How are SYY covered call max profit and max loss calculated?

Max profit equals short-strike minus cost basis plus premium times 100; max loss is cost basis minus premium (at zero). Breakeven is cost basis minus premium. For the SYY covered call priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 21.90%), the computed maximum profit is $343.50 per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$7,155.50 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.

What is the breakeven for a SYY covered call?

The breakeven for the SYY covered call priced on this page is roughly $71.57 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 SYY 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 SYY implied volatility affect this covered call?

SYY ATM IV is at 21.90% with IV rank near 41.92%, 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.

SYY Covered Call Strategy

SYY (Sysco Corporation), in the Consumer Defensive sector, (Food Distribution industry), listed on NYSE.

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products primarily to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments. The company distributes frozen foods, such as meats, seafood, fully prepared entrées, fruits, vegetables, and desserts; canned and dry foods; fresh meats and seafood; dairy products; beverage products; imported specialties; and fresh produce. It also supplies various non-food items, including paper products comprising disposable napkins, plates, and cups; tableware consisting of China and silverware; cookware, which include pots, pans, and utensils; restaurant and kitchen equipment and supplies; and cleaning supplies. The company serves restaurants, hospitals and nursing homes, schools and colleges, hotels and motels, industrial caterers, and other foodservice venues.

SYY (Sysco Corporation) trades in the Consumer Defensive sector, specifically Food Distribution, with a market capitalization of approximately $35.00B, a trailing P/E of 20.21, a beta of 0.66 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 68.19-91.85, average daily share volume of 4.7M, a public-listing history dating back to 1973, approximately 76K full-time employees. These structural characteristics shape how SYY stock options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.

A beta of 0.66 indicates SYY has historically moved less than the broader market, dampening realized volatility and producing tighter expected-move bands per unit of dollar exposure. SYY pays a dividend, which adjusts put-call parity and shifts the ex-dividend pricing across the listed chain.

What is a covered call on SYY?

A covered call pairs long stock with a short out-of-the-money call, collecting premium and capping upside above the short strike in exchange for income.

Current SYY snapshot

As of May 15, 2026, spot at $72.59, ATM IV 21.90%, IV rank 41.92%, expected move 6.28%. The covered call on SYY 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 covered call structure on SYY specifically: SYY IV at 21.90% is mid-range versus its 1-year history, so the credit collected on a SYY covered call sits in line with its long-run distribution, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 6.28% (roughly $4.56 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 SYY expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on SYY should anchor to the underlying notional of $72.59 per share and to the trader's directional view on SYY stock.

SYY covered call setup

The SYY covered call below is built from the end-of-day chain, with each option leg priced at the bid/ask midpoint of its listed strike. With SYY near $72.59, the first option leg uses a $75.00 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed SYY 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 SYY shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).

Action	Type	Strike / Basis	Premium (est)
Buy 100 shares	Stock	$72.59	long
Sell 1	Call	$75.00	$1.03

SYY covered call risk and reward

Net Premium / Debit: -$7,156.50
Max Profit (per contract): $343.50
Max Loss (per contract): -$7,155.50
Breakeven(s): $71.57
Risk / Reward Ratio: 0.048

Max profit equals short-strike minus cost basis plus premium times 100; max loss is cost basis minus premium (at zero). Breakeven is cost basis minus premium.

SYY covered call payoff curve

Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the covered call on SYY. 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.

Underlying Price	% From Spot	P&L at Expiration
$0.01	-100.0%	-$7,155.50
$16.06	-77.9%	-$5,550.61
$32.11	-55.8%	-$3,945.71
$48.16	-33.7%	-$2,340.82
$64.21	-11.6%	-$735.92
$80.25	+10.6%	+$343.50
$96.30	+32.7%	+$343.50
$112.35	+54.8%	+$343.50
$128.40	+76.9%	+$343.50
$144.45	+99.0%	+$343.50

When traders use covered call on SYY

Covered calls on SYY are an income strategy run on existing SYY stock positions; traders typically sell calls at 25-35 delta with 30-45 days to expiration to balance premium against upside cap.

SYY thesis for this covered call

The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for SYY extends from approximately $68.03 on the downside to $77.15 on the upside. A SYY covered call collects premium on an existing long SYY position, trading off upside above the short call strike for immediate income; the short strike selection should reflect the trader's view on whether SYY will breach that level within the expiration window. Current SYY IV rank near 41.92% is mid-range against its 1-year distribution, so the IV signal is neutral; the covered call thesis on SYY should anchor more to the directional view and the expected-move geometry. As a Consumer Defensive name, SYY options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to SYY-specific events.

SYY covered call positions are structurally neutral to slightly bullish; 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. SYY positions also carry Consumer Defensive sector concentration risk; news flow inside the sector (peer earnings, regulatory shifts, supply-chain headlines) can move SYY alongside the broader basket even when SYY-specific fundamentals are unchanged. Short-premium structures like a covered call on SYY carry tail risk when realized volatility exceeds the implied move; review historical SYY earnings reactions and macro stress periods before sizing. Always rebuild the position from current SYY chain quotes before placing a trade.

Frequently asked questions

What is a covered call on SYY?: A covered call on SYY is the covered call strategy applied to SYY (stock). The strategy is structurally neutral to slightly bullish: A covered call pairs long stock with a short out-of-the-money call, collecting premium and capping upside above the short strike in exchange for income. With SYY stock trading near $72.59, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed SYY chain strike and the premiums come straight from the end-of-day bid/ask midpoint.
How are SYY covered call max profit and max loss calculated?: Max profit equals short-strike minus cost basis plus premium times 100; max loss is cost basis minus premium (at zero). Breakeven is cost basis minus premium. For the SYY covered call priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 21.90%), the computed maximum profit is $343.50 per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$7,155.50 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.
What is the breakeven for a SYY covered call?: The breakeven for the SYY covered call priced on this page is roughly $71.57 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 SYY 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 covered call on SYY?: Covered calls on SYY are an income strategy run on existing SYY stock positions; traders typically sell calls at 25-35 delta with 30-45 days to expiration to balance premium against upside cap.
How does current SYY implied volatility affect this covered call?: SYY ATM IV is at 21.90% with IV rank near 41.92%, 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.