Category: Glossary

  • U-V

    UNDERLYING: The security upon which the value of an option depends. Underlying securities can include stock, futures and indexes. UNDERVALUED OPTION: An option trading at less than its theoretical value, as estim using an option valuation model. UNSYSTEMATIC RISK: The risk of an individual stock that is a function of that comp outlook for earnings, […]

  • W-X

    WASTING ASSET: An asset that has a limited life and tends to decrease in value over time(all other factors being held constant). Options are wasting assets. WRITER: The seller who initiates a short options position.

  • Y-Z

    Zomma Zomma is a third-order risk measure of the degree to which the gamma of an options contract is sensitive to changes in implied volatility. It is also referred to as ‘D-gamma/D-vol.’ Gamma itself is a second-order risk measure of an option’s sensitivity of its delta to changes in the underlying price.