Ep73 - My Exact Process for Trading Covered Calls

Ep73 - My Exact Process for Trading Covered Calls

Understanding Wheel Trades and Covered Calls

Overview of Wheel Trades

  • The speaker discusses their regular experience with wheel trades, emphasizing a long-term holding strategy regardless of short-term stock performance.
  • They express confidence in not worrying about temporary drawdowns, using strike prices as indicators for potential actions like closing or rolling calls.

Introduction to the Podcast

  • Dan Passarelli introduces the episode focused on his process for covered calls and thanks listeners for supporting his book, "Build Consistent Wealth with Options."
  • He encourages listeners who have purchased the book to leave reviews, highlighting its valuable content.

The PAS Indicator Explained

Purpose of the PAS Indicator

  • Passarelli introduces the PAS (Price History Anchored Strike) indicator, designed to assist traders in selecting option strikes based on historical price data.
  • He shares his frustration with existing indicators that did not meet his needs as a wheel trader, leading him to create his own tool.

Development Process

  • The speaker details how he borrowed concepts from other indicators and adjusted calculations to fit specific trading periods and risk tolerances.
  • The PAS indicator aims to provide a data-driven approach by anchoring decisions in actual historical price ranges over defined lookback periods.

Utilizing the PAS Bands

Functionality of PAS Bands

  • The PAS bands help traders identify optimal strike prices by analyzing real price action rather than arbitrary levels.
  • By setting covered call strikes at or above the upper band, traders increase their chances of success compared to traditional methods.

Application in Trading Strategy

  • Passarelli mentions using this tool during a specific Amazon trade, illustrating its practical application in decision-making processes.

Case Study: Amazon Covered Calls

Background on Amazon Stock

  • Passarelli has held Amazon stock for an extended period and consistently writes covered calls against it due to its strong market performance.

Market Conditions Analysis

  • He describes Amazon's trading channel over four months, identifying key support and resistance levels crucial for making informed trading decisions.

Analyzing Trade Candidates

Evaluating Call Options

  • Discussing potential call options for expiration dates, he compares bid prices and annualized returns between different strike prices.

Decision-Making Factors

  • Passarelli emphasizes considering implied volatility when choosing between options with varying expiration dates and strike prices.

Executing Trades Effectively

Trade Execution Strategy

  • Once a call is sold, he enters a limit bid order immediately to manage future rollovers effectively while minimizing costs associated with commissions.

Managing Risk During Execution

  • He highlights the importance of executing trades promptly without waiting too long due to potential market fluctuations affecting pricing.

Monitoring Performance Post-Trading

Confirmation Candles Approach

  • After entering trades, he waits for confirmation candles before deciding whether to roll or close positions based on stock movement relative to strike prices.

Passive vs. Active Management Strategies

  • Passarelli explains his passive approach towards managing trades while still being aware of resistance levels but focusing more on long-term growth expectations.

Navigating Earnings Announcements

Impact of Earnings on Trading Decisions

  • He discusses how earnings announcements can influence trading strategies; sometimes opting out while maintaining flexibility depending on market conditions.

Rolling Strategies Around Earnings Dates

  • When rolling options near earnings dates, he considers previous gaps from past earnings reports as part of his strategy formulation.

Conclusion: Balancing Risk and Reward

Final Thoughts on Skate Objective Trades

  • Passarelli concludes by discussing how higher risks around earnings can be balanced by potentially inflated premiums available during those times.
Video description

My Exact Process for Covered Calls Episode Summary What separates a covered call from a consistently profitable covered call? In this episode, Dan Passarelli walks through an actual Amazon covered call from start to finish, explaining every decision he made—from selecting the expiration and strike price to managing the trade after entry. Along the way, he introduces the PAS (Price History Anchored Strike) Indicator, the proprietary tool he developed after discovering that no existing technical indicator was designed specifically for option traders. Rather than teaching theory, Dan breaks down his real-world decision-making process, showing how probability, technical analysis, implied volatility, theta, annualized return, and trade management all fit together inside a repeatable wheel strategy. What You'll Discover • Why your covered call objective changes the entire trade selection process • How the PAS Indicator helps identify higher-probability strike prices • Why historical price behavior is more valuable than arbitrary delta targets • How Dan compares multiple expirations before entering a trade • The role implied volatility and theta play in covered call selection • How annualized static return influences expiration choice • Why liquidity matters more than squeezing out an extra penny • Dan's exact management plan after entering the trade • How confirmation candles help avoid premature rolls • When holding covered calls through earnings can actually make sense Key Topics Discussed The "Skate" Objective Dan explains that not every covered call is designed to have shares called away. For long-term holdings like Amazon, his objective was to collect premium while keeping the shares, a goal he refers to as "skating." That objective determines every subsequent decision, including strike selection and trade management. Why Dan Created the PAS Indicator After searching through hundreds of existing chart indicators without finding one designed specifically for wheel traders, Dan built his own. The Price History Anchored Strike (PAS) Indicator uses historical price ranges over a defined holding period to create statistically meaningful strike levels, helping traders select strikes based on actual market behavior rather than arbitrary rules. Amazon Covered Call Case Study Using Amazon as the example, Dan walks through support and resistance analysis, PAS Band placement, strike selection, comparing one-week versus two-week expirations, evaluating implied volatility, theta comparisons, and annualized return calculations. The result is a complete blueprint for how an experienced options trader evaluates competing trade candidates. Trade Management Entering the trade is only half the process. Dan explains why he immediately enters a Good-Til-Cancelled buy order, when he rolls positions, why he waits for confirmation candles before reacting to price movement, and how he approaches passive versus active wheel management. Covered Calls and Earnings Many traders avoid earnings altogether. Dan explains why he doesn't always. Instead of avoiding earnings automatically, he studies previous earnings gaps, weighs the additional premium against the added risk, and evaluates whether the trade still offers a favorable edge. Resources Mentioned • Build Consistent Wealth with Options by Dan Passarelli • PAS (Price History Anchored Strike) Indicator (https://buildconsistentwealthwithoptions.com/indicators) • Amazon covered call case study • Wheel Strategy Memorable Quote "I want the position, not the penny." Key Takeaway Successful covered call trading isn't about finding a magic delta or blindly selling premium every month. It's about developing a repeatable process built around probability, historical price behavior, clear objectives, and disciplined trade management. This episode offers a rare look inside Dan Passarelli's actual decision-making framework, providing listeners with a practical blueprint they can use to improve their own covered call strategy.   Disclosure: Options involve risk and are not suitable for all investors. Prior to buying or selling an option, investors must read Characteristics and Risks of Standardized Options (ODD) which can be found at https://www.theocc.com/company-information/documents-and-archives/options-disclosure-document   Don’t trade with money you are not prepared to lose. Anything discussed on this show is intended to be generalized information and not intended to be a recommendation to buy or sell any security. The host and guests are not familiar with listeners’ specific situations. For trading information relevant to your specific needs, speak with a licensed broker or advisor.   Trumpet Trumpet Fanfare...