The month of May has ushered in some eye-popping volatility for Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:¶¶Òõ×îаæ). Today’s 9% down gap is simply the latest twist in the erratic saga. Allow me to chronicle the herky-jerky action in ¶¶Òõ×îаæ stock, and suggest an idea (actually, three!) for how to profit.
While ¶¶Òõ×îаæ’s chart is littered with outsize candlesticks, the swan dive following the early May earnings announcement takes the cake. In 24 hours, Advanced Micro lost 24% of its value.
Talk about a sucker punch.
On a side note, this episode perfectly illustrates the elevated risk associated with holding a high-flying momentum stock like this into these quarterly rituals.
In the aftermath of the earnings disaster, ¶¶Òõ×îаæ stock found support at its rising 200-day moving average. And, before today’s oopsie, the stock was staging an epic comeback.

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From a technical standpoint, ¶¶Òõ×îаæ remains in a downtrend beneath both a declining 50-day and 20-day moving average. Rallies are always suspect in such an environment.
And while no one could have predicted today’s large down-gap, the fact that Advanced Micro Devices’ recent rally failed shouldn’t be that surprising.
Strangling Profits out of ¶¶Òõ×îаæ Stock
With the stock’s increasingly erratic behavior, I’m reticent to suggest an aggressive directional bet one way or the other here. I do, however, have a few higher-probability ideas for those looking to lean slightly bullish, bearish, or even neutral.
Bull: If you’re intent on leaning bullish after today’s bloodletting, try
selling the Jun 11 puts for around 45 cents. If the stock sits above $11 at expiration, you will capture the max reward of 45 cents. By shorting the put, you will be obligated to buy shares of stock at an effective purchase price of $10.55 if the put option sits in-the-money at expiration.
Bear: If you think the stock is more likely to tread lower due to its overall downtrend, then consider selling the Jun 13 calls for 31 cents. If ¶¶Òõ×îаæ sits below $13 at expiration, you will capture the max reward of 31 cents. And if you’re not willing to short shares at a cost basis of $13.31, then be sure to close the call option if it moves in-the-money.
Neutral: Your third and final option is to bet on the stock settling into some type of range over the next month. You could sell a strangle by shorting both the Jun $13 call and $11 put for a net credit of 76 cents. The best-case scenario is to have Advanced Micro perched between both strikes at expiration, allowing you to pocket the 76 cents max reward. Your overall profit zone stretches from $10.24 to $13.76, so a close between either extreme at expiration will yield at least a partial profit.
The profit zone for this short strangle trade is illustrated in the price chart above.
As of this writing, Tyler Craig did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.