ZYME Butterfly Strategy
ZYME (Zymeworks Inc.), in the Healthcare sector, (Biotechnology industry), listed on NASDAQ.
Zymeworks Inc. is a biopharmaceutical firm in the clinical development phase, dedicated to identifying, advancing, and bringing to market biological therapies aimed at combating cancer. Its pipeline features two primary experimental treatments: zanidatamab, a cutting-edge bispecific antibody currently undergoing Phase 1 and Phase 2 studies for various malignancies such as those affecting the biliary tract, gastroesophageal region (adenocarcinomas), breast, and colon; and ZW49, an antibody-drug conjugate targeting two sites on the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), which is in Phase 1 trials for advanced or spreading tumors that express HER2. Zymeworks maintains significant alliances with several pharmaceutical leaders, including Merck Sharp & Dohme Research Ltd., Eli Lilly and Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb company, GlaxoSmithKline Intellectual Property Development Ltd., Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd., Janssen Biotech, Inc., BeiGene, Ltd., and Exelixis, Inc. Furthermore, it engages in cooperative research and licensing agreements with LEO Pharma A/S, specifically for the exploration, advancement, and market introduction of bispecific antibodies, and with Iconic Therapeutics, Inc. Established in 2003, Zymeworks Inc. operates from its headquarters located in Vancouver, Canada.
ZYME (Zymeworks Inc.) trades in the Healthcare sector, specifically Biotechnology, with a market capitalization of approximately $1.78B, a beta of 1.14 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 11.51-29.75, average daily share volume of 656K, a public-listing history dating back to 2017, approximately 299 full-time employees. These structural characteristics shape how ZYME stock options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.
A beta of 1.14 places ZYME roughly in line with broader market moves, so the strategy payoff and realized volatility track the index-equivalent baseline.
What is a butterfly on ZYME?
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 ZYME snapshot
As of June 30, 2026, spot at $26.34, ATM IV 86.40%, IV rank 21.31%, expected move 24.77%. The butterfly on ZYME 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 17-day expiry.
Why this butterfly structure on ZYME specifically: ZYME IV at 86.40% is on the cheap side of its 1-year range, which favors premium-buying structures like a ZYME butterfly, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 24.77% (roughly $6.52 on the underlying). The 17-day window matched to the front-month expiry keeps theta exposure bounded while still capturing the post-snapshot move; longer-dated ZYME expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on ZYME should anchor to the underlying notional of $26.34 per share and to the trader's directional view on ZYME stock.
ZYME butterfly setup
The ZYME 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 ZYME near $26.34, the first option leg uses a $25.02 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed ZYME chain at a 17-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 ZYME shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).
| Action | Type | Strike / Basis | Premium (est) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buy 1 | Call | $25.02 | N/A |
| Sell 2 | Call | $26.34 | N/A |
| Buy 1 | Call | $27.66 | N/A |
ZYME 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.
ZYME butterfly payoff curve
Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the butterfly on ZYME. 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 ZYME
Butterflies on ZYME are pinning bets - traders use them when they expect ZYME 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.
ZYME thesis for this butterfly
The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for ZYME extends from approximately $19.82 on the downside to $32.86 on the upside. A ZYME long call butterfly is a pinning play: it pays maximum at the middle strike if ZYME settles there at expiration, with the wing legs capping both the cost and the maximum loss to the net debit. Current ZYME IV rank near 21.31% 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 ZYME at 86.40%. As a Healthcare name, ZYME options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to ZYME-specific events.
ZYME 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. ZYME positions also carry Healthcare sector concentration risk; news flow inside the sector (peer earnings, regulatory shifts, supply-chain headlines) can move ZYME alongside the broader basket even when ZYME-specific fundamentals are unchanged. Always rebuild the position from current ZYME chain quotes before placing a trade.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a butterfly on ZYME?
- A butterfly on ZYME is the butterfly strategy applied to ZYME (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 ZYME stock trading near $26.34, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed ZYME chain strike and the premiums come straight from the end-of-day bid/ask midpoint.
- How are ZYME 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 ZYME butterfly priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 86.40%), 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 ZYME butterfly?
- The breakeven for the ZYME 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 ZYME market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move is approximately 24.77%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.
- When should you consider a butterfly on ZYME?
- Butterflies on ZYME are pinning bets - traders use them when they expect ZYME 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 ZYME implied volatility affect this butterfly?
- ZYME ATM IV is at 86.40% with IV rank near 21.31%, 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.