The product · defined-risk debit spreads under $50
Defined-risk debit spreads around liquid earnings names. Not a lottery call.
The Weekly Playbook is the product from Stock Market Classroom: a weekly earnings options playbook of defined-risk debit spreads around liquid names — Broadcom, Dell, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Credo — not a lottery call you hope expires in the money.
A debit spread means you buy one option and sell another. The money you pay up front is the debit. The most you can lose is that debit. We study debit spreads under $50 so the lesson is control. Options can expire worthless. A debit spread can lose 100% of the debit.
Every write-up states seven things: ticker, expiry, strikes, debit paid, max loss (the debit), max gain, and why the spread. If the live mid prints over $0.50, we cut the width or we skip. If the 25th name is junk, we publish fewer than 25.
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How to read a play
A ticker is the nickname on the screen — KO, AVGO, HPE. Expiry is the Friday the contract dies. A strike is the set price. A call is the right to buy; a put is the right to sell. Defined-risk means you know the worst case before you click.
The seven fields — required on every play
| Field | What it means |
|---|---|
| Ticker / expiry / strikes | Nickname, Friday it dies, the two set prices. |
| Debit paid / max loss | $0.45 per share = $45 per contract. Max loss is the debit. |
| Max gain / why | Width minus debit, times 100. Then one sentence a neighbor can use. |
Example — why we skip September 4
- Friday, September 4 is August nonfarm payrolls.
- Same-week options die into a jobs print.
- We use Friday, September 11 so the earnings move has a week to settle.
Sample week: how a playbook reads (week of August 31, 2026)
Desk 04 · Monday, August 31, 2026. Teaching sketches, not live fills. Confirm the chain. Education only.
Play 01 · the cheap classroom spread
HPE — Hewlett Packard Enterprise
| Ticker | Expiry | Strikes | Debit | Max loss | Max gain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HPE ~$52.31 | Fri Sep 11 | Buy 52.50 call / sell 55 call | $0.45 ($45) | $45 | $205 |
Why the spread. HPE reports Wednesday, September 2, after the close. Guide is $11.5–$12.1 billion of revenue and 88–93 cents of earnings; street is 94 cents. This is the AI-server print you can size under $50. A $3 call is a lottery. This $2.50-wide spread only works if HPE lives above $52.50 after the print. Max loss is $45.
Play 02 · the week’s main event
AVGO — Broadcom
| Ticker | Expiry | Strikes | Debit | Max loss | Max gain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AVGO ~$370 | Fri Sep 11 | Buy 375 call / sell 380 call | $0.48 ($48) | $48 | $452 |
Why the spread. Broadcom reports Wednesday, September 2, after the close. Guide is about $29.4 billion of revenue, AI semiconductors near $16 billion, street earnings around $3.22. The question is not “did they beat.” It is whether custom accelerators still compound. A single call can cost hundreds and go to zero. This $5-wide spread caps the loss at $48. If the live mid prints over $0.50, we cut the width or we skip.
Play 03 · AI servers, not a rumor
DELL — Dell Technologies
| Ticker | Expiry | Strikes | Debit | Max loss | Max gain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DELL ~$457 | Fri Sep 11 | Buy 465 call / sell 470 call | $0.45 ($45) | $45 | $455 |
Why the spread. Dell reports Tuesday, September 1, after the close. The question is AI-server revenue against last quarter’s high bar — about $15.5 billion of guide and a backlog near $51.3 billion — not whether the ticker is loud. A loud year is not a reason to buy the cheapest same-week call. This spread only pays if Dell can live above $465 after the print. Max loss is $45.
Play 04 · the pipe, not the chip
CRDO — Credo Technology
| Ticker | Expiry | Strikes | Debit | Max loss | Max gain |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CRDO ~$228 | Fri Sep 11 | Buy 230 call / sell 235 call | $0.47 ($47) | $47 | $453 |
Why the spread. Credo reports Tuesday, September 1, after the close. Street sits near $472 million of revenue and $0.91 of earnings. Credo is the connectivity pipe into the same AI build-out as Broadcom, at a share price you can teach. Beginners buy $0.15 calls here and donate the debit. This spread needs the stock through $230. Max loss is $47. If the mid is fat, we narrow it.
Skipped that week — on purpose
Palo Alto Networks (PANW) reports Tuesday after the close, near $382, after a $40 two-day rip. Snowflake (SNOW) reports Wednesday. Ciena (CIEN) reports Thursday morning. We do not chase a bounce with a same-week call. Thursday’s software tape lives on the paid desk only when the debit is honest. Skipping is a valid play.
$19 once. Six months of the desk.
What this is not
- Not the Sunday note. The note is free: one lesson, one income fact, one earnings watch. This page is the desk.
- Not a 12% covered-call paycheck. Headline yield is not a withdrawal rate. Read How we get paid and the Rule of 5%.
- Not 25 lottery tickets. Four public samples. The paid desk can run up to 25 names. If the 25th is junk, we publish fewer.
Get the desk
The samples are the classroom. The full weekly earnings options playbook is the product. Walk Start Here first if you are new. Get the Sunday note free. Then the desk, if you want it.
Beginner questions
What is a debit spread, in one sentence?
You buy one option and sell another; the cash you pay is the debit; the most you can lose is that debit.
Why under $50?
So a beginner can be wrong without wrecking the account. If the live debit prints over $0.50, we cut the width or we skip.
Is this the Sunday note?
No. The Sunday note is free. This is the paid weekly earnings options playbook. Start Here stays free.
Is this a 12% covered-call plan?
No. Headline yield is not a withdrawal rate. We do not sell a 12% covered-call fantasy.
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Education only — not investment advice. Options can expire worthless. A debit spread can lose 100% of the debit. Figures as of August 31, 2026 and will move.