Trades with WMT, SQ and MU
I entered trades with Walmart (WMT), Block (SQ) and Micron (MU). I feel like I’m back into the market, however, I am moving very slow. Maybe not slow compared to other traders but very slow compared to what I used to do; some of you might remember my busy days.
This post involves three stocks so we’ll take a look one at a time. I’ll start with WMT.
Walmart
As you know by now Walmart did a 3:1 split yesterday. I mentioned in one of my posts that I have 5 entry points involving a splitting stock.
1) The rumor of a split
2) The announcement of the split
3) Two weeks after the announcement
4) Two to five days before the split
5) Post split (sometimes the stock takes a dip a few days after the split. If it does I jump in).
Since the stock already split we are now “Post Split.” As entry point #5 predicts, Walmart is down today, after an “up” day yesterday. I have a feeling the stock will move sideways or slightly down the next day or two but my impatience had me enter two trades today. They are not big trades which shows I’m getting back into trading slowly.
I bought two Call options; each is a 1 contract position. The first one expires in June and the other in September. Here are the position:
Buy to Open 1 WMT 6/21/24 $60,00 C @ $2.25
Buy to Open 1 WMT 9/20/24 $60.00 C @ $3.30
The first expires in June so I’ll watch it a little closer. It has 4 months before expiring but once you are down to 1 or 2 months Time Decay accelerates. My goal is to make in the area of 50% on my investment. I only invested $225 and I’m looking to make $112.50. I know it’s not a lot of money, but as I said, I’m getting back into this game slowly. If you remember a few years ago I would have bought a 10 contract Call. I guess I’m getting back slowly, practicing, rekindling the fire for a new administration in the Whitehouse. I don’t know if my plan will work but if this country is as sick as I am with what is going on, and we get this country back on track, I’ll be ready!
The second Call I went out a little more with the Expiration Date. With this one I have until September. For this position I invested $330. My goal here is to make 100% profit, which will be selling this position at $6.60.
I’m not looking to make a killing with these positions, I’m trying to stick to the advice I always give you: Slow and Steady, Steady and Slow.
Yesterday I sold a 6 contract position for a profit of $380. I bought a 2 contract Call, which was done with entry point #4, two to five days before the split. I held it for one trading day and because of the 3:1 split I ended up with 6 contracts. This was a nice 1 day trade. I bought the position for $670 and sold for $1050. This was a 56% gain in 1 day.
If I like the way Walmart is moving post split I will buy more positions. I’ll make sure to post all of the trades. You can also monitor them on my Active Trades/Current Positions page under Long Options.
Block
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Block (SQ), this is the new name of Square.
I have 2 positions active with SQ. Yesterday I bought 200 shares at $75.75 and sold a 2 contract Covered Call. I tried to get the Call sold yesterday but it didn’t work out. Today the stock opened in the green and I was filled on a trade. The stock was up to $77 so I placed my order with the $77 Strike Price. Waiting the extra day worked out nicely. Yesterday I was trying to get filled on a $76 Call but waiting the day I was filled on a $77 Call. What does this mean! Well, if I get assigned I will sell my 200 shares at $77 and not $76. I’ll make an extra $200 with the $77 Call, if I get assigned on the 200 shares. Which I think I will.
I bought 200 shares of SQ and sold 2 contracts of the 3/1/24 $77 Calls with a premium of $1.75. This gives me a total premium of $350.
2/26/24 – Buy 200 Shares SQ @ $75.75
2/27/24 – Sell to Open 2 SQ 3/1/24 $77.00 C @ $1.75 ($350)
The premium is 2.3% return on my investment of $75.75 per share. If I get assigned I’ll make an additional $1.25 per share on the stock sale for $250 on the 200 shares. If assigned my gain will be the $250 plus the $350 premium for the Call for a total of $600. That would be just under 4% for a 3 day trade. This is what I like!
For my second position with SQ I bought a 1 contract Call. This week SQ came out with good earnings and I think the stock will be moving. It’s about time because the stock has been struggling. Many banks have their price target in the area of $99.
Yesterday with the stock at $74.75 I bought 1 contract of the 6/21/24 $75 Call @ $8.65. My target is to sell this position at $10.50 making $1.85 per share for $185.
Buy to Open 1 SQ 6/21/24 $75.00 C @ $8.65
If I get out at $10.50 the gain will be 21%. Let’s see if it can be done.
Micron
With MU I’ve been slacking with my posts. I’ll try to catch up now so you see what I’ve been doing. And I will try my hardest to stay current with my posting. I’ve been very busy but I’m gonna try to make Main Street beats Wall Street my priority.
Recently I bought a few options with Micron. One I already exited. Here are the 3 options:
1/24/24 – Buy to Open 1 MU 6/21/24 $87.50 C @ $8.55
1/25/24 – Buy to Open 1 MU 6/21/24 $90.00 C @ $8.00
2/13/24 – Buy to Open 1 MU 6/21/24 $82.00 C @ $7.65 Closed
The 2/13/24 position I exited on Thursday the 22nd. I bought the position for $7.65 and I sold it at $9.60 for a gain of $1.95. The profit was $195 for a return of 25%. This is the power of buying options. Long options is not my favorite strategy but if done carefully, with a good amount of time in your Expiration Date, you can be successful. But remember, you must do your homework!
Here is the result of the exited position:
2/13/24 – Buy to Open 1 MU 6/21/24 $82.50 C @ $7.65
2/22/24 – Sell to Close 1 MU 6/21/24 $82.50 C @ $9.60
Profit $195
I have been working on a new strategy. It’s one of the safest option’s strategies and some of you might be interested in learning about it. It’s called a Bull Call Spread. I will be writing about it soon and I will also be adding a new page to Main Street beats Wall Street. You can do a little homework on the strategy by Googling Bull Call Spread.
I have been doing strategy and having some nice success. I have one of these Call Spreads going now with Micron. It involves buying a Long Call and selling a Short Call, both with the same Expiration Date. The long Call will have a lower Strike Price than the short Call. The position I now have with MU is I bought the $86 Call (Long) and I sold the $89 Call (Short). This is a 2 contract position.
Micron Bull Call Spread
Buy to Open 2 MU 3/8/24 $86.00 C @ $2.65
Sell to Open 2 MU 3/8/24 $89.00 C @ $1.45
With this information you can do a little thinking (homework) and try to figure out what you would like to have happen to this position. I will be writing about the Bull Call Spread, how it works, and the strategy involved as soon as this position expires on March 8th. One hint is I want MU to be above the Short Call on Expiration Date for maximum profit. The Short Call’s Strike Price is $89 and today, as I write, the stock is at $91.50.
These are some of the things I’ve been doing and some of the positions I am in.
If you have any questions send me an email.
Successful trading,
Steve
The Options Coach