SMH Covered Call
Every out-of-the-money SMH call expiring Sep 24, 2026, priced from the settled chain: what it pays, what it yields, and where the trade stops making money. The richest right now is the $562.50 strike at 0.8% over 7 days.
Open interest and pricing as of the close on 2026-09-16. Recomputed every morning before the open.
SMH covered call candidates — Sep 24, 2026, 7 days out
Strikes are picked by distance from the $545.56 share price, not by delta — the published chain carries premiums and open interest, not greeks, and inventing a delta here would be inventing data. Premium is the bid/ask midpoint where both sides quote, otherwise the last trade. The chain artifact publishes the six nearest expirations, so this is the longest one listed — 7 days out. Annualising anything shorter than a week says more about compounding arithmetic than about the trade, so those cells stay blank.
| Strike | % OTM | Premium | Yield | Annualised | Break-even | If assigned | OI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $562.50 | 3.1% | $4.45 | 0.8% | 42.5% | $541.11 | 3.9% | 191 |
| $572.50 | 4.9% | $2.95 | 0.5% | 28.2% | $542.61 | 5.5% | 3 |
What the $562.50 call pays at expiration
One illustrative strike — the richest premium in the table — against 100 shares bought at $545.56. Profit caps at $2,139.00 if SMH finishes above $562.50; below $541.11 the premium stops covering the loss on the stock.
| Stock at expiration | Profit / loss per share | On 100 shares |
|---|---|---|
| $409.17 | $-131.94 | $-13,194.00 |
| $443.27 | $-97.84 | $-9,784.25 |
| $477.36 | $-63.74 | $-6,374.50 |
| $511.46 | $-29.65 | $-2,964.75 |
| $545.56 | +$4.45 | +$445.00 |
| $579.66 | +$21.39 | +$2,139.00 |
| $613.75 | +$21.39 | +$2,139.00 |
| $647.85 | +$21.39 | +$2,139.00 |
| $681.95 | +$21.39 | +$2,139.00 |
When a covered call fits SMH
A covered call sells someone else the right to buy your shares at the strike. It pays you today and caps your upside there, so it suits a holding you are content to own flat and content to sell at the strike — not one you expect to run.
The premium is compensation for implied volatility. Rich implied volatility pays more, and usually pays more because the market expects a move; a high annualised number on a name about to report earnings is a warning as often as an opportunity. Check the SMH expected move and the open-interest walls before assuming the strike is far enough away.
Full mechanics, assignment and rolling are in the covered call guide; to model a different strike or a multi-leg version, open the profit calculator with SMH loaded.
Questions
- What does a SMH covered call pay right now?
- The $562.50 call expiring Sep 24, 2026 (7 days out) collects $4.45 per share, 0.8% of the $545.56 share price, or 42.5% annualised if you repeat it.
- What is the break-even on a SMH covered call?
- Selling the $562.50 call against stock bought at $545.56 breaks even at $541.11 — the share price less the premium. Below that the premium no longer covers the loss on the shares.
- What happens if SMH closes above the strike?
- The shares are called away at $562.50. Total return is 3.9%: the premium plus the move from $545.56 up to the strike. Gains above the strike belong to the buyer.
More on SMH
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Educational, not investment advice. Options involve risk. Open interest is reported with a one-session lag by OCC, so these levels describe positioning as of the last settled session, not live intraday flow.