25, as of 3:30 p.m. New York time. The drop took out the former low for the VIX for 2021 at 15.65. I have to go all the way back to February 10, 2020–before the pandemic knocked the stuffing out of stocks–to find a lower level for the “fear index” at 13.68. So today I’m buying Call Options on the VIX–which will go up if fear and the index climb for November 2021 with a strike at 19.

Special Report: 5 Picks and 5 Hedges for a Falling Market–another (new as of August 17) installment on hedging

Special Report: 5 Picks and 5 Hedges for a Falling Market–another (new as of August 17) installment on hedging

After Wednesday’s news from the Federal Reserve, we all know that an interest rate increase is coming–even if we don’t know when. Could be 2022. Could be 2023. And even if we don’t know how many increases we’re looking for in that time period. Could be one. Could be two. The need to revise your portfolio to take that change in monetary policy is obvious. But figuring out how and when isn’t by any means straightforward. What gives? And how should be navigate a period that is almost certainly going to end with a reversal of the lower for longer interest rates that have dominated asset prices for decades? Today, for the last installment in my Special Report: “5 Picks and 5 Hedges for a Falling Market” I’m going to take one last run at how to hedge this market and how to position your portfolio for the developing trends. (I don’t have much hope that this will be the last time I’m visiting this topic, of course.)

A trend? Retail sales fall in July but lots of one-off events

With Fed meeting on tap for tomorrow, stocks slip on disappointing retail sales growth

Retail sales fell by 1.3% in May from April, the Commerce Department reported this morning. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had projected a 0.8% month over month drop. The month to month drop in retail sales was the first drop in month to month sales since February. Retail sales still grew a very solid 23% year over year as the economy continued its recovery from the pandemic recession of 2020.