192 Part II: Call Option Strategies 
The spread between the April 50 and the July 50 has now widened to 5 points. Since 
the spread cost 3 points originally, this widening effect has produced a 2-point prof­
it. The spread could be closed at this time in order to realize the profit, or the spread­
er may decide to continue to hold the July 50 call that he is long. By continuing to 
hold the July 50 call, he is risking the profits that have accrued to date, but he could 
profit handsomely if the underlying stock rises in price over the next 3 months, 
before July expiration. 
It is not necessary for the underlying stock to be exactly at the striking price of 
the options at near-term expiration for a profit to result. In fact, some profit can be 
made in a range that extends both below and above the striking price. The risk in this 
type of position is that the stock will drop a great deal or rise a great deal, in which 
case the spread between the two options will shrink and the spreader will lose money. 
Since the spread between two calls at the same strike cannot shrink to less than zero, 
however, the risk is limited to the amount of the original debit spent to establish the 
spread, plus commissions. 
THE NEUTRAL CALENDAR SPREAD 
As mentioned earlier, the calendar spreader can either have a neutral outlook on the 
stock or he can construct the spread for an aggressively bullish outlook. The neutral 
outlook is described first. The calendar spread that is established when the underly­
ing stock is at or near the striking price of the options used is a neutral spread. The 
strategist is interested in selling time and not in predicting the direction of the under­
lying stock. If the stock is relatively unchanged when the near-term option expires, 
the neutral spread will make a profit. In a neutral spread, one should initially have 
the intent of closing the spread by the time the near-tenn option expires. 
Let us again tum to our example calendar spread described earlier in order to 
more accurately demonstrate the potential risks and rewards from that spread when 
the near-term, April, call expires. To do this, it is necessary to estimate the price of the 
July 50 call at that time. Notice that, with XYZ at 50 at expiration, the results agree 
with the less detailed example presented earlier. The graph shown in Figure 9-1 is the 
"total profit" from Table 9-1. The graph is a curved rather than straight line, since the 
July 50 call still has time premium. There is a slightly bullish bias to this graph: The 
profit range extends slightly farther above the striking price than it does below the 
striking price. This is due to the fact that the spread is a call spread. If puts had been 
used, the profit range would have a bearish bias. The total width of the profit range is 
a function of the volatility of the underlying stock, since that will determine the price