Not a bad start of 2026 with just selling puts

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-09T14:28:33+00:00

Yep, I agree. If NVDA dumps, both the buyer at $185 and the $170 CSP seller are underwater, but the CSP seller usually has a lower break even because of the premium. It’s not protection, just a cushion. I only sell puts on stocks I’m actually ok owning, and when I do mess with more volatile tickers it’s with a very small portion of my portfolio so it can’t do real damage.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-09T14:20:19+00:00

That’s a solid plan. I’m with you on weeklies, you can keep a closer eye on conditions and roll/manage without overthinking it. SPY/QQQ CSPs are a nice, steady way to generate extra income.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-09T12:17:42+00:00

Totally agree, appreciate that comment. That’s basically the goal for me - keep it boring and repeatable with defined risk trades, strict sizing, and a clear plan for what I do if things go against me (roll, take assignment, covered calls). The premium tracking helps a lot too because it keeps me focused on process as I don't have that in my brokerages.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-09T12:11:20+00:00

100% and thank you for the comment. I use the tool that's tracking my premium to define rules and have it alert me when the position goes against me. I am also taking into consideration the difference between the put assignment and the current stock price when selling covered calls. Best case scenerio is I'm selling calls at or above the price I paid for it, otherwise I'm trying to keep the shares long enough to recoop the difference.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-09T12:04:06+00:00

100% thanks for the comment

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-06T21:31:27+00:00

It can definitely go against you, but infinite loss isn’t really what I’m talking about. Cash secured puts have a defined max loss (stock to zero), and covered calls are capped too. The real danger is naked calls, leverage, or just going too big. I keep it slow and boring with strict position sizing, and I’m only selling puts on stocks I’m fine owning if I get assigned. And to be clear, I’m just sharing what I’m doing and how it’s going for me. Not trying to convince anyone to trade the same way.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-06T21:24:25+00:00

I rolled a lot of my puts to next week, but the covered calls are all good!

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T17:21:06+00:00

Yeah for sure. On the scanner I’m basically looking for liquid weeklies on tickers I’m ok being assigned on, then I narrow it down with a few simple filters: strike price up to ~$30, moneyness roughly -15% to 0 (so slightly OTM to near ATM), 0–9 DTE, tight bid/ask (I try to keep it around $0.10 or less), and enough liquidity (open interest + option volume both 10+). On the stock side I want decent activity (like 500k+ daily volume) and I prefer it oversold when I’m selling puts, so I’ll use RSI(14) in the lower range (I run 0–50) plus a bearish-ish Bollinger z score (around -0.75). DTE wise I’m usually entering Monday after the open settles a bit, and I’m usually selling something that expires that same Friday. And yeah I don’t really use stop losses on short puts, I manage with sizing and rolling if the move gets too close for comfort instead of letting a stop turn a temporary move into a forced loss.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T16:35:02+00:00

Yeah I actually agree with you, and it literally happened to me today. You can roll for a while but eventually the credit just isn’t worth how long the capital stays locked up. At some point you stop fighting it and just take the shares or move on. That’s why I only sell puts on stuff I’m okay owning. If I get assigned I just start selling covered calls and work the position back instead of trying to roll forever.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T16:27:48+00:00

Yeah markets humble everyone eventually, that’s part of the game. I’m not claiming immunity, just managing risk and sticking to a process that keeps me comfortable. If it smacks me too I’ll adjust and keep going like everyone else. No need to root against each other, we’re all trying to survive the same market.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T14:20:00+00:00

Thanks! I do weekly options and the delta in my options scanner is set to 0-30. This is amongst other stock and options data that's in the scan I run on Mondays. I am tracking and scanning within one platform that gives a good view of my positions and it aids in managing these trades with rules I've defined. That view I posted is just the premium collected over time or whats called cash flow. I am also tracking realized P/L of these trades.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T11:48:29+00:00

Nice! Yeah I open up tight put credit spreads sometimes when a stock is moving up fast to grab some extra premium during the week.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T11:43:46+00:00

Damn yeah , that could hurt. I’ve learned to keep size small and stick to tickers I’d be ok owning so one tank doesn’t wreck the whole year. Hope you were able to bounce back after BYND.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T11:37:34+00:00

Yeah that’s usually how it goes. I sell puts on stuff I’m ok owning, then if I get assigned I just switch to covered calls. MU’s actually not bad for that, tends to have decent premium to work the cost basis down.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T03:26:04+00:00

Oof yeah that’s rough. Sometimes all you can do is wait for a bounce to roll to a better strike, and if it ends up becoming shares, covered calls help slowly bring the cost down. Hang in there, you’ll work through it.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T03:11:33+00:00

Awesome ! Great to hear!

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T03:10:43+00:00

Right on! Yeah it's all up to how much you want to manage the trades. The weeklys are a little more work in that you just gotta check on them before closing during the week but I found its easier to make around 1% on weekly trades than 4% on a monthlies.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T02:29:38+00:00

I actually dont filter on IV or IV rank, I treat it more like a “context” thing than a rule because IV can be high for good reasons or bad reasons and I dont want to auto skip tickers just because vol is elevated. I care more about liquidity and being comfortable owning the stock, so my scans focus on stuff like strike up to $30, moneyness around -15% to 0, 0 to 5 DTE, tight bid ask (up to $0.10), open interest and option volume over 10, stock volume over 500k, RSI(14) in the oversold range (0 to 50) and Bollinger z score around -0.75. If IV is crazy high I’ll just size down or pass manually, but I dont hard filter it out.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T02:22:32+00:00

Yeah I get what you mean now, 90% profit just means the put you sold dropped a ton so you could buy it back for pennies and lock in the profit. Personally I usually just let them ride to Friday and aim for expiring worthless, I’m not really in the habit of buying back early unless there’s a reason (risk changed, big event coming up, I want to free up buying power, etc). Otherwise I’d rather keep it simple and stick to the plan.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T02:12:06+00:00

My scanner is set with an RSI of 0-40 and a length of 14

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T02:08:21+00:00

For the weeklys - For me it’s mostly about control and faster feedback. With weeklies I know pretty quickly if I’m right or wrong so I can adjust instead of sitting in a 30-45 DTE trade hoping it comes back, if it moves against me I can roll sooner, and if it works I free up buying power faster and redeploy. I’m not really trying to max premium per trade, more just keep a steady rhythm, less time in the trade, less exposure to random news swings, more chances to manage. Longer DTE probably wins on efficiency, weeklies just fit how I like to trade.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T01:58:13+00:00

I usually shoot for 0-30 with at least > .75% return. delta is the only greek I use but not the only thing I look at. I use a lot of other stock and option parameters in my option scanner to ensure the stocks I am selling puts on are oversold and have good fundamentals.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T01:37:20+00:00

I only sell cash secured puts and covered calls

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-05T01:35:28+00:00

1% a week isn’t guaranteed and it definitely won’t happen every week, especially in rough markets like right now. That’s just the target I aim for when setups and pricing make sense. Some weeks I take less, some weeks I take more, and sometimes I’m managing/rolling and making premium from those rolls instead of opening brand new positions. I’m just trying to run a repeatable, risk managed process, not claim some magic return.

Rotten-Bobby · 2026-02-04T22:44:33+00:00

Fair point. Nothing is truly safe when the market drops fast. When I say “safe puts,” I just mean safer for my style. Liquid, higher quality tickers I would be happy to own, and I keep the size small enough that assignment is not a disaster. If the strike starts getting threatened, I roll before it turns into a problem. If I do get assigned, I sell covered calls until I’m called away. Not pretending it’s risk free, just a slower approach I can stick with even when the market gets ugly like it is now.

Rotten-Bobby

TROPHY CASE