What happens if you don't sell/excercise an in the money option at expiration

[childofprodigy]

Suppose you hold a bunch of options and it is in the money at expiration date...

Suppose you don't explicitly sell that option nor do you exercise it and therefore it remains in your portfolio past the expiration date...

Will brokers typically will then return the in-the-money value of that option to you in the form of cash, or do you just completely lose those in-the-money value due to neglecting to sell/excercise the option within the expiration date?

 

[AfternoonT]

This is not advice, so read my post with caution. I am not liable for your decision:

Lucky you, good position to be in. Are you trading in UK equity options? My experience is based on that market.
i) Look very carefully at settlement time periods - you may have up to three days to exercise.
Check with Euronext Liffe and your broker
ii) Possibly convert to CFD's through your broker , then you can run your position on...

Post back to the forum to see how tell us how it worked out

 

[Mornington Crescent]

If you had a call option in Pigs Bellies be prepared to take delivery

and pay in full

 

[QuestOptions]

it depends on what product you are trading.

it also depends on how settlement is made. (some products there is cash settlement and you do not have to worry)

if you are trading options on futures...the futures contracts tend to expire after the options do...

so you can have an in the money option that has expired and now turned into a futures contract.

You now have new risk because you no longer hold the options but the futures.

for example: say you buy the $80 call in crude oil and the option expires and crude oil is $80.50.

It's like you bought the the futures at $80 so you do have a $.50 cent profit but the futures is still trading (usually they expire a couple days after the options) so you have new risk.

So say the option expired and the futures was at $80.50. if you don't close out your futures contract and the market goes to $79.50 the next day or whenever...you are now in a losing trade.

It could also work in your benefit if the futures prices rises in this example...but you have to view it as you being in a new trade.

hope this helps...