VXX Covered Call
Every out-of-the-money VXX 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 $19.00 strike at 7.4% over 36 days.
Open interest and pricing as of the close on 2026-09-16. Recomputed every morning before the open.
VXX covered call candidates — Oct 23, 2026, 36 days out
Strikes are picked by distance from the $18.43 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $19.00 | 3.1% | $1.36 | 7.4% | 74.5% | $17.08 | 10.4% | 521 |
| $19.50 | 5.8% | $1.11 | 6.0% | 61.1% | $17.32 | 11.8% | 30 |
| $20.00 | 8.5% | $1.07 | 5.8% | 58.6% | $17.37 | 14.3% | 108 |
What the $19.00 call pays at expiration
One illustrative strike — the richest premium in the table — against 100 shares bought at $18.43. Profit caps at $192.50 if VXX finishes above $19.00; below $17.08 the premium stops covering the loss on the stock.
| Stock at expiration | Profit / loss per share | On 100 shares |
|---|---|---|
| $13.82 | $-3.25 | $-325.25 |
| $14.97 | $-2.10 | $-210.06 |
| $16.13 | $-0.95 | $-94.88 |
| $17.28 | +$0.20 | +$20.31 |
| $18.43 | +$1.36 | +$135.50 |
| $19.58 | +$1.93 | +$192.50 |
| $20.73 | +$1.93 | +$192.50 |
| $21.89 | +$1.93 | +$192.50 |
| $23.04 | +$1.93 | +$192.50 |
When a covered call fits VXX
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 VXX 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 VXX loaded.
Questions
- What does a VXX covered call pay right now?
- The $19.00 call expiring Oct 23, 2026 (36 days out) collects $1.36 per share, 7.4% of the $18.43 share price, or 74.5% annualised if you repeat it.
- What is the break-even on a VXX covered call?
- Selling the $19.00 call against stock bought at $18.43 breaks even at $17.08 — the share price less the premium. Below that the premium no longer covers the loss on the shares.
- What happens if VXX closes above the strike?
- The shares are called away at $19.00. Total return is 10.4%: the premium plus the move from $18.43 up to the strike. Gains above the strike belong to the buyer.
More on VXX
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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.