Learn the basics of options trading—what calls and puts are, how options work, and strategies to hedge or speculate—with practical examples for beginners.

An option is a financial instrument whose value is tied to an underlying asset; this is known as a derivative. Instead of buying an asset, such as company stock, outright, an options contract allows ...

Picking the right options trading strategy for you will depend on what direction you think a stock’s price will go and your capacity to absorb losses. Buying an option, or “going long,” will have less ...

Options trading may sound risky and complex for beginner investors, but there are some basic strategies that even novices can ...

“The day-trading rules essentially became somewhat obsolete as the technology evolved,” Cohn said. “Firms were no longer ...