The Option Block

Option Block 229: The Death Hedge

Trading Block: Most indexes closed down by the end of the day. Juice comes back into the VIX. Cypress: is it the new Greece? GLD, SLV and other metals up on the day. Lululemon recalls "see-through" yoga pants.

Odd Block: Calls spread trades in the VIX, put buying in Citigroup Inc. (C), and big trades in Constellation Brands Inc. (STZ).

Xpress Block: Two names stood out on the desk: General Motors and Dell.

Strategy Block: Mike Tosaw gets his very own rant about busting the myths of annuities. Go, Mike, go!

Around the Block: Keeping an eye on Cypress. We're close to all-time highs in the market.

Option Block 228: Mini Mania

Interview Block: Today's Guest: Kevin Davitt, Global Execution & Futures Broker at RCM. RCM will be hosting a webinar this Thursday night.

Trading Block: There was a bit of a selloff in the market due to news coming out of Cypress, which is rekindling fears of a Europe crisis. Today is the day: Mini contracts begin trading today. What is the OX procedure and policy for Minis?

Odd Block: Ratio strangle trades in Neonode, Inc. (NEON), put buyers active in Globe Specialty Metals, Inc. (GSM), puts trade in Reality Income Corp. (O), and calls trade in Swift Transportation Co. (SWFT).

Xpress Block: Cypress, Minis and Gold were all popular topics today at OX. When will we see Minis in the Idea Hub?

Around the Block: Watching a silent rally in Apple. VIX cash creeping up. Cypress still making headlines. Minis and their affect.

Option Block 227: When Options Make an $800,000,000 Profit

Trading Block: The S&P's are right up against their all-time highs. Citadel exited their E-Trade position, which is down 75% from when they bought it, and still turned an $800M profit with hedging and options. Minis begin trading Monday, March 18.

Odd Block: It was a hard luck day for E-Trade (ETRA), running of the bulls in KBW Regional Bank ETF (KRE), and an incredible purchase in Heckmann Corp (HEK).

Xpress Block: What's new in the Ides Hub? Blackberry is back in the news.

Strategy Block: Making adjustments on a simulated index concept strategy.

Around the Block: How high will the S&P 500 reach? Gold & Silver. Mini options.

Option Block 226: Up, Up and Away

Interview Block: Today's guest is Joe Garcia-Rios, Founder of Rios Quantitative & President and Chief Portfolio Manager of Advanz Analytics Group.

Trading Block: There is no sign of the end to the rally. VIX has an 11-handle for the first time since 2007. Minis launch next week! ISE will launch their second exchange -- the Topaz Exchange.

The Odd Block: March 13.5 calls trade in Ford.

Around the Block: Keeping an eye on the VIX, Apple and Google.

Option Block 225: Spreads with Benefits

Trading Block: The market is apparently shrugging off the Sequester with a mild rally as of mid-day. Implied and realized volatility cross, which is a very rare occurrence. Google feeling the love and broke the 800 level, while Apple feeling the heat falling well south of $450. Groupon is showing some signs of life bouncing dramatically off lows around $4.25.

Odd Block: Risk reversals trade in Bridgepoint Education Inc. (BPI), call buyers in Zhongpin Inc. (HOGS), calls trade in Tronox ltd. (TROX), and more calls trade in Mitek Systems Inc (MITK).

Xpress Block: Alex Jacobson discusses more ideas from the Idea Hub, new OX products, and new OX order types.

Strategy Block: Mike Tosaw discusses the "credit spread with benefits."

Around the Block: Seems like more bears are coming out of the woodwork making dire predictions for the market going forward. Sequester, sequester, sequester! What else on the horizon could generate some vol?

Option Block 224: No Watered Down Options Information

Trading Block: Downward movement across the market, making a late reversal. Not a ton of movement in our favorite fruit company. VIX had a big turnaround during the day. Facebook sells off. AB allegedly watering down their beer - stock unaffected.

Odd Block: Fresh call buyers in TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. (AMTD), profit taking via Bank of America Corp. (BAC), puts trade in Cablevision Systems Corp. (CVC) after earnings, and call trading activity in DigitalGlobe Inc. (DGI).

Xpress Block: A relatively quiet day at the OX desk today.

Mail Block: FB question from listener: I listen to your podcast and really enjoy it. I heard a while back that Uncle Mike was short the 26 put on Facebook. I had a 25 put assigned to me, and I rode it down to 18 and back up to 28.68, where I sold my shares. I now have the April 23 short put. I am enclosing a chart that I would like to comment on. It is the reason why I chose the April 23 put.

Around the Block: Sequester, Sequester, Sequester! The big cutting day is almost here.

Option Block 223: Making Money for the End of the World

Interview Block: Today's Guest: Ed Walczak, Principal Trader at Harbor Financial. He specializes in options on the S&P futures contracts, and does everything from ratios to credit spreads.

Trading Block: Another day, another selloff, another VIX cash pop. The return of realized vol to the downside. Ford engine investigation. Is Uncle Mike reconsidering his 12 puts? Is Barnes and Noble next to go private? Zynga rallies 7.5% today. Exchange trend continuing -- CME to acquire DB? DB couldn't merge with NYSE, so why would regulators approve this? SEC examining how stock exchanges create new order types.

Odd Block: Steady buyers of Frontline Ltd (FRO) puts, and puts trade in Linn Co., LLC (LNCO).

Xpress Block: A blood-letting day at the OX desk. Expanding the Idea Hub for futures options.

Around the Block: How long can we hold these levels of realized vol? GRPN 2/27

Option Block 222: Bonds. Contrarian Bonds.

Trading Block: The majority of the market sold off by 1%. On the news that bonds might sell off, they rallied. Apple breaks through 450. Google hanging around the 800 level.

Odd Block: A collar went up in Texas Roadhouse (TXRH); call spreads trade in Gerdau SA (GGB), and calls active in Blackstone Group (BX).

Xpress Block: SPX and April Condors are hopping.

Strategy Block: Today's strategy honors Hannibal Smith of the A-Team. Put selling strategies on SPY-- long-term bullish and short-term cautious.

Around the Block: Looking ahead at Tesla Motors. Keeping an eye on the S&P 500. Seeing if Google can stay near 800.

Option Block 221: Suspiciously Well-Timed Call Buying

Trading Block: The market was mixed today, with the VIX cash off slightly. GM profits down from 2011, stock down 3%. Jobless claims decrease last week. Zynga flirts with $4 before retreating back to $3. Former RIMM CEO dumps the rest of his stock, never a good sign. “CBOE Group Holdings Inc., which became a publicly held company in 2010 after years of effort, would consider going private again if doing so benefits its shareholders, a top executive said on Thursday.” PHLX's Sandy Frucher is getting OIC's Sullivan this year. Is the PHLX saga really worth celebrating?

Odd Block: Big call Activity in Hess Corp. (HES), and suspiciously well-timed call buying in Constellation Brands Inc. (STZ).

Xpress Block: It was a quiet day, with the exceptions of Facebook and Blackberry. A new pricing scheme in futures. What's new with implementing the Minis? The devil is in the details.

Mail Block: What do you want to know from the All-Stars?

Question from Filipp001: When SPX daily options?

Strategy Block: The credit spread with benefits.

Around the Block: Earnings are still coming up, including Tesla Motors 2/20, Marriot 2/20. Remember that Monday, Feb 18 is a non-trading day.

Option Block 220: Who Needs Annuities When You Can Sell Puts on GOOG?

Interview Block: Today's guest is Doug Berman, Vice President of Agriculture Derivatives, RCM Asset Management. He talks about

• Why this is an extremely exciting time in the corn option market.
• The unique relationship between implied volatility and pricing
• How traditional strategies like covered calls/collars perform in the Ag realm vs. equity options
• On Wednesday, February 13, Doug will be sharing with us his ideas and systems for trading futures and options on corn.

Trading Block:A meandering day on the street today. We’re still deep in the earnings with CBOE, ATVI, MSFT, and CMG all rallying strong post-earnings. RIMM/BBRY staying strong as well. Apple watch is back on.

The Odd Block: Bullish put spread trades in Bank of America Corp. (BAC), small call block goes up in Superconductor Corp. (AMSC), aggressive opening call buyer in Walgreens Co. (WAG), and closing calls trade in Chilcott Ltd. (WCRX).

Xpress Block: Alex discusses some impending price changes in futures and futures options. Now $3.50! + exchange fees and NFA fees.

Around the Block: Cisco earnings 2/13, LivePerson 2/12, NVidia 2/13, Tesla 2/13. Watching Radian Group, Google and Apple.