GS – Goldman Sachs (Last:174.87)

We hold four Jan 130-Oct 130 put spreads with an adjusted cost basis of 2.50. That number reflects a $360 profit we booked yesterday on a September 170 call we’d bought for $200. The gain seemed ambitious at the time — it represented a 6300% annualized profit(!!!!!), in newsletter-speak — but it is only after one cashes out of such a position that Goldman’s 192.91 potential smacks one in the eye. That’s where I now think the stock is headed if it closes above the 175.05 midpoint. Incidentally, the September 170 calls traded as low as 0.67 on September 2, with the stock around $159. Whoever sold them at that price must have forgotten that when Goldman shares are rampaging, they can easily climb $10 in just a few days. I won’t beat myself up for suggesting that you buy just one September 170 call, but the lesson learned is that Goldman is the horse you should bet on if you think a two or three-day decline in the market is likely to be recouped.