Options Backtesting Software
September 1, 2010 by Donald Scott
Filed under Finance
Hi option traders. I hope you are doing well today and that you find your portfolio growing. This article is part two of a series of six, and each article is accompanied by a video. I highly recommend you to watch all six videos if you’re interested in learning how to trade options as a business.
A very important step in learning to trade options is to spend a lot of time back testing your trades. There are just a few option software programs on the market at this time that can help you with this task, but learning to trade without costing you a dime is worth your time. I learned a lot by using Optionvue and/or Think or Swim to back test my option trades. These two software bundles have been very good, but now San Jose Options has just released a new type of back testing tool called the “Options Toolkit.” With this back tester you will save a lot of time in comparison to any other options testing software.
It use to take me one hour to back test a year of trading using a Butterfly trade with the Optionvue software. Then I used Think or Swim and it would be a little better, less time, but not as much information. Now, when I use the “Options Toolkit” I actually gather more organized data in about 2 seconds, this is to back test one year of Butterfly trades. It is so much better and faster. It’s truly a great tool to have at your fingertips.
Another step in finding success is simply trading for many years. We all call it “experience”. The reason behind this is the stock market is constantly changing. In order to see all sides of the market, we need to trade for many years. There is no other way to gain this kind of “experience”.
Paper trading is also a great way to learn how to trade options. Again, you can simply open an account at think or swim or almost any of their options broker and get a free paper trading account to practice with. Although it might be difficult, it’s actually very important to paper trade for at least six months to a year. As mentioned before it’s very important to have experience over time, and paper trading is one way to acquire experience without risking any money.
At last, I would like to tell you that you should keep about 25% of your capital in cash. This is very important! The best option trades always require adjustments. In order to make these adjustments, you will need extra cash. It is very dangerous to use all of your spending money in your trading account. Every option trader leaves lots of money in cash in order to make adjustments. You need cash to lock in profits and manage your portfolio as needed. Keeping this cash helps you to be a successful trader.
Looking to find the best deal on Options Backtesting Software, then visit www.sjoptions.com to find the best advice on Trading Options and education.
