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From the monthly archives:
December 2011
With the E-Mini S&P hitting our rally target in the final moments of Friday’s session, we bought four QQQ Jan 54 puts or Jan 53 puts, respectively, for 0.96 or 0.74. These are keepers, since just about anything could happen between now and January 20 when the options expire. Do nothing further for now. _______ UPDATE (11:02 a.m.EST): In the chat room a moment ago, I suggested cashing out half of the puts at current prices: 1.16 for the Jan 54s, 0.91 for the Jan 53s. That leaves us with two puts at either strike and a profit adjusted cost basis for each, respectively, of 0.76 and 0.57. Let’s spread off the risk by turning the positions in calendar spreads, shorting a December put for each Jan 54 put or Jan 53 put you currently hold. Do so in a 1:1 ratio, and shoot for putting on the spread for “even” or better. What this means is that you will short the puts for the cost basis of the puts you now hold, selling December 53 puts for 0.57 (currently trading for around 0.09) and December 54 puts for 0.76 (currently trading for around 0.18).
Although the course of action suggested above may seem very conservative, it is essential that we nail down partial profits on option positions when possible, particularly on puts that have “come in.” In the several decades that exchange-listed puts have been offered, instances in which put holders enjoyed more than three consecutive pleasurable days have been non-existent. I would dare say that at least 95 percent of all puts ever purchased “naked” have lost money for the trader.
Click here if you’d like to learn more about the Hidden Pivot Method, including how to identify and trade targets such as the ones used above, and to forecast trends with bold confidence.
It is 20 minutes from Friday’s close, and chat-roomers have reported buying QQQ Jan 54 puts and Jan 53 puts, respectively, for 0.74 and 0.96. These buys came with the E-Mini futures trading within a hair of the rally targets I’d furnished for the December and March contracts. I am establishing a tracking position for both of these options, but for now, just sit tight.
Yesterday’s bull trap created an impulse leg with immediate downside potential to 1210.00. The pattern is less than compelling but clear enough nonetheless to warrant bottom-fishing via camouflage at 1228.25. That’s the target’s midpoint sibling, and it promises to at least blunt the onslaught begun from Thursday morning’s fleeting high. Alternatively, on a bullish turn, camouflageurs could try leveraging a pullback from the 1246.75 peak labeled in the chart. _________ UPDATE (9:11 a.m. EST): The 1228.25 support came within a single tick of nailing the overnight low, so I am establishing a tracking position for your further guidance. Although a bid at 1228.25 would have just missed, the ‘camo’ pattern that followed the reversal we’d anticipated was absolute perfection on the 30-minute chart (A=1228.50, B=12432.75, C=1235.75). Entry was signaled at 1239.50, and profits taken on half the position (i.e., two contracts) at the p midpoint, 1243.00. The subsequent thrust to ‘D’ at 1250.25 fell two ticks shy of being a “winner,” and so we hold two contracts with a cost basis of 1236.00. Use a fixed stop-loss at 1235.50 for now, but switch to a 4.00-point trailing stop on the single contract that would remain if 1267.00 is hit. I am not recommending that you carry the position over the weekend, so if 1267.00 is reached in the final hour, take the money and run. _______ FURTHER UPDATE (11:53 a.m. EST): The futures have wafted above our “winner” threshold at 1250.25, allowing us to exit a third contract and keep one with a paper profit-adjusted cost basis of 1228.75. My short-term target is now 1259.25, implying that a too-tight 1.50-point trailing stop would be in effect from the so-far high at 1255.25. My suggestion is to play it as you please, but to use a “structural” stop at 1246.50 whose provenance is clear on the one-minute chart._______ AND YET ANOTHER (1:14 p.m. EST): In the chat room just now, I’ve suggested taking some QQQ puts home for the weekend. Buy January 54 puts if and when the December E-Mini S&Ps trade at or near the 1259.25 target. The equivalent target for the march contract is 1253.50.
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Reputable sources reported that yesterday’s mini-crash in gold was orchestrated by sellers that included the U.S. Fed, the BIS and the Bank of England. Under the circumstances, with the central banks doing their sleazy best to temporarily overwhelm sharp rallies in bullion, we can’t be too careful initiating trades in gold or in managing position risk once we’re aboard.
Accordingly, today’s Gold tout is accompanied by a chart that shows numerous possibilities and potential camouflage opportunities. Our objective is to get long, but only at such times as we can pare risk down to a bare minimum, and only when the entry signal meets our criteria precisely. Considering the bullish triangle that has been developing for months on Comex Gold’s daily charts, seizing the opportunity is akin to reaching beneath a guillotine to retrieve a 10 carat diamond.
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This demo was done at the invitation of TradersLog.com and starts with a brief explanation of the Hidden Pivot Method. We then took a close look at some key charts that provide clues concerning how the global financial crisis might play out. Our focus was on long-term charts for T-Bonds, U.S. stocks, the dollar and the euro. The conclusions we drew are somewhat counterintuitive, most particularly a prediction that the euro will not crash when the PIIGs eventually default.
Have you taken a trading course — or two, or three — only to find yourself still struggling years later to achieve profitability? Maybe you’re someone with virtually no knowledge of the stock market looking for an alternative source of income if the economy should crash. You could also be bored housewife keen on using your mornings more productively. Or a college grad with no job prospects…or a laid-off factory worker…or a Realtor worried about very tough times ahead. Or a Louisiana shrimper looking for an easier life. Or a guy who’s tired of living with his mother…or of being hounded by loan sharks. If so, Rick’s Picks invites you to apply for a full scholarship to the Hidden Pivot Webinar scheduled for January 11-12. Three stipends worth $990 apiece will be awarded. However, this particular class, as well as the post-grad perks you’ll receive, will go beyond anything we’ve offered in the six years » Read the full article
Video: Goldman, MF Global and the Euro Mess
by Michael Johnston on December 12, 2011 4:47 am GMT · 1 comment
Yesterday, Rick appeared on The Keiser Report. Rick and Max discussed Goldman’s death dive and MF Global’s crimes against the markets. Rick’s segment begins 12 minutes and 55 seconds into the video.