Best Time of Day for Trading Options » Top Gun Options (2024)

Best Time of Day for Trading Options » Top Gun Options (1)

Many professional traders trade actively in the first hour or two of trading and take the middle of the day off. This is the best time of the day for trading options for experienced and skillful traders. They may come back for the last hour or two of trading. This is because the biggest swings in the market occur at the start and end of the trading day. This especially important for those option traders who take sniper shots at the short up and down swings in the market. While a trader may stick around to watch a trade, he or she will commonly not see much tradable action until the hour or so before the close of the market.

Why Is the Market More Volatile at the Open and the Close?

When the market opens in the morning, all of the news and events since the previous close are there to drive stock prices. Automated trading bots can create sharp and brief spikes in prices. Many times this is when having traded the rumor a trader will then trade the news. This often means they will have a trade in place that profits when the market corrects on the news. This is the time of day when skilled professionals make most of their profits. It is the time of day when novices commonly lose money.

Middle of the Day Trading

Once of pent up energy of the market has dissipated after the first hour or so of trading the market settles down. Market moves tend to be less and trading volume falls. Only when there is important news in the middle of the day is there typically much action. One event that happens at this time is a Federal Reserve announcement of interest rates. When these occur the market can rocket up or plunge down dramatically or both. For the minutes after a Fed announcement and while the Fed Chair speaks trading can look like that of the early morning. When this is particularly active it can continue into the last hour of trading without a break.

Premarket and Early Day Trading

Some traders start an hour before the market opens in the premarket trading index futures like S&P 500 E-Minis or ETFS that track the S&P 500. The premarket can be similarly active like the first market hour because of pent up news and events. Just like with the first hour in the market this is a time when skilled professionals make money and novices commonly lose.

End of the Day Options Trading

Day traders always want to close out their positions before the closing bell. This can lead to wild market swings as those who are losing money pare their losses and others seek to profit from the wild action. There are times when the market day ends with either a sharp rally right up to the end or a sharp decline to the final bell. Options traders can enter traders meant to profit from overreaction at the close as the next day the market may well correct from the panic at the previous close.

When there is a triple witching day this greatly accentuates the volume and volatility of trading during the last hour of the trading day.

Long Term Versus Short Term Traders

Traders who are good at sniper shots and reacting quickly to market changes can thrive by trading early and late in the day. They can often go away in the middle of the day. Those who are better at longer term trades often prefer to stay away from the volatility of early and late trading and let market fundamentals generate their profits for them as their stocks go up or down over days, weeks, or months. At Top Gun Options we profit from sniper shots and from very long-term trades like long synthetic stock positions on Amazon. When the market is volatile it is best to trade with a dedicated squadron like at Top Gun Options where we potentially make money in all markets and at all times.

Best Time of Day for Trading Options » Top Gun Options (2024)

FAQs

Best Time of Day for Trading Options » Top Gun Options? ›

Many professional traders trade actively in the first hour or two of trading and take the middle of the day off. This is the best time of the day for trading options for experienced and skillful traders. They may come back for the last hour or two of trading.

What is the 3-5-7 rule in trading? ›

The 3–5–7 rule in trading is a risk management principle that suggests allocating a certain percentage of your trading capital to different trades based on their risk levels. Here's how it typically works: 3% Rule: This suggests risking no more than 3% of your trading capital on any single trade.

What is the best time to day trade options? ›

The opening period (9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time) is often one of the best hours of the day for day trading, offering the biggest moves in the shortest amount of time. A lot of professional day traders stop trading around 11:30 a.m. because that is when volatility and volume tend to taper off.

Which time frame is best for options trading? ›

Ans: The appropriate time frame for options trading depends on your purpose and research of the trade. However, a range of 30-90 days can be a good time frame for most trades.

What is the 10 am rule in the stock market? ›

Some traders follow something called the "10 a.m. rule." The stock market opens for trading at 9:30 a.m., and the time between 9:30 a.m. and 10 a.m. often has significant trading volume. Traders that follow the 10 a.m. rule think a stock's price trajectory is relatively set for the day by the end of that half-hour.

What is the 11am rule in trading? ›

​The 11 am rule suggests that if a market makes a new intraday high for the day between 11:15 am and 11:30 am EST, then it's said to be very likely that the market will end the day near its high.

What is 90% rule in trading? ›

While it can be a lucrative venture for some, it is also known to be a high-risk activity. This is where the 90 rule in Forex comes into play. The 90 rule in Forex is a commonly cited statistic that states that 90% of Forex traders lose 90% of their money in the first 90 days.

What is the riskiest option strategy? ›

Selling call options on a stock that is not owned is the riskiest option strategy. This is also known as writing a naked call and selling an uncovered call.

How to successfully day trade options? ›

To succeed in day trading options, you'll need access to a reliable trading platform, real-time market data, and various trading tools. I've found that a good charting tool can make a significant difference in your trading performance.

What time of day should I sell options? ›

What Time Is the Stock Market Most Active? The stock market is most active between the hours of 9:30 AM EST to 10:30 AM EST. The 2nd most active time is called Power Hour, which is between 3:00 PM EST to 4 PM EST. Traders take lunch between 11:30 to 2:30 pm, and that's the time trading algo's take over.

What is the trick for option trading? ›

Avoid options with low liquidity; verify volume at specific strike prices. calls grant the right to buy, while puts grant the right to sell an asset before expiration. Utilise different strategies based on market conditions; explore various options trading approaches.

What not to do when trading options? ›

If you want to trade options, be sure to avoid these common mistakes.
  1. Not having a trading strategy. ...
  2. Lack of diversification. ...
  3. Lack of discipline. ...
  4. Using margin to buy options. ...
  5. Focusing on illiquid options. ...
  6. Failing to understand technical indicators. ...
  7. Not accounting for volatility. ...
  8. Bottom line.
Feb 5, 2024

Which indicator has the highest accuracy? ›

Which is one of the most accurate trading indicators? The most accurate for trading is the Relative Strength Index. It is considered one of the best momentum indicators for intraday trading. It helps investors identify the shares which are bought and sold in the market.

What is the 15 minute rule in stocks? ›

You can do a quick analysis, adjust your trading strategy and get into a good position well after the crowd pulls the trigger on a gap play. Here is how. Let the index/stock trade for the first fifteen minutes and then use the high and low of this “fifteen minute range” as support and resistance levels.

What is the 72 hour rule in stocks? ›

Let's say that you start with the time frame in mind, hoping an investment will double in value over the next 10 years. Applying the Rule of 72, you simply divide 72 by 10. This says the investment will need to go up 7.2% annually to double in 10 years. You could also start with your expected rate of return in mind.

What is the 10 00 am rule? ›

The "10 AM rule" in stocks suggests that it's often better to wait until after the first 10 minutes of trading before making significant trading decisions.

What is the 80 20 rule in trading? ›

In investing, the 80-20 rule generally holds that 20% of the holdings in a portfolio are responsible for 80% of the portfolio's growth. On the flip side, 20% of a portfolio's holdings could be responsible for 80% of its losses.

What is the golden rule of traders? ›

Let profits run and cut losses short Stop losses should never be moved away from the market. Be disciplined with yourself, when your stop loss level is touched, get out. If a trade is proving profitable, don't be afraid to track the market.

What is No 1 rule of trading? ›

Rule 1: Always Use a Trading Plan

You need a trading plan because it can assist you with making coherent trading decisions and define the boundaries of your optimal trade. A decent trading plan will assist you with avoiding making passionate decisions without giving it much thought.

What is the 70 30 trading strategy? ›

The 70/30 RSI trading strategy has two threshold levels

The RSI, which has a range from 0 to 100, is commonly used to identify overbought or oversold conditions in a market. The 70/30 RSI strategy involves setting two threshold levels on the RSI indicator: 70 for overbought conditions and 30 for oversold conditions.

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