CDNA Strangle Strategy
CDNA (CareDx, Inc), in the Healthcare sector, (Medical - Diagnostics & Research industry), listed on NASDAQ.
CareDx, Inc. discovers, develops, and commercializes diagnostic solutions for transplant patients and caregivers worldwide. It provides AlloSure Kidney, a donor-derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA) solution for kidney transplant patients; AlloMap Heart, a gene expression solution for heart transplant patients; AlloSure Heart, a dd-cfDNA solution for heart transplant patients; and AlloSure Lung, a dd-cfDNA solution for lung transplant patients. The company also offers TruSight HLA, a next generation sequencing (NGS) based high resolution typing solution; Olerup SSP, which is used to type human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles based on sequence specific primer technology; QTYPE that enables precision in HLA typing; and Ottr, a transplant patient management software. In addition, it provides AlloSeq Tx, a high-resolution HLA typing solution; AlloSeq cfDNA, a surveillance solution to measure dd-cfDNA in blood; AlloSeq HCT, a solution for chimerism testing for stem cell transplant recipients; and XynQAPI transplant quality tracking and waitlist management solutions, as well as AlloCare, a mobile app that offers a patient-centric resource for transplant recipients. The company offers its products directly to customers, as well as through third-party distributors and sub-distributors. It has a license agreement with Illumina, Inc. for the distribution, development, and commercialization of NGS products and technologies; and Cibiltech SAS to commercialize iBox, a software for the predictive analysis of post-transplantation kidney allograft loss.
CDNA (CareDx, Inc) trades in the Healthcare sector, specifically Medical - Diagnostics & Research, with a market capitalization of approximately $1.06B, a beta of 2.49 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 10.96-23.24, average daily share volume of 692K, a public-listing history dating back to 2014, approximately 644 full-time employees. These structural characteristics shape how CDNA stock options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.
A beta of 2.49 indicates CDNA has historically moved more than the broader market, amplifying both the directional payoff and the realized volatility relative to an index-equivalent position.
What is a strangle on CDNA?
A long strangle buys an OTM call and an OTM put at offset strikes, cheaper than a straddle but requiring a larger underlying move to profit since both wings start out-of-the-money.
Current CDNA snapshot
As of May 15, 2026, spot at $19.97, ATM IV 85.80%, IV rank 21.94%, expected move 24.60%. The strangle on CDNA 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 34-day expiry.
Why this strangle structure on CDNA specifically: CDNA IV at 85.80% is on the cheap side of its 1-year range, which favors premium-buying structures like a CDNA strangle, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 24.60% (roughly $4.91 on the underlying). The 34-day window matched to the front-month expiry keeps theta exposure bounded while still capturing the post-snapshot move; longer-dated CDNA expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on CDNA should anchor to the underlying notional of $19.97 per share and to the trader's directional view on CDNA stock.
CDNA strangle setup
The CDNA strangle below is built from the end-of-day chain, with each option leg priced at the bid/ask midpoint of its listed strike. With CDNA near $19.97, the first option leg uses a $20.97 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed CDNA chain at a 34-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 CDNA shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).
| Action | Type | Strike / Basis | Premium (est) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buy 1 | Call | $20.97 | N/A |
| Buy 1 | Put | $18.97 | N/A |
CDNA strangle risk and reward
- Net Premium / Debit
- N/A
- Max Profit (per contract)
- Unbounded
- Max Loss (per contract)
- Unbounded
- Breakeven(s)
- None on modeled curve
- Risk / Reward Ratio
- N/A
Upside max profit is unbounded; downside max profit is bounded at the put strike minus the combined debit (reached at zero). Max loss equals the combined debit times 100 (reached anywhere between the two OTM strikes). Two breakevens at call-strike plus debit and put-strike minus debit.
CDNA strangle payoff curve
Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the strangle on CDNA. 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.
When traders use strangle on CDNA
Strangles on CDNA are the cheaper cousin of the straddle - traders use them when they want a large directional move but are willing to give up the inner-strike sensitivity in exchange for a lower up-front debit on the CDNA chain.
CDNA thesis for this strangle
The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for CDNA extends from approximately $15.06 on the downside to $24.88 on the upside. A CDNA long strangle is the OTM cousin of the straddle: lower up-front cost but the underlying has to travel further past either OTM strike before the position turns profitable at expiration. Current CDNA IV rank near 21.94% 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 CDNA at 85.80%. As a Healthcare name, CDNA options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to CDNA-specific events.
CDNA strangle positions are structurally neutral / high-volatility (long premium, OTM); 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. CDNA positions also carry Healthcare sector concentration risk; news flow inside the sector (peer earnings, regulatory shifts, supply-chain headlines) can move CDNA alongside the broader basket even when CDNA-specific fundamentals are unchanged. Always rebuild the position from current CDNA chain quotes before placing a trade.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a strangle on CDNA?
- A strangle on CDNA is the strangle strategy applied to CDNA (stock). The strategy is structurally neutral / high-volatility (long premium, OTM): A long strangle buys an OTM call and an OTM put at offset strikes, cheaper than a straddle but requiring a larger underlying move to profit since both wings start out-of-the-money. With CDNA stock trading near $19.97, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed CDNA chain strike and the premiums come straight from the end-of-day bid/ask midpoint.
- How are CDNA strangle max profit and max loss calculated?
- Upside max profit is unbounded; downside max profit is bounded at the put strike minus the combined debit (reached at zero). Max loss equals the combined debit times 100 (reached anywhere between the two OTM strikes). Two breakevens at call-strike plus debit and put-strike minus debit. For the CDNA strangle priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 85.80%), the computed maximum profit is unbounded per contract and the computed maximum loss is unbounded per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.
- What is the breakeven for a CDNA strangle?
- The breakeven for the CDNA strangle priced on this page is no defined breakeven on the modeled curve 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 CDNA market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move is approximately 24.60%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.
- When should you consider a strangle on CDNA?
- Strangles on CDNA are the cheaper cousin of the straddle - traders use them when they want a large directional move but are willing to give up the inner-strike sensitivity in exchange for a lower up-front debit on the CDNA chain.
- How does current CDNA implied volatility affect this strangle?
- CDNA ATM IV is at 85.80% with IV rank near 21.94%, 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.