CRDF Butterfly Strategy
CRDF (Cardiff Oncology, Inc.), in the Healthcare sector, (Biotechnology industry), listed on NASDAQ.
Cardiff Oncology, Inc., a clinical-stage oncology company, develops medicine treatment for cancer patients in California. Its lead drug candidate is onvansertib, an oral selective Polo-like Kinase 1 Inhibitor for anti-cancer therapeutics; CY140, an inhibitor of PLK1, PLK2, and PLK3 that is in phase 1/2 studies in solid tumors and leukemias; metastatic colorectal cancer that is in clinical trials; and TROV-054 is a Phase 1b/2 for FOLFIRI and bevacizumab. The company's TROV-053 is also in Phase II clinical trial in combination with Zytiga for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. The company primarily serves pharmaceutical manufacturers. The company was formerly known as Trovagene, Inc. and changed its name to Cardiff Oncology, Inc. in May 2012. Cardiff Oncology, Inc. was incorporated in 1999 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.
CRDF (Cardiff Oncology, Inc.) trades in the Healthcare sector, specifically Biotechnology, with a market capitalization of approximately $115.5M, a beta of 1.36 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 1.48-4.56, average daily share volume of 697K, a public-listing history dating back to 2004, approximately 32 full-time employees. These structural characteristics shape how CRDF stock options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.
A beta of 1.36 indicates CRDF 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 butterfly on CRDF?
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.
Current CRDF snapshot
As of May 15, 2026, spot at $1.67, ATM IV 187.40%, IV rank 33.73%, expected move 53.73%. The butterfly on CRDF 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 butterfly structure on CRDF specifically: CRDF IV at 187.40% is mid-range versus its 1-year history, so strategy selection should anchor more to the directional thesis than to the IV regime, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 53.73% (roughly $0.90 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 CRDF expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on CRDF should anchor to the underlying notional of $1.67 per share and to the trader's directional view on CRDF stock.
CRDF butterfly setup
The CRDF butterfly below is built from the end-of-day chain, with each option leg priced at the bid/ask midpoint of its listed strike. With CRDF near $1.67, the first option leg uses a $1.59 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed CRDF 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 CRDF shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).
| Action | Type | Strike / Basis | Premium (est) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buy 1 | Call | $1.59 | N/A |
| Sell 2 | Call | $1.67 | N/A |
| Buy 1 | Call | $1.75 | N/A |
CRDF butterfly 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
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.
CRDF butterfly payoff curve
Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the butterfly on CRDF. 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 butterfly on CRDF
Butterflies on CRDF are pinning bets - traders use them when they expect CRDF 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.
CRDF thesis for this butterfly
The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for CRDF extends from approximately $0.77 on the downside to $2.57 on the upside. A CRDF long call butterfly is a pinning play: it pays maximum at the middle strike if CRDF settles there at expiration, with the wing legs capping both the cost and the maximum loss to the net debit. Current CRDF IV rank near 33.73% is mid-range against its 1-year distribution, so the IV signal is neutral; the butterfly thesis on CRDF should anchor more to the directional view and the expected-move geometry. As a Healthcare name, CRDF options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to CRDF-specific events.
CRDF 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. CRDF positions also carry Healthcare sector concentration risk; news flow inside the sector (peer earnings, regulatory shifts, supply-chain headlines) can move CRDF alongside the broader basket even when CRDF-specific fundamentals are unchanged. Always rebuild the position from current CRDF chain quotes before placing a trade.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a butterfly on CRDF?
- A butterfly on CRDF is the butterfly strategy applied to CRDF (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 CRDF stock trading near $1.67, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed CRDF chain strike and the premiums come straight from the end-of-day bid/ask midpoint.
- How are CRDF 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 CRDF butterfly priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 187.40%), 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 CRDF butterfly?
- The breakeven for the CRDF butterfly 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 CRDF market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move is approximately 53.73%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.
- When should you consider a butterfly on CRDF?
- Butterflies on CRDF are pinning bets - traders use them when they expect CRDF 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 CRDF implied volatility affect this butterfly?
- CRDF ATM IV is at 187.40% with IV rank near 33.73%, which is mid-range against its 1-year history. Strategy selection depends more on directional thesis and expected move than on a strong IV signal.