How are PSL straddle max profit and max loss calculated?

Upside max profit is unbounded; downside max profit is bounded at the strike minus the combined call plus put debit (reached at zero). Max loss equals the combined debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins to the strike). Two breakevens at strike plus debit and strike minus debit. For the PSL straddle priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 21.90%), the computed maximum profit is unbounded per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$602.18 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.

What is the breakeven for a PSL straddle?

The breakeven for the PSL straddle priced on this page is roughly $105.50 and $118.50 at expiration, derived from end-of-day chain premiums. Breakeven is the underlying price at which the strategy's P&L crosses zero ignoring transaction costs and assignment risk. The current PSL market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move is approximately 6.28%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.

How does current PSL implied volatility affect this straddle?

PSL ATM IV is at 21.90% with IV rank near 22.38%, which is on the low end of its 1-year range. Premium-buying structures (long call, long put, debit spreads) are relatively cheap in this regime; premium-selling structures collect less credit per unit risk.

PSL Straddle Strategy

PSL (Invesco Dorsey Wright Consumer Staples Momentum ETF), in the Financial Services sector, (Asset Management industry), listed on NASDAQ.

PSL provides an alternate take on US consumer staples firms. It starts its selection universe covering about 2,000 of the largest companies by market cap within the NASDAQ US Benchmark Index. The fund then follows the Dorsey-Wright Technical Leaders Indexs momentum-focused scoring scheme to narrow down its constituents to a minimum of 30. At the same time, this momentum score will also be the basis of their respective weightings. Meaning, securities that scored the highest receives greater weight in the index. This relative strength strategy aims to focus on securities performance when it comes to intermediate and long-term upward price movements as compared to a market benchmark.

PSL (Invesco Dorsey Wright Consumer Staples Momentum ETF) trades in the Financial Services sector, specifically Asset Management, with a market capitalization of approximately $81.5M, a beta of 0.73 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 97.96-117.12, average daily share volume of 2K, a public-listing history dating back to 2006. These structural characteristics shape how PSL etf options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.

A beta of 0.73 places PSL roughly in line with broader market moves, so the strategy payoff and realized volatility track the index-equivalent baseline. PSL pays a dividend, which adjusts put-call parity and shifts the ex-dividend pricing across the listed chain.

What is a straddle on PSL?

A long straddle buys an ATM call and an ATM put at the same strike, profiting from a large move in either direction; max loss equals the combined debit when the underlying pins to the strike at expiration.

Current PSL snapshot

As of June 29, 2026, spot at $112.08, ATM IV 21.90%, IV rank 22.38%, expected move 6.28%. The straddle on PSL below is built from the same end-of-day chain, with strikes snapped to listed contracts and premiums pulled from the bid/ask midpoint at a 81-day expiry.

Why this straddle structure on PSL specifically: PSL IV at 21.90% is on the cheap side of its 1-year range, which favors premium-buying structures like a PSL straddle, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 6.28% (roughly $7.04 on the underlying). The 81-day window matched to the front-month expiry keeps theta exposure bounded while still capturing the post-snapshot move; longer-dated PSL expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on PSL should anchor to the underlying notional of $112.08 per share and to the trader's directional view on PSL etf.

PSL straddle setup

The PSL straddle below is built from the end-of-day chain, with each option leg priced at the bid/ask midpoint of its listed strike. With PSL near $112.08, the first option leg uses a $112.00 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed PSL chain at a 81-day expiry; the cross-strike IV skew is reflected directly in the per-leg values rather than approximated. Quantity sizing assumes one contract per option leg (or 100 PSL shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).

Action	Type	Strike / Basis	Premium (est)
Buy 1	Call	$112.00	$3.75
Buy 1	Put	$112.00	$2.75

PSL straddle risk and reward

Net Premium / Debit: -$650.00
Max Profit (per contract): Unbounded
Max Loss (per contract): -$602.18
Breakeven(s): $105.50, $118.50
Risk / Reward Ratio: Unbounded

Upside max profit is unbounded; downside max profit is bounded at the strike minus the combined call plus put debit (reached at zero). Max loss equals the combined debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins to the strike). Two breakevens at strike plus debit and strike minus debit.

PSL straddle payoff curve

Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the straddle on PSL. Each row is one sampled price point from the computed payoff curve; the full curve uses 200 price points internally before being summarized into 10 rows here.

P&L at expiration across the modeled underlying-price range. Green shading marks profitable regions, red shading marks loss regions. Dotted purple verticals mark breakevens; the solid dark vertical marks current spot.

Underlying Price	% From Spot	P&L at Expiration
$0.01	-100.0%	+$10,549.00
$24.79	-77.9%	+$8,070.96
$49.57	-55.8%	+$5,592.92
$74.35	-33.7%	+$3,114.88
$99.13	-11.6%	+$636.84
$123.91	+10.6%	+$541.20
$148.69	+32.7%	+$3,019.24
$173.47	+54.8%	+$5,497.28
$198.25	+76.9%	+$7,975.32
$223.03	+99.0%	+$10,453.36

When traders use straddle on PSL

Straddles on PSL are pure-volatility plays that profit from large moves in either direction; traders typically buy PSL straddles ahead of earnings, FDA decisions, or other catalysts where the realized move is expected to exceed the implied move priced into the chain.

PSL thesis for this straddle

The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for PSL extends from approximately $105.04 on the downside to $119.12 on the upside. A PSL long straddle is a pure-volatility play: it profits when the underlying moves far enough from the strike in either direction to overcome the combined call plus put debit, regardless of direction. Current PSL IV rank near 22.38% sits in the lower third of its 1-year distribution, where IV often re-expands toward the mean; this favors premium-buying structures and disadvantages premium-selling structures on PSL at 21.90%. As a Financial Services name, PSL options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to PSL-specific events.

PSL straddle positions are structurally neutral / high-volatility (long premium); the modeled P&L assumes European-style exercise at expiration and ignores early assignment, transaction costs, dividends paid before expiry on the stock leg (when present), and the bid-ask spread on the listed chain. PSL positions also carry Financial Services sector concentration risk; news flow inside the sector (peer earnings, regulatory shifts, supply-chain headlines) can move PSL alongside the broader basket even when PSL-specific fundamentals are unchanged. Always rebuild the position from current PSL chain quotes before placing a trade.

Frequently asked questions

What is a straddle on PSL?: A straddle on PSL is the straddle strategy applied to PSL (etf). The strategy is structurally neutral / high-volatility (long premium): A long straddle buys an ATM call and an ATM put at the same strike, profiting from a large move in either direction; max loss equals the combined debit when the underlying pins to the strike at expiration. With PSL etf trading near $112.08, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed PSL chain strike and the premiums come straight from the end-of-day bid/ask midpoint.
How are PSL straddle max profit and max loss calculated?: Upside max profit is unbounded; downside max profit is bounded at the strike minus the combined call plus put debit (reached at zero). Max loss equals the combined debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins to the strike). Two breakevens at strike plus debit and strike minus debit. For the PSL straddle priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 21.90%), the computed maximum profit is unbounded per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$602.18 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.
What is the breakeven for a PSL straddle?: The breakeven for the PSL straddle priced on this page is roughly $105.50 and $118.50 at expiration, derived from end-of-day chain premiums. Breakeven is the underlying price at which the strategy's P&L crosses zero ignoring transaction costs and assignment risk. The current PSL market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move is approximately 6.28%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.
When should you consider a straddle on PSL?: Straddles on PSL are pure-volatility plays that profit from large moves in either direction; traders typically buy PSL straddles ahead of earnings, FDA decisions, or other catalysts where the realized move is expected to exceed the implied move priced into the chain.
How does current PSL implied volatility affect this straddle?: PSL ATM IV is at 21.90% with IV rank near 22.38%, which is on the low end of its 1-year range. Premium-buying structures (long call, long put, debit spreads) are relatively cheap in this regime; premium-selling structures collect less credit per unit risk.