BAF-BSN8402 - Introduction to Stock Options
4736158
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Course Description
If you've ever wanted to learn how to evaluate, buy, sell, and profit from stocks, this course is for you. By the end of it, you will be armed with investment tools that were once thought to be only for the pros!
You will begin by examining the origin of stock options and learn the real risks involved. Then, you will identify the jargon, symbols, and other peculiarities of options in a way that's easy to understand. You will explore exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which offer exciting option investments you may eventually consider.
The course will then give you a look under the hood of option pricing so that you'll understand what contributes to an option's value. You will learn why some options are overpriced and why some are underpriced and know how to tell the difference before you trade. Above all, you will learn how to protect your portfolio and profit in a down market, an up market, or even a flat market. Learn to leverage your investment dollars for potential profits that surpass those possible with stocks.
Course Outline
Lesson 01 - Defining Stock Options- Are stock options worth your time and effort? You'll find out in this lesson. You'll explore where options originated and whether they are as risky as many people say. Then you'll go over the formal definition of an option so that you'll know exactly what you're dealing with. Finally, you'll look at some easy-to-understand examples to drive home each element of that definition.
- What does "GOOG120121C00680000" mean, and why should you care? Every investment specialty has its own jargon, and options are no exception. This lesson will explain option symbols and other peculiarities in a way that's easy to understand. By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to identify any option just by looking at its symbol. You'll also explore exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which offer exciting option investments you may eventually consider.
- One of the most important things to consider before you buy anything is its price. In this lesson, you'll learn where to find option prices, what they look like, and how to interpret each element in an option pricing chart. By the end of the lesson, you'll be a good option detective.
- It's one thing to know an option's price, but it's quite another to know if that price is reasonable and fair. This lesson gets under the hood of option pricing so that you'll understand what contributes to option value. Knowing what makes one option more expensive than another is one of the essentials of option pricing. After you finish this lesson, you'll be able to make educated decisions when you trade.
- This lesson introduces you to an easy graphing system that will show what kind of profit or loss may be possible when you trade any option. These graphs bring clarity to even a complex option strategy. Armed with this knowledge, you'll enter any option trade fully aware of potential risks and rewards. You'll also know precisely where your break-even point is. All this information contributes to a fully informed trading experience.
- Get ready to learn about your first basic option strategy—the long call. When you finish this lesson, you'll know the best way to profit when you think a stock price is about to go up. You'll also understand which option to buy depending on how bullish you are about that price movement.
- This lesson will tell you where options come from and how you can create them yourself. How? By selling a call option. This is called naked call writing, and it's one way you can use options to profit when you think a stock price is going to hold steady or drop. You'll learn the risk inherent in this strategy and what it means to be assigned.
- You'll explore covered calls in this lesson. This strategy involves selling call options on stock you already own. It's a popular way of making a profit even when your stock's price isn't going up. You'll learn the how, when, and why of this essentially conservative strategy in one easy lesson.
- Certain options profit when a stock drops. This lesson acquaints you with the put option, which is in many ways the mirror image of the call option. The versatility of the put option is very impressive.
- Few investors know the benefits—much less the in and outs—of selling put options, but this lesson will fully acquaint you with both. Known as writing naked puts, this strategy is also a way to buy stock for less. And there's something to be said for collecting your profit up front and putting that money to use immediately!
- See the beauty of options as you learn about three combination strategies: the bull spread, the bear spread, and the long straddle. This taste of more advanced option strategies may whet your appetite for other, more esoteric combinations—and there are many. After this lesson, you'll have a good sense of how you can use option combo strategies to make profitable trades.
- This is the lesson that pulls together everything you've learned into one cohesive overview. You'll also learn about market sentiment and examine how it influences which option strategy is appropriate and when. Finally, the lesson will discuss the concept of risk and how it's an integral consideration for any option investment strategy.
Learner Outcomes
- Identify any option just by looking at its symbol
- Learn where to find option prices, what they look like, and how to interpret each element in an option pricing chart
- Identify the best way to profit when you think a stock price is about to go up
- Use options to profit when you think a stock price is going to hold steady or drop
- Use option combo strategies to make profitable trades
Notes
This is an asynchronous online course offered through the third party vendor ed2go. This course can be taken on either a PC, Mac, or Chromebook. The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online. There are twelve lessons in the course, and two lessons are released each week on Wednesdays and Fridays. You do not have to be present when lessons are released. You will have access to all lessons until the course ends. However, the interactive discussion area that accompanies each lesson will automatically close two weeks after the lesson is released. As such, we strongly recommend that you complete each lesson within two weeks of its release. The final exam will be released on the same day as the last lesson. Once the final exam has been released, you will have two weeks to complete all of your course work, including the final exam.Loading...
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