Stocks for Options Trading: Low-Risk, Low-Stress Strategies for Selling Stock Options -- Profitably! (Hardcover)

by Harvey C. Friedentag (Author) "Right after a day was discovered, someone subdivided it into two parts..." (more)
Key Phrases: new covered call, covered call contract, optionable stock, Schering Plough, Wall Street, Black Monday (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Don't learn the tricks of the trade. Learn the trade. - Anonymous
learn the tricks of the trade. Learn the trade. - Anonymous

Dont learn the tricks of the trade. Learn the trade. - Anonymous
learn the tricks of the trade. Learn the trade. - Anonymous --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description
Buying stocks the traditional way is a high-stress activity.
Investors worry: Will prices go up or down? What will the market do? But
theres another way to make profits dependably and conservatively, and
its called selling options. The beauty of this underused technique is
that whether the price goes up, down, or lays flat, you still make money!

In this clearly-written book, investors learn all the basics of selling
options on their stocks (which is much like renting your stocks). Readers
learn how to:

* make profits up to 80% annually with this safe technique
* protect themselves against market declines and take full advantage of
price swings
* manage an entire options portfolio.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 370 pages
• Publisher: AMACOM; 1 edition (February 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0814404235
• ISBN-13: 978-0814404232
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,221,175 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a great book!, July 31, 2000

By	Michael Mendenhall "september17th" (Monterey, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I started writing covered call options shortly before I read this book. I sure wish I had read this book first. It's hard to lose money writing covered calls because you're getting paid to offer stock that you already own. I feel like I own a bank.

What I really liked about this book more than anything else is that it covered a lot of ground. Particularly, I appreciated the discussion about taxes. I had no idea that you don't report income on writing covered calls until the option expires, someone calls your shares or you cover your position by buying back the option you already sold. This means, as the author points out, that you could sell options late in the year, pocket the money, and assuming nothing happens until January or later of the following year, the income would be taxable to that year. Get paid now, pay the taxes later. I like that idea a lot. It's information like this that helps map out a strategy for investing in the market.

Another thing the author does very well is show numerous examples of his strategies. I was surprised when he showed different ways to purchase a stock, write a covered call against it with a strike price less than the price paid for the stock and still make money. I had to read those sections a few times to figure out just how that worked.

In short, this is an excellent book for beginners and people with some experience in writing covered calls. The lack of hype was a relief. Yes, you can make 50% a year or more easily writing covered calls. It's not some mysterious gambling strategy. I always thought options were some wild trading strategy that only professional traders use. To my surprise and delight I found out that college endowment funds, churches and insurance companies write covered calls as a regular part of portfolio management. As Robert Kiyosaki, author of "Rich Dad Poor Dad" said: "Investing isn't risky. Being uneducated is risky." Do yourself a big favor and get educated about the stock market and writing covered calls. Writing covered calls has very little risk and you get paid for owning and holding stock you already have.

I'm giving this book an enthusiastic 5 stars. If you're an advanced covered call option trader, perhaps you don't need this book. If you're looking for outrageous returns, this book probably isn't for you either. If, like me, you know very little about options or have never traded them, by all means, get this book and study it. The information in this book is excellent, but as with any useful information, you've got to put it into practice. I can't see how anybody with a moderate strategy couldn't earn a decent return on their money using this.

33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great advice!, April 25, 2000

By A Customer

I read his first book "investing without fear" after having stumbled across it at the libary. I liked it so much I ordered this book. He shows you how to make steady returns selling covered call without all the hype like so many others sell you. It's really investing without fear like I have never seen. Most books don't deliver on their promises you read on the cover but this one does. If you apply what he shows you in the book you should have know problem making 50% a year on your money. If you are an aggresive trader This book is not for you. If you are the type of investor who wants to make a good return each year and does not want to watch the market everyday then this book is for you!

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Book, May 12, 2000

By	R. RANDOLPH (Wilson, NC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have read and applied the strategy for writing covered call options. This IS an excellent manual for trading with far less risk and with much greater return than I thought possible. If you are conservative and yet want better than above average returns with less risk, (heaven right?) then this book is for you!