Since new (and sometimes existing) members tend to ask the same questions, we have decided to create a post that answers most of those questions, that we can direct members to, and that I will update regularly.
The Swing Trading Virtual Portfolio is a virtual portfolio designed to make trades that last 3-4 days to a couple of weeks, and that uses options for profit optimization.
How do I access Optrader’s swing trading virtual portfolio?
Click on the "Optrader" tab. The post on top is the most recent weekly post (we create one new post every week). This is where you access the live virtual portfolio and the live comments. Click on "Comments" to follow our daily discussion about the market and the trades we make. You can ask all questions there.
How often is the virtual portfolio updated?
The virtual portfolio is live. Every time we make a trade, we post it in the comments section AND we update the virtual portfolio immediately. The most recent trades are inserted at the top of the virtual portfolio. All trades are also sent via email to subscribers to Optrader’s alerts.
What is the performance of the virtual portfolio?
The virtual portfolio is up 123% in 2009 and was up 725% in 2008. Expectancy is 1.78R per trade. Even if we can’t guarantee that we will have such amazing results in the future, our goal is to prove that you can make money consistently by following some very simple rules and by being disciplined.
Why don’t you include the dates of each trade?
After some discussion with members, we have decided that this kind of information was not relevant and would only make the virtual portfolio more confusing. As we leg-in and -out of trades, we would have to record a date for 1/2 IN, all IN, 1/3 out, etc. When you start following the virtual portfolio, you will notice that it is very easy to follow each trade as we usually only have between 5 to 10 trades open at one time. As we post the most recent ones on top of the spreadsheet there is no confusion.
Why don’t you include the option’s strike and expiration in the virtual portfolio?
For a couple of reasons:
– We usually always buy ATM (At The Money) or slightly ITM (In The Money) calls or puts. We also always buy front month up to the last week before expiration, so there is no need to complicate the spreadsheet by including this information. If we do something different, we indicate it in the comments section (in the post and in the spreadsheet).
– It is a personal choice: some traders prefer to buy further OTM options because they have a small account, some would rather get longer-term options, etc. What matters is that we follow some good rules for position sizing and that we are disciplined with our stops. If you have some doubt, you can always ask a question in the comments section and we will be happy to help you pick the right option. We constantly discuss this kind of issue in the comments section. The goal is to teach you to pick the option you need for your own risk.
– If we recommend that everyone buys the same strike/expiration at the same time then, on some less liquid instruments, we are going to end up bidding against each other.
What does /OB and /OS mean?
/OB means "Bought" and "/OS" means "Sold". We have created this nomenclature so that if you search the comments for "/O", you will get all trades.
Do you only trade swing trades in this virtual portfolio?
90% of the trades are swing trades. However, we do sometimes invest in longer-term stocks based on fundamentals. So far, we did it with DNDN (bought at $5 now $30), ARNA (bought at $3.90, sold some at more than $6), and GLUU (bought at $0.65, sold some at $1.70, now $1.2).
In the email alerts, why don’t you let us know what strike you are buying?
When nothing is specified, it means that we bought the front month option, at the money. As it is the case most of the time, writing it everytime in the email would only make the alerts slower and less efficient.
Do I need to read the comments continuously throughout the day?
Absolutely not. Looking at the comments and/or virtual portfolio once or twice a day should be more than enough. We believe that trading should be effortless. We usually make only a couple of trades per day and keep them from a couple of days to a couple of weeks.
How much money do I need to get started?
As little as you want. You can only follow one or 2 trades at a time, you can only buy one or 2 contracts, etc. The only issue is that with a small account you will be less diversified.
But our goal is that even if you are paper trading, you can learn some very important concepts about how to manage risk. The trades are not important. Hopefully you will soon be able to pick your trades by yourself and will not need this service anymore.
Do you only trade straight calls and puts?
No, we also trade verticals, as explained in the strategy here. We also trade futures (ES Emini) and Forex, and discuss different strategies in the comments.
To learn more about the swing trading virtual portfolio (strategy, membership etc.), please click here
Optrader.
