VST Covered Call
Every out-of-the-money VST call expiring Oct 23, 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 $145.00 strike at 4.3% over 36 days.
Open interest and pricing as of the close on 2026-09-16. Recomputed every morning before the open.
VST covered call candidates — Oct 23, 2026, 36 days out
Strikes are picked by distance from the $140.39 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 — 36 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $145.00 | 3.3% | $6.03 | 4.3% | 43.5% | $134.36 | 7.6% | 6 |
| $155.00 | 10.4% | $2.87 | 2.0% | 20.7% | $137.52 | 12.4% | 146 |
What the $145.00 call pays at expiration
One illustrative strike — the richest premium in the table — against 100 shares bought at $140.39. Profit caps at $1,063.50 if VST finishes above $145.00; below $134.36 the premium stops covering the loss on the stock.
| Stock at expiration | Profit / loss per share | On 100 shares |
|---|---|---|
| $105.29 | $-29.07 | $-2,907.25 |
| $114.07 | $-20.30 | $-2,029.81 |
| $122.84 | $-11.52 | $-1,152.37 |
| $131.62 | $-2.75 | $-274.94 |
| $140.39 | +$6.03 | +$602.50 |
| $149.16 | +$10.64 | +$1,063.50 |
| $157.94 | +$10.64 | +$1,063.50 |
| $166.71 | +$10.64 | +$1,063.50 |
| $175.49 | +$10.64 | +$1,063.50 |
When a covered call fits VST
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 VST 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 VST loaded.
Questions
- What does a VST covered call pay right now?
- The $145.00 call expiring Oct 23, 2026 (36 days out) collects $6.03 per share, 4.3% of the $140.39 share price, or 43.5% annualised if you repeat it.
- What is the break-even on a VST covered call?
- Selling the $145.00 call against stock bought at $140.39 breaks even at $134.36 — the share price less the premium. Below that the premium no longer covers the loss on the shares.
- What happens if VST closes above the strike?
- The shares are called away at $145.00. Total return is 7.6%: the premium plus the move from $140.39 up to the strike. Gains above the strike belong to the buyer.
More on VST
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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.