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CarMax Puts?

 Here is the number. Call in to listen to their just released quarterly report. You won't have to talk to anyone. It is 800-839-1247. In about five days this link will disappear. Please listen to it. I listened to all of it once and to the first half of it two times. What I learned is that their retail car sales on the quarter compared to the same quarter a year were up 6%. They purchased 336.000 vehicles from the public, up 7% and 48.000 from dealers up 38%. Their average retail sale price was $26,100, down $400.00 per vehicle from last year. They doubled their share buy back program. AI technologies are now helping them operate more efficiently. Everything seems positive. But wait, we are talking about  the used car business and what could happen if consumer confidence suddenly starts to wain? Look at it's three year chart. It now sees to be hitting a rough patch.  Now a one month chart.  All of this talk about tariffs and what level of tariffs will be imposed on n...
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A Fireside Chat - One Year Options and Thirty Day Options. Which is Better?

Some say to think small, not big. Trying to play Disney options is thinking big. It is a stock slighty out of favor. If we start with it's a three year chart, we will see it is down by about 50% over that period of time.
Now it's one year chart. If the stock can break 110 in early 2024 the sky is the limit. It does have a lot of moving parts so anything could happen.
Look at these Calls options one year out. One year in options buys a lot of time.They look reasonable. If the stock ever inched up to the $105.00 price level in the three or four months these options would jump up in price by about 50%. Even more if they had really good news.
Yet it's the "what-if" aspect of the equation that castes such a trade in doubt. "What if" stories just don't cut it. There are to many variables in play. Then again, why are we even thinking of long-term Call options after a December's rally? Let's switch gears. If consumers are out spending for X-mas why not think about going short on Costco (buying Puts) to catch the January blues? Yet then again with interest rates potentially going down and fresh money coming into the market why are we thinking of Puts? Look at this article.
Look also at how this stock is opening as of late. Why try and fight a strong stock? I have never witnessed a five day trading pattern like this.
Let's look at a thirty day chart.
So the question now is are 30 day Puts better than 90 day Calls? Not really. In option trading it's best to sit on the sidelines when you think the markets are going in the wrong direction. This week the markets are in a holiday mode but next week could be a different story.**** A next week look at the same situation. Costco is down a chunk. The Puts were where the action was at.
When a strong stock dips it sometimes goes right back up again. Short term dips in this stock historically have not lasted very long. **** Now a January 5th 2024 update. First Disney. Here is a look at it's 2024 chart.
In our discussion of long term Call options yes the 95 series of Calls on Disney expiring in 2025 would have paid off nicely. What about Costco. How did it do in 2024? Here is it's one year chart.
It had clear sailing all year. Buying Calls on it last year when the stock was trading around $665.00 would have paid off bigtime. Long term options can sometimes be your best friend.

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