How are ATO butterfly max profit and max loss calculated?

Max profit equals the wing width minus net debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins the middle strike); max loss equals the net debit times 100. Two breakevens at lower-wing plus debit and upper-wing minus debit. For the ATO butterfly priced from the August 14, 2026 end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 16.30%), the computed maximum profit is $507.05 per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$414.00 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.

What is the breakeven for a ATO butterfly?

The breakeven for the ATO butterfly priced on this page is roughly $164.14 and $175.86 at expiration, derived from the August 14, 2026 end-of-day chain's premiums. Breakeven is the underlying price at which the strategy's P&L crosses zero ignoring transaction costs and assignment risk. The ATO market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move in the same options snapshot is approximately 4.67%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.

How does current ATO implied volatility affect this butterfly?

ATO ATM IV is at 16.30% with IV rank near 1.85%, 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.

ATO Butterfly Strategy

ATO (Atmos Energy Corporation), in the Utilities sector, (Regulated Gas industry), listed on NYSE.

Atmos Energy Corporation, alongside its subsidiaries, is a U.S.-based enterprise primarily involved in the regulated distribution of natural gas, as well as operating pipeline and storage facilities. The company functions through two core divisions: Distribution, and Pipeline and Storage. The Distribution division manages the regulated delivery and associated sales of natural gas across eight states. This division supplies natural gas to approximately three million customers, encompassing homeowners, businesses, public agencies, and industrial clients. By September 30, 2021, its extensive infrastructure comprised 71,921 miles of subterranean distribution and transmission lines. Conversely, the Pipeline and Storage division focuses on pipeline and storage activities.

ATO (Atmos Energy Corporation) trades in the Utilities sector, specifically Regulated Gas, with a market capitalization of approximately $28.31B, a trailing P/E of 20.36, a beta of 0.60 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 160.1-192.51, average daily share volume of 1.2M, a public-listing history dating back to 1983, approximately 5K full-time employees. These structural characteristics shape how ATO stock options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.

A beta of 0.60 indicates ATO has historically moved less than the broader market, dampening realized volatility and producing tighter expected-move bands per unit of dollar exposure. ATO pays a dividend, which adjusts put-call parity and shifts the ex-dividend pricing across the listed chain.

What is a butterfly on ATO?

A long call butterfly buys one lower-strike call, sells two ATM calls, and buys one higher-strike call, paying a small net debit for a defined-risk position that maxes out if the underlying pins the middle strike at expiration.

ATO snapshot

As of August 14, 2026, spot at $170.06, ATM IV 16.30%, IV rank 1.85%, expected move 4.67%. The butterfly on ATO below is built from the August 14, 2026 end-of-day chain, with strikes snapped to listed contracts and premiums pulled from the bid/ask midpoint at a 35-day expiry.

Why this butterfly structure on ATO specifically: ATO IV at 16.30% is on the cheap side of its 1-year range, which favors premium-buying structures like a ATO butterfly, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 4.67% (roughly $7.95 on the underlying). The 35-day window matched to the front-month expiry keeps theta exposure bounded while still capturing the post-snapshot move; longer-dated ATO expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on ATO should anchor to the underlying notional of $170.06 per share and to the trader's directional view on ATO stock.

ATO butterfly setup

The ATO butterfly below is built from the August 14, 2026 end-of-day chain, with each option leg priced at the bid/ask midpoint of its listed strike. With ATO at $170.06 on that close, the first option leg uses a $160.00 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed ATO chain at a 35-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 ATO shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).

Action	Type	Strike / Basis	Premium (est)
Buy 1	Call	$160.00	$10.35
Sell 2	Call	$170.00	$3.35
Buy 1	Call	$180.00	$0.49

ATO butterfly risk and reward

Net Premium / Debit: -$414.00
Max Profit (per contract): $507.05
Max Loss (per contract): -$414.00
Breakeven(s): $164.14, $175.86
Risk / Reward Ratio: 1.225

Max profit equals the wing width minus net debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins the middle strike); max loss equals the net debit times 100. Two breakevens at lower-wing plus debit and upper-wing minus debit.

ATO butterfly payoff curve

Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the butterfly on ATO. 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%	-$414.00
$37.61	-77.9%	-$414.00
$75.21	-55.8%	-$414.00
$112.81	-33.7%	-$414.00
$150.41	-11.6%	-$414.00
$188.01	+10.6%	-$414.00
$225.61	+32.7%	-$414.00
$263.21	+54.8%	-$414.00
$300.81	+76.9%	-$414.00
$338.41	+99.0%	-$414.00

When traders use butterfly on ATO

Butterflies on ATO are pinning bets - traders use them when they expect ATO to settle near a specific level at expiration (often the prior close, a round number, or the max-pain strike) and want defined-risk exposure to that outcome.

ATO thesis for this butterfly

The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for ATO extends from approximately $162.11 on the downside to $178.01 on the upside. A ATO long call butterfly is a pinning play: it pays maximum at the middle strike if ATO settles there at expiration, with the wing legs capping both the cost and the maximum loss to the net debit. Current ATO IV rank near 1.85% 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 ATO at 16.30%. As a Utilities name, ATO options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to ATO-specific events.

ATO butterfly positions are structurally neutral / pin (limited-risk, limited-reward); 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. ATO positions also carry Utilities sector concentration risk; news flow inside the sector (peer earnings, regulatory shifts, supply-chain headlines) can move ATO alongside the broader basket even when ATO-specific fundamentals are unchanged. Always rebuild the position from current ATO chain quotes before placing a trade.

Frequently asked questions

What is a butterfly on ATO?: A butterfly on ATO is the butterfly strategy applied to ATO (stock). The strategy is structurally neutral / pin (limited-risk, limited-reward): A long call butterfly buys one lower-strike call, sells two ATM calls, and buys one higher-strike call, paying a small net debit for a defined-risk position that maxes out if the underlying pins the middle strike at expiration. With ATO stock at $170.06 on the August 14, 2026 close, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed ATO chain strike and the premiums come straight from that session's bid/ask midpoint.
How are ATO butterfly max profit and max loss calculated?: Max profit equals the wing width minus net debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins the middle strike); max loss equals the net debit times 100. Two breakevens at lower-wing plus debit and upper-wing minus debit. For the ATO butterfly priced from the August 14, 2026 end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 16.30%), the computed maximum profit is $507.05 per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$414.00 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.
What is the breakeven for a ATO butterfly?: The breakeven for the ATO butterfly priced on this page is roughly $164.14 and $175.86 at expiration, derived from the August 14, 2026 end-of-day chain's premiums. Breakeven is the underlying price at which the strategy's P&L crosses zero ignoring transaction costs and assignment risk. The ATO market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move in the same options snapshot is approximately 4.67%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.
When should you consider a butterfly on ATO?: Butterflies on ATO are pinning bets - traders use them when they expect ATO to settle near a specific level at expiration (often the prior close, a round number, or the max-pain strike) and want defined-risk exposure to that outcome.
How does current ATO implied volatility affect this butterfly?: ATO ATM IV is at 16.30% with IV rank near 1.85%, 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.