Suppose you believe that the price of Tencent’s stock will not fluctuate significantly in the next month. Currently, Tencent’s stock price is $100. You can sell a call option to earn the option premium.
Basic Scenario:
Current Tencent stock price: $100
Call option strike price: $105
Call option expiration date: 1 month later
Call option premium: $2 per share
Contract size: 100 shares
Steps
Sell a Call Option: You sell one call option contract and receive an option premium of $2 per share, earning a total of $2 × 100 shares = $200.
Two Possible Outcomes at Expiration
Stock Price is Less Than or Equal to $105:
The option holder will not exercise the option because the strike price is higher than or equal to the market price.
You keep the $200 option premium as pure profit.
Stock Price is Greater Than $105:
The option holder exercises the option to buy your shares at $105.
If the stock price is $110, you need to sell the stock at $105, resulting in a loss of ($110 - $105) × 100 shares = $500.
However, you received an option premium of $200, so your net loss is $500 - $200 = $300.
Purpose of Selling a Call Option
Selling a call option primarily serves the following purposes:
Generate Option Premium: By selling a call option, you can immediately earn the option premium, improving cash flow.
Hedging: If you already hold the underlying stock, selling a call option can serve as a hedging strategy to partially offset the risk of a stock price decline.
Enhance Returns: When expecting the stock price to remain stable, selling a call option can increase the returns of your investment portfolio.
Are Options Freely Traded?
Options are freely traded in the market but need to be executed through a broker or trading platform. You can buy and sell option contracts at market prices, but you need to meet certain account funding and credit requirements.
How to Sell a Call Option Without Holding the Option
If you do not hold the call option, you can still sell it by following these steps:
Open a Margin Account: Open a margin account with a broker and deposit the required margin.
Sell the Call Option: Sell the call option through the margin account. The broker will require you to provide the necessary margin to cover potential obligations.
Maintain Margin: Ensure that there is enough margin in your account to prevent a margin call due to market fluctuations.
Summary
By selling a call option, investors can earn an option premium but must bear the potential loss if the stock price rises significantly. Selling options requires a margin account, allowing you to sell call options even if you do not hold the options in hand.
Selling call options, even without holding the underlying stock or the option contract, can be done through a margin account. This is known as naked option selling, where the investor provides margin to cover potential obligations. Below is a detailed process:
1. Open a Margin Account
Choose a Broker: Select a broker that offers options trading services and open a margin account.
Deposit Funds: Deposit the initial margin into your margin account. The specific amount depends on the broker’s requirements and the type of options you plan to trade.
2. Sell a Call Option
Select the Underlying Stock: Choose the underlying stock for which you want to sell a call option. For example, Tencent stock.
Select the Option Contract: Choose an appropriate call option contract in the options market, including the strike price and expiration date. For example:
Strike Price: $105
Expiration Date: 1 month later
Place a Sell Order: Place a sell order for the call option through your trading platform. For example, sell 1 call option contract (representing 100 shares).
3. Provide Margin
Initial Margin: The broker will freeze a portion of your funds as initial margin. The amount of initial margin usually depends on factors such as:
Current market price of the stock
Strike price of the option contract
Expiration time
Volatility of the underlying stock
Maintenance Margin: As the market price fluctuates, the broker will require you to maintain a certain level of maintenance margin. If the funds in your account fall below the maintenance margin level, you will receive a margin call, requiring you to replenish the margin.
4. Monitor During the Option Holding Period
Market Price Monitoring: Continuously monitor the market price of the underlying stock to assess your risk. If the market price approaches or exceeds the strike price, the risk increases.
Adjust Strategy: Based on market conditions, you can choose to close the position (buy back the option contract) to reduce risk or lock in profits.
5. Option Expiry or Exercise
Expiry: If the stock price is less than or equal to the strike price at expiration, the option holder will not exercise the option. You keep the option premium, and the option contract expires worthless.
Exercise: If the stock price is greater than the strike price at expiration, the option holder will exercise the option. You need to fulfill the obligation to sell the stock.
Exercise Process
Physical Delivery: If the option contract requires physical delivery, you need to sell the specified number of shares to the option holder at the strike price. If you do not hold the shares, you need to buy them in the market and then sell them.
Cash Settlement: If the option contract uses cash settlement, you need to pay the cash difference.
Example
Suppose you sell a call option on Tencent stock:
Current Tencent Stock Price: $100
Strike Price: $105
Option Premium: $2 per share
Option Contract Size: 100 shares
Initial Margin: Assume it requires $2000.
Maintenance Margin: Assume it requires $1500.
Sell the Option: Sell 1 call option contract and receive $200 in option premium.
Margin Freeze: The broker freezes $2000 of initial margin.
Market Monitoring: If Tencent’s stock price rises, the broker may require additional margin.
Expiration Exercise:
If Tencent’s stock price is $110, the option holder exercises the option.
You need to sell 100 shares at $105. If you do not hold the stock, you need to buy 100 shares in the market at $110 and sell them at $105, resulting in a loss of ($110 - $105) × 100 shares = $500. But you earned $200 in option premium, so the net loss is $300.
Conclusion
Selling call options through a margin account allows you to engage in options trading even if you do not hold the options or the underlying stock. However, this requires you to provide margin to cover potential obligations and to remain vigilant about market price changes to prevent potential losses.
When you sell a call option, the delivery mechanism upon exercise by the option holder can vary based on the type of option and the rules of the exchange. Generally, there are two delivery methods: physical delivery and cash settlement. Here is a detailed explanation:
Physical Delivery Mechanism
Under the physical delivery mechanism, if the option holder decides to exercise the option, they will purchase the stock from you at the predetermined strike price. The process is as follows:
You Sell a Call Option: You sell a call option on Tencent stock and receive the option premium.
Option Holder Exercises: If the market price of Tencent stock is above the strike price at expiration, the option holder may choose to exercise the option.
You Must Deliver Stock: You are required to sell the corresponding number of Tencent shares to the option holder at the strike price.
Example:
Current Tencent Stock Price: $100
Call Option Strike Price: $105
Call Option Expiration Date: 1 month later
Option Contract Size: 100 shares
If the stock price of Tencent is $110 at expiration, the option holder will exercise the option:
Strike Price: $105
Market Price: $110
You need to sell 100 shares of Tencent stock to the option holder at $105, even though the market price is $110.
Cash Settlement Mechanism
In some option markets, especially for index options and some individual stock options, the exercise uses cash settlement instead of physical delivery of the stock. In this case, you do not need to deliver the stock but instead pay or receive the corresponding cash difference.
Example of Cash Settlement:
Current Tencent Stock Price: $100
Call Option Strike Price: $105
Call Option Expiration Date: 1 month later
Option Contract Size: 100 shares
If the stock price of Tencent is $110 at expiration, and the option holder exercises the option:
You need to pay the option holder $500 as the cash difference instead of delivering the stock.
How to Fulfill the Obligation of Selling a Call Option
Holding the Underlying Stock: If you hold Tencent stock, you can directly deliver the shares to the option holder upon exercise.
Buying Stock in the Market: If you do not hold Tencent stock, you can buy the required number of shares in the market at the current market price and then sell them to the option holder at the strike price. If the market price is higher than the strike price, this will result in a loss.
Summary
When you sell a call option, the specific mechanism of exercise depends on the type of delivery:
Physical Delivery: You need to sell the stock to the option holder at the strike price.
Cash Settlement: You pay the cash difference to the option holder.
Understanding and being prepared to fulfill these obligations is crucial when deciding to sell a call option.