Options Strategies

12 professional strategies for every market outlook

Bull Call Spread

bullishmoderate

Buy a call at lower strike, sell at higher strike. Reduces cost & loss but caps profit.

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Bull Put Spread

bullishmoderate

Sell a put, buy protective put below. Collect premium with defined risk.

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Bear Call Spread

bearishmoderate

Sell call, buy higher call. Collect premium, profit if stock stays flat/down.

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Bear Put Spread

bearishmoderate

Buy protective put, sell lower put. Collect premium with defined downside.

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Iron Condor

neutralcomplex

Sell call + put, buy further OTM calls/puts. Maximum theta decay, wide profit zone.

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Iron Butterfly

neutralcomplex

Sell ATM options, buy wings. Peak profit if stock ends exactly at strike.

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Butterfly Spread

neutralcomplex

Create narrow profit zone at middle strike. High probability, small reward.

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Condor Spread

neutralcomplex

Like butterfly but wider. More forgiving range, less max profit.

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Calendar Spread

neutralmoderate

Exploit time decay on near term while holding long-term insurance.

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Diagonal Spread

bullishcomplex

Different strikes + expirations. Best of both worlds: directional + theta.

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Collar

neutralsimple

Own stock, buy downside insurance, sell upside to pay for it.

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Box Spread

neutralcomplex

Riskless box: if prices correct, profit box width minus cost.

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Strategy Selection Guide

Bullish (Price Going Up)

  • Bull Call Spread — Limited risk, moderate outlook
  • Bull Put Spread — Collect theta, strong support
  • Diagonal Spread — Long-term bullish + income

Bearish (Price Going Down)

  • Bear Call Spread — Limited risk, theta decay
  • Bear Put Spread — Collect premium, resistance level

Neutral (No Strong Direction)

  • Iron Condor — Maximum theta, wide range
  • Iron Butterfly — Tight range, high probability
  • Calendar Spread — Exploit time decay
  • Butterfly / Condor — Very tight range expected

Risk Management

  • Collar — Protect stock position
  • Box Spread — Low-risk arbitrage