Where's my risk?
Written by SnapTrader
Sometimes my trading accounts start to get convoluted to the point where I have a hard time assessing my risk and reward in an overall combination of positions. One of the great tools on the ThinkOrSwim platform (and many other platforms) is the ability to quickly "Beta Weight" an account against an index or any other underlying asset.
Here is a snapshot of one of my trading accounts which gives you a good example. You can see at the bottom that I have many positions in several underlying stocks, ETFs and indices. Further, these are represented by long and short stock, long short options, option spreads, and leveraged ETFs (options in disguise).
I have mentioned before that I normally maintain a hedged portfolio and a balance of long and short positions. Currently, it's VERY balanced, but I don't always keep it this way. Frequently I will lean short or long depending on my beliefs about the market, but it's almost always still hedged to a degree. In any case, this tool allows a quick assessment of Delta risk (flat, which sounds good right now), as well as risk represented by the other Greeks. If you haven't tried monitoring overall portfolio positions like this, I think you'll find it useful.
Good Trading...
Market Indices
▼9.45 (-0.89%) 1,056.74
▼103.84 (-1.04%) 9,908.39
▼15.07 (-0.70%) 2,126.05
Recent Entries
08 February 2010
Last week unfolded just as expected as we got a head fake early on that stalled perfectly in the 1100 area on the SPX. Stocks then completely collapsed into the end of the week before reversing...
- 05 February 2010 RUT Calendar Update 2-5
- 02 February 2010 RUT Calendar Update 2-1
- 01 February 2010 Weekly Outlook 2/1
- 27 January 2010 RUT Calendar Update 1-26
- 25 January 2010 Weekly Outlook 1/25
- 21 January 2010 RUT Calendar Double-Double
- 20 January 2010 The OBB
- 19 January 2010 Weekly Outlook 1/19
- 16 January 2010 RUT Calendar Update 1-15
In The News...
Trader Psychology
Intro. Where's Your Edge?
Part 1. FEAR
Part 2. IMPATIENCE
Part 3. RESIGNATION
Part 4. GREED
Part 5. VOLATILITY
Part 6. DOUBT
Part 7. INTROSPECTION
Part 8. EXUBERANCE
Concl. Summary
