How are ZIM 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 ZIM covered call priced from the August 14, 2026 end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 46.64%), the computed maximum profit is $187.00 per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$2,712.00 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.

What is the breakeven for a ZIM covered call?

The breakeven for the ZIM covered call priced on this page is roughly $27.13 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 ZIM market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move in the same options snapshot is approximately 13.37%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.

How does current ZIM implied volatility affect this covered call?

ZIM ATM IV is at 46.64% with IV rank near 31.05%, 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.

ZIM Covered Call Strategy

ZIM (ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd.), in the Industrials sector, (Marine Shipping industry), listed on NYSE.

ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd., along with its subsidiaries, operates internationally and within Israel, providing container shipping and various associated services. They offer comprehensive transportation solutions, spanning from port-to-port transfers to complete door-to-door delivery, catering to a diverse client base that includes individual end-users, freight consolidators, and forwarders. The company also features ZIMonitor, a specialized premium tracking service designed for refrigerated cargo. As of December 31, 2021, their fleet comprised 118 vessels—110 container ships and 8 for vehicle transport—with four vessels owned directly and 114 chartered. This extensive operation supports a network of 70 weekly shipping routes. The company was founded in 1945 and is headquartered in Haifa, Israel.

ZIM (ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd.) trades in the Industrials sector, specifically Marine Shipping, with a market capitalization of approximately $3.39B, a trailing P/E of 34.63, a beta of 1.11 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 12.33-29.97, average daily share volume of 1.3M, a public-listing history dating back to 2021, approximately 5K full-time employees. These structural characteristics shape how ZIM stock options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.

A beta of 1.11 places ZIM roughly in line with broader market moves, so the strategy payoff and realized volatility track the index-equivalent baseline. ZIM pays a dividend, which adjusts put-call parity and shifts the ex-dividend pricing across the listed chain.

What is a covered call on ZIM?

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.

ZIM snapshot

As of August 14, 2026, spot at $28.03, ATM IV 46.64%, IV rank 31.05%, expected move 13.37%. The covered call on ZIM 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 28-day expiry.

Why this covered call structure on ZIM specifically: ZIM IV at 46.64% is mid-range versus its 1-year history, so the credit collected on a ZIM covered call sits in line with its long-run distribution, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 13.37% (roughly $3.75 on the underlying). The 28-day window matched to the front-month expiry keeps theta exposure bounded while still capturing the post-snapshot move; longer-dated ZIM expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on ZIM should anchor to the underlying notional of $28.03 per share and to the trader's directional view on ZIM stock.

ZIM covered call setup

The ZIM covered call 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 ZIM at $28.03 on that close, the first option leg uses a $29.00 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed ZIM chain at a 28-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 ZIM shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).

Action	Type	Strike / Basis	Premium (est)
Buy 100 shares	Stock	$28.03	long
Sell 1	Call	$29.00	$0.90

ZIM covered call risk and reward

Net Premium / Debit: -$2,713.00
Max Profit (per contract): $187.00
Max Loss (per contract): -$2,712.00
Breakeven(s): $27.13
Risk / Reward Ratio: 0.069

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.

ZIM covered call payoff curve

Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the covered call on ZIM. 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%	-$2,712.00
$6.21	-77.9%	-$2,092.35
$12.40	-55.8%	-$1,472.70
$18.60	-33.6%	-$853.06
$24.80	-11.5%	-$233.41
$30.99	+10.6%	+$187.00
$37.19	+32.7%	+$187.00
$43.39	+54.8%	+$187.00
$49.58	+76.9%	+$187.00
$55.78	+99.0%	+$187.00

When traders use covered call on ZIM

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

ZIM thesis for this covered call

The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for ZIM extends from approximately $24.28 on the downside to $31.78 on the upside. A ZIM covered call collects premium on an existing long ZIM position, trading off upside above the short call strike for immediate income; the short strike selection should reflect the trader's view on whether ZIM will breach that level within the expiration window. Current ZIM IV rank near 31.05% is mid-range against its 1-year distribution, so the IV signal is neutral; the covered call thesis on ZIM should anchor more to the directional view and the expected-move geometry. As a Industrials name, ZIM options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to ZIM-specific events.

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

Frequently asked questions

What is a covered call on ZIM?: A covered call on ZIM is the covered call strategy applied to ZIM (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 ZIM stock at $28.03 on the August 14, 2026 close, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed ZIM chain strike and the premiums come straight from that session's bid/ask midpoint.
How are ZIM 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 ZIM covered call priced from the August 14, 2026 end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 46.64%), the computed maximum profit is $187.00 per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$2,712.00 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.
What is the breakeven for a ZIM covered call?: The breakeven for the ZIM covered call priced on this page is roughly $27.13 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 ZIM market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move in the same options snapshot is approximately 13.37%; 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 ZIM?: Covered calls on ZIM are an income strategy run on existing ZIM 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 ZIM implied volatility affect this covered call?: ZIM ATM IV is at 46.64% with IV rank near 31.05%, 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.