Options Made Easy: Your Guide to Profitable Trading (2nd Edition) [Hardcover]

Guy Cohen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 28, 2005

“Guy Cohen cuts through the fog and helps all levels of investors grasp the most intricate concepts. He does so with great clarity and brevity despite covering such a broad set of  topics. His is an invaluable guide for the interested beginner and the most advanced trader.”

—Ned Bennett, CEO, optionsXpress, Inc. 

"The best book on options I have ever come across."
—Alpesh B. Patel, bestselling author of Trading Online and Mind of a Trader

"Guy Cohen really does make options easy. Each options strategy has both a visual diagram of the risk and reward, as well as a logical explanation of how the strategy works. Combined with primers on fundamental and technical analysis, Guy shows you how to put the odds in your favor in today's options markets."
—Price Headley, Founder, BigTrends.com and author of Big Trends in Trading

"Guy Cohen has put together a comprehensive, easy to understand, must-read on options for investors of all levels. Practical in its approach, the graphics bring clarity to what beginning investors might consider complicated strategies."
—Joseph Sellitto, Director Retail Derivatives, E*TRADE Securities LLC

"This is one of the best books on option strategies I have ever read."
—Daniel J. Zanger, President, Chartpattern.com

"Guy Cohen builds a foundation for the reader with simple definitions and clear mechanics on what can be a complicated topic. He then approaches each strategy with a context of fundamental and technical analysis and sets the stage for a solid understanding of risk, reward and probability."
—Dave Whitmore, Managing Director, Products & Services, Ameritrade, Inc.

In Options Made Easy, Second Edition, Guy Cohen clearly explains everything you need to know about options in plain English so that you can start trading fast and make consistent profits in any market, bull or bear!

Simply and clearly, the author reveals secrets of options trading that were formerly limited to elite professionals—and exposes the dangerous myths that keep investors from profiting.

As you set out on your options journey, you'll learn interactively through real-life examples, anecdotes, case studies, and pictures. Guy Cohen is your friendly expert guide, helping you pick the right stocks, learn the right strategies, create the trading plans that work, and master the psychology of the winning trader.

• Master all the essentials—and put them to work

  Options demystified so that you can get past the fear and start profiting!

• Learn the safest ways to trade options

  Identify high-probability trades that lead to consistent profits

• Design a winning Trading Plan—and stick to it

  Understand your risk profile and discover exactly when to enter and exit your trades

• Choose the right stocks for maximum profit

  Screen for your best opportunities—stocks that are moving—or are about to move

• Discover the optimum strategies for you

  Match your trading strategies to your personal investment goals

• No bull! The realities and myths of the markets

  What you must know about fundamental and technical analysis

The easy, plain-English guide to making consistent profits with options!

Teaches all the essentials with real-life examples and crystal-clear explanations

No complicated math or confusing jargon: Learn visually with easy-to-understand pictures!

Identify high-probability trades, and design a Trading Plan that works

Master practical, easy strategies for succeeding in any environment—even bear markets

Updated for today's markets with even more dynamic graphics, intuitive explanations, and valuable information!

For every investor interested in trading options

When you read this book, you'll be amazed how quickly you understand options—and how quickly you can start profiting from them!

© Copyright Pearson Education. All rights reserved.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The best book on options I have ever come across."- Alpesh Patel, best-selling author of "Trading Online "and "Mind of a Trader" "Incredibly well presented - actually makes you want to learn about options if you are a novice, and for the expert teaches you huge amounts you never knew. The diagrams, charts and illustrations are exactly what is needed for a potentially complex subject and turns it exactly into what it says on the cover - Options Made Easy. Very thorough. Very accessible." "Guy's approach in using well illustrated diagrams is the most effective way" "to understand the concepts and intricacies of options trading. This book" "will guide you through the popular strategies adopted by traders at all" "levels. "Options Made Easy "is definitely a valuable addition to any trader's" "library. It's one of the best investments I have ever made." J Pau, Australia --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Back Cover

When you read this book, you'll be pleasantly surprised how quickly you'll start to understand this fascinating trading approach. In Options Made Easy, Guy Cohen simplifies options by using charts and diagrams all the way through, guiding you on an interactive journey. This helps you to build your confidence because it's practical, easy to understand, and easy to follow. Using plain English, dynamic pictures, and real-life examples throughout, Options Made Easy demystifies the world of options and, whatever your current knowledge level, you will be amazed at how quickly you're learning:

• Options fundamentals on a realistic and practical level, right through to advanced strategies.
• The facts and myths of Technical and Fundamental Analysis and how to match the context with the right strategy.
• How to filter for moving stocks.
• How to select your optimum strategy.
• How to design your own Trading Plan for high probability trades and consistent profits.
• The secrets of trading psychology, how to increase your confidence and eliminate the gambling mentality from your investing and trading decisions.

As you're reading this book, you'll discover that you're learning with a user-friendly interactive guide that you can reference time and time again. Keep Options Made Easy with you as your essential companion for both stocks and options trading.

"The best book on options I have ever come across."

—Alpesh B. Patel (bestselling author of Trading Online and Mind of a Trader)

"Incredibly well presented - actually makes you want to learn about options if you are a novice, and for the expert teaches you huge amounts you never knew. The diagrams, charts and illustrations are exactly what is needed for a potentially complex subject and turns it exactly into what it says on the cover - Options Made Easy. Very thorough, very accessible."

"Guy's approach in using well illustrated diagrams is the most effective way to understand the concepts and intricacies of options trading. This book will guide you through the popular strategies adopted by traders at all levels. Options Made Easy is definitely a valuable addition to any trader's library. It's one of the best investments I have ever made."

—J Pau, Australia

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: FT Press; 2 edition (July 28, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0131871358
• ISBN-13: 978-0131871359
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 7.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (68 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #34,816 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

A true innovator, Guy Cohen is the creator and originator of Flag-Trader, The OVI Index, Illuminati-Trader and OptionEasy. He is the author of the best selling trading books "Options Made Easy", "The Bible of Options Strategies" and "Volatile Markets Made Easy" (FT Prentice Hall) and has extensive experience of derivatives and stock markets.

Guy's specialism is in stock market trading and he has created numerous online applications for stocks and options traders, with his hallmark being his user-friendly approach and liberal use of illustrations. His clients include NYSE Euronext, the largest stock exchange in the world and FT Prentice Hall.

Guy is also the author of "Your Gut Feeling", which details his complete recovery from a severe case of ulcerative colitis, how he has helped others, and how anyone else can duplicate his method.

An established and entertaining speaker, Guy has an MBA (Finance) from City University (Cass) Business School, London.

For more information about Guy's trading products go to http://www.privatetradersclub.com.

For more information about "Your Gut Feeling" go to http://www.yourgutfeeling.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

147 of 153 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Options Made TOO Easy, April 5, 2007

By 

Bryan "Bryan" (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Options Made Easy: Your Guide to Profitable Trading (2nd Edition) (Hardcover)

First off, I want to say that I definitely didn't dislike this book. It's a solid introduction to options trading and it covers an awful lot of material. My issue with the book is that it tried to cover too many things by not fleshing out the details on many topics. As another reviewer pointed out, there are much better options (no pun intended) if you want to learn about fundamental or technical analysis. Frankly, depending on your time horizon, if you don't have an understanding of analysis of either kind you probably shouldn't even think about trading options. But back to the book; I do wish it had more on options trading strategies. Explanations of the vertical spreads are good, but then there's just a long 'strategy table' in the back that glosses over strangles, butterflies, condors, backspreads, etc. without providing any meaningful detail on how they should be used. Topics like volatility, essential to understanding premiums, are also touched on too lightly. I don't normally care for statements like "it would take another book in itself to explain this," but I swear it was repeated 3 or 4 times.

Options are a tool to limit risk, but misused they can be very risky. This book does a good job of describing what options are and some basic ways in which they're used (e.g., if you think a stock will go down, buy a put or sell a call), but it didn't provide me with enough information to successfully prepare myself to trade options.

I would look to other options books before this one unless you just want a very basic primer to read before you delve into the real meat of options trading.

92 of 96 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A good addition to the investing library, November 29, 2006

By 

Big Daddy (TN) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Options Made Easy: Your Guide to Profitable Trading (2nd Edition) (Hardcover)

While this book does a good job in explaining several common option techniques, the title is somewhat misleading as I don't think a subject as complicated as options trading can ever be "made easy." Reading the book is much like reading a text book or an owner's manual. The author does a good job in boiling down the strategies to their essence and presents them in multiple ways so that people who learn graphically instead of by reading can pick up the strategies easier. The book's shortfall is that it spends a lot of time discussing investment basics such as fundamental analysis and technical analysis. While those are certainly important, I would have preferred that more time been spent on discussing different options strategies because if a person doesn't already know a fair amount about analyzing stocks he has no business trading options in any event. Still, I view this as a handy reference tool and expect that I will refer to it regularly. It is the best book on the subject that I have ever read and unlike a lot of strategy books, does not waste a bunch of your time by trying to suck more money out of you by selling you a proprietary trading product.

53 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Outstanding!!, September 7, 2006

By 

Gareth J. Hooper "IT Guy" (Dallas, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Options Made Easy: Your Guide to Profitable Trading (2nd Edition) (Hardcover)

I didn't know anything about options, and had come to Amazon to find a book that I could read that would cover the basics and hopefully go over practical trading strategies that a novice could execute. Well, I read the customer reviews on this book, at the time 9 reviews, all 5 out of 5.

I'm very glad I bought the book! The author covers the basics of options in a very clear, concise and easy to follow way. The author also covers a lot of option trading strategies, and discloses how he trades. The examples are excellent, and easy to follow.

The author also goes over the myths associated with options, and also the pitfalls (i.e. buying options with 1 month left to expiry, like a lot of option newsletters seem to recommend but he certainly does not, quite the opposite).

If you want to read up on options, you can't go wrong with this book.