How are USLM 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 USLM straddle priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 43.10%), the computed maximum profit is unbounded per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$1,076.22 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.

What is the breakeven for a USLM straddle?

The breakeven for the USLM straddle priced on this page is roughly $94.00 and $116.00 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 USLM market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move is approximately 12.36%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.

How does current USLM implied volatility affect this straddle?

USLM ATM IV is at 43.10% with IV rank near 5.85%, 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.

USLM Straddle Strategy

USLM (United States Lime & Minerals, Inc.), in the Basic Materials sector, (Construction Materials industry), listed on NASDAQ.

United States Lime & Minerals, Inc. manufactures and supplies lime and limestone products in the United States. It extracts limestone from open-pit quarries and an underground mine, and processes it as pulverized limestone, quicklime, hydrated lime, and lime slurry. The company supplies its products primarily to the construction customers, including highway, road, and building contractors; industrial customers, such as paper and glass manufacturers; environmental customers comprising municipal sanitation and water treatment facilities, and flue gas treatment processes; steel producers; oil and gas services companies; roof shingle manufacturers; and poultry and cattle feed producers. It also has various royalty interests and non-operating working interests with respect to oil and gas rights in natural gas wells located in Johnson County, Texas in the Barnett Shale Formation. The company was incorporated in 1950 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.

USLM (United States Lime & Minerals, Inc.) trades in the Basic Materials sector, specifically Construction Materials, with a market capitalization of approximately $3.14B, a trailing P/E of 23.98, a beta of 0.70 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 94.02-141.44, average daily share volume of 135K, a public-listing history dating back to 1980, approximately 345 full-time employees. These structural characteristics shape how USLM stock options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.

A beta of 0.70 places USLM roughly in line with broader market moves, so the strategy payoff and realized volatility track the index-equivalent baseline. USLM pays a dividend, which adjusts put-call parity and shifts the ex-dividend pricing across the listed chain.

What is a straddle on USLM?

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 USLM snapshot

As of May 15, 2026, spot at $103.67, ATM IV 43.10%, IV rank 5.85%, expected move 12.36%. The straddle on USLM 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 straddle structure on USLM specifically: USLM IV at 43.10% is on the cheap side of its 1-year range, which favors premium-buying structures like a USLM straddle, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 12.36% (roughly $12.81 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 USLM expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on USLM should anchor to the underlying notional of $103.67 per share and to the trader's directional view on USLM stock.

USLM straddle setup

The USLM 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 USLM near $103.67, the first option leg uses a $105.00 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed USLM 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 USLM shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).

Action	Type	Strike / Basis	Premium (est)
Buy 1	Call	$105.00	$5.00
Buy 1	Put	$105.00	$6.00

USLM straddle risk and reward

Net Premium / Debit: -$1,100.00
Max Profit (per contract): Unbounded
Max Loss (per contract): -$1,076.22
Breakeven(s): $94.00, $116.00
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.

USLM straddle payoff curve

Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the straddle on USLM. 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%	+$9,399.00
$22.93	-77.9%	+$7,106.91
$45.85	-55.8%	+$4,814.82
$68.77	-33.7%	+$2,522.73
$91.69	-11.6%	+$230.64
$114.61	+10.6%	-$138.55
$137.54	+32.7%	+$2,153.54
$160.46	+54.8%	+$4,445.63
$183.38	+76.9%	+$6,737.72
$206.30	+99.0%	+$9,029.81

When traders use straddle on USLM

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

USLM thesis for this straddle

The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for USLM extends from approximately $90.86 on the downside to $116.48 on the upside. A USLM 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 USLM IV rank near 5.85% 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 USLM at 43.10%. As a Basic Materials name, USLM options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to USLM-specific events.

USLM 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. USLM positions also carry Basic Materials sector concentration risk; news flow inside the sector (peer earnings, regulatory shifts, supply-chain headlines) can move USLM alongside the broader basket even when USLM-specific fundamentals are unchanged. Always rebuild the position from current USLM chain quotes before placing a trade.

Frequently asked questions

What is a straddle on USLM?: A straddle on USLM is the straddle strategy applied to USLM (stock). 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 USLM stock trading near $103.67, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed USLM chain strike and the premiums come straight from the end-of-day bid/ask midpoint.
How are USLM 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 USLM straddle priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 43.10%), the computed maximum profit is unbounded per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$1,076.22 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.
What is the breakeven for a USLM straddle?: The breakeven for the USLM straddle priced on this page is roughly $94.00 and $116.00 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 USLM market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move is approximately 12.36%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.
When should you consider a straddle on USLM?: Straddles on USLM are pure-volatility plays that profit from large moves in either direction; traders typically buy USLM 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 USLM implied volatility affect this straddle?: USLM ATM IV is at 43.10% with IV rank near 5.85%, 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.