IMPORT DAILY MER REPORT
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ADD NEW POSITION
How to read this dashboard in 60 seconds
The MER scanner looks at 225 stocks every morning and grades each one's call option setup on two scales: Score (is the contract well-built) and Conviction (do the surrounding signals confirm it). A high Score with low Conviction is a clean contract on a low-probability trade. The 12 "Ready Now" setups are the ones that passed the entry filters. Use the Daily Setups tab to filter them, the ladder visuals to see your risk and reward, and the How to Trade tab to put the order in.
THE TWO SCORES THAT MATTER
Score (0 to 100)
Measures contract quality. Delta efficiency, fill quality, open interest, strike positioning. A 90+ score means the option is well-built. It does not tell you if the trade will work.
Conviction (0 to 100)
Measures confluence. The sum of 13 confirming signals (sector flow, relative strength, trend, dealer position, etc.). A 67 means roughly two-thirds of confirming signals point your way.
LOW < 50 · MOD 50-74 · HIGH ≥ 75Sarah's rule of thumb: Score tells you it's a clean ticket. Conviction tells you the train is actually going your direction.
Grade (A / B / C)
A letter shorthand derived from Score. A is best, C is monitor-only. Almost all Ready Now setups are Grade A or B.
PATH TYPES
CLEAR Path
The call wall sits comfortably above break-even. Profit path is open. Standard +50% and +120% premium targets apply. These are the cleanest swings.
CAPPED Target
The call wall sits within 5% of break-even. Profit is real but limited. Use the call wall as your T1 exit instead of standard targets.
Wall Blocked
Profit path is blocked below break-even. Not actionable as a naked call. Skip unless you're building a spread.
Use Caution
Setup is viable but spread or liquidity requires strict limit orders. Size down. Most of the 56 Use Caution names in today's scan fall here. Often just need a tighter entry to upgrade to Ready Now.
Event-Driven
Setup carries binary earnings risk inside the holding window. Not a clean swing trade. Skip unless you're explicitly trading the event.
Watchlist
Grade C or fill issues. Monitor only, don't enter yet. Usually waiting for liquidity to build or for the contract to clean up. Check tomorrow.
Earnings Watch
CAPPED setup with earnings 15-21 days out. Plan your exit before the earnings report date. Standard targets won't work because IV crush will offset any directional gain post-earnings.
WALLS, MAGNETS & DEALER POSITIONING
Call Wall
The strike with the heaviest call open interest above the stock. Acts as resistance because dealers hedge sold calls by selling the underlying. Stock often stalls at the call wall.
Put Wall
The strike with heaviest put open interest below the stock. Acts as support. Stock often bounces off the put wall.
Magnet Strike
The price level dealer hedging activity is pulling the stock toward.
BETWEEN_WALLS means it sits between call and put walls (room to run). AT_MAGNET means price is already there (less juice).Dealer Position
LONG_GAMMA = dealers stabilize moves, lower volatility, mean-reverting price action. Better for swing entries. SHORT_GAMMA = dealers amplify moves, faster trends but more whipsaw.SECTOR FLOW INTELLIGENCE
Net Flow
Net dollar flow into a sector for the day. Positive = buying, negative = selling.
+52 for Tech means heavy net buying.Breadth
How many of the 11 sectors are participating in the move.
11 of 11 is BROAD (healthy bull). Lower numbers signal narrow leadership and fragility.Concentration
What % of total flow is going to the top sectors. High concentration (>30%) means the move is one-sector driven.
Rotation
How many sectors flipped leadership today.
EXPANDING (+1.3 sectors) means the bull is broadening. Contracting = late-stage.Streak / Acceleration
Streak counts consecutive days of inflow. Acceleration compares today's flow to the 3-day average. Positive accel = building, negative = fading.
Status (ACCELERATING / STABLE / FADING)
Combined read. ACCELERATING sectors are best for long calls. FADING sectors (like Healthcare in this report) are momentum traps.
OPTIONS BASICS
Call Option
A bet the stock will rise. You pay a premium up front. If the stock goes above your strike + premium, you profit. Below, the option decays toward zero.
Strike Price
The price the option lets you buy the stock at. The closer to the current stock price (At The Money), the more expensive the option.
Break-Even (B/E)
Strike + premium paid. Stock must close above this at expiration for you to be in profit at expiry. Can hit interim profit before expiration via premium expansion.
DTE (Days to Expiration)
How long until the option expires. 38 days is the "sweet spot" for swings: enough time for the move to play out, not so much you overpay for time.
Delta
How much the option premium moves per $1 move in the stock. Delta 0.50 means $0.50 of option for every $1 of stock. Higher delta = more responsive but more expensive.
Theta
Daily time decay. A theta of -0.07 means the option loses $0.07 per day. Decay accelerates in the final 30 days.
IV (Implied Volatility)
How much the market expects the stock to move. Higher IV = more expensive options. Low IV is favorable for buying calls.
Expected Move (±$X)
The market's implied 1-sigma move by expiration. Roughly a 68% chance the stock stays within this range. Useful for sanity-checking targets. If expected move is $8 and the call wall is $15 away, that's a stretch.
ITM / ATM / OTM
In The Money: strike below current stock price for calls (has intrinsic value). At The Money: strike at the current price. Out of The Money: strike above current price (all extrinsic/time value). The MER scanner usually picks slightly OTM or ATM for the best balance of cost and responsiveness.
Premium (Intrinsic vs Extrinsic)
What you pay for the option. Intrinsic value = how deep ITM the strike sits. Extrinsic value = time premium + IV premium. At expiration, only intrinsic value remains. OTM options are 100% extrinsic, which means they go to zero if the stock doesn't move past the strike.
Bid / Ask / Mid
Bid = highest price a buyer will pay. Ask = lowest price a seller will accept. Mid = halfway between. Always aim to fill near the mid. Hitting the ask means giving up money to the market maker.
Gamma
How fast delta changes when the stock moves. ATM options have the highest gamma (most responsive to stock moves). High gamma means your premium accelerates faster as you move into the money. Important for short-DTE trades.
Vega
How much premium changes per 1-point move in IV. Long calls are positive vega: you profit if IV rises. Be careful buying high-IV options because IV reversion will hurt you even if direction works.
VOLATILITY DEEP DIVE
IVR (IV Rank, 0-100)
Where current IV sits in its 52-week range.
0 = at 52w low (cheap options). 100 = at 52w high (expensive options). Buy options when IVR is low, sell premium when IVR is high. The scan notes "history building" when a stock lacks enough data for a reliable IVR.HV (Historical / Realized Volatility)
How much the stock has actually moved over a lookback period. If IV is much higher than HV, options are expensive relative to actual movement. If IV is lower than HV, options are cheap relative to what the stock has been doing.
IV Crush
The sharp drop in IV that happens after a known event (earnings, FDA decision, Fed announcement). Options can lose 30-50% of value even if direction is right because the uncertainty premium evaporates. Avoid holding swings through earnings.
Volatility Skew
The shape of IV across strikes. Puts are usually more expensive than equidistant calls (downside protection demand). When skew steepens, the market is pricing in tail risk. Useful sentiment read.
VIX
The S&P 500's 30-day implied volatility, often called the "fear index."
Below 15 = complacent. 15-25 = normal. Above 30 = fear. Today's VIX of 18.22 is normal range and supports the BULL regime.Rule of thumb: low VIX favors long calls. High VIX favors selling premium (credit spreads, cash-secured puts) instead of buying it.
MER REPORT METRICS
MTF Trend (Multi-Timeframe)
Combined directional read across daily and weekly charts.
Weekly ↑ Daily ↑ = aligned uptrend, best for long calls. Mixed = chop risk. Both down = avoid.MA Structure (21 EMA / 50 EMA)
Whether the stock is above or below its 21-day and 50-day exponential moving averages. Above both = healthy trend (PASS). Below both = weak (FAIL). Mixed = transitioning. C is the only setup in today's scan with both MAs aligned.
Relative Strength vs SPY
How the stock has performed vs the S&P 500 recently. Positive = outperforming. Stocks outperforming SPY tend to lead during bull regimes and lag less during pullbacks. Negative rel strength + bull regime = suspect.
Wall Margin
How much room exists between break-even and the call wall, as a percentage.
>10% = clean room for standard +50/+120 targets. 5-10% = tight, use wall as exit. <5% = CAPPED setup.52W High Proximity
How close the stock is to its 52-week high as a percentage.
>90% = strong trend but extended. 70-90% = mid range, room to run. <70% = extended drawdown, setup needs more confirmation.Volume vs Average
Today's stock volume relative to its 30-day average.
1.5x+ = strong participation, validates the move. 0.7x or lower = quiet, suspect signal. 0.9-1.1x = neutral.Earnings Distance
Days until next earnings report. Setups with earnings inside the holding window are flagged Event-Driven. You want 21+ days post-position to avoid getting caught in IV crush.
ORDER TYPES
Limit Order
Only fills at your specified price or better. The only order type to use for options. Sets a ceiling on what you'll pay (buying) or a floor on what you'll accept (selling).
Market Order
Fills at whatever the current price is. Never use for options. Option spreads are wide enough that market orders cost 2-5% on entry alone. You're handing money to the market maker.
Stop / Stop-Limit Order
Triggers an exit when the price hits a threshold. Stop = triggers a market order (can slip badly). Stop-Limit = triggers a limit order (won't fill if price gaps past). Most brokers don't support stops on options. TradeStation does via OCO brackets.
OCO (One Cancels Other)
Two orders linked together. When one fills, the other auto-cancels. Used for bracket exits: set a profit-take limit and a stop-loss together. Available in TradeStation, not Robinhood.
Bracket Order
A buy order with attached profit target and stop-loss orders submitted together. Once filled, the bracket protects you automatically. Best for hands-off swing trading. Set T1 at +50% premium, stop at -50% premium.
Time in Force: DAY
Order is good until end of trading session. Cancels automatically at close. Use this for entry orders so they don't sit unfilled overnight.
Time in Force: GTC
Good Til Cancelled. Stays open for 60-90 days depending on broker. Use for patience plays when you're waiting for a deeper pullback that may take days.
Time in Force: IOC
Immediate or Cancel. Fill what's available immediately, cancel the rest. Rarely useful for options. Skip.
EXECUTION QUALITY
Fill (Excellent / Tradable / Use Limit / Thin)
How easily you can get a clean execution. Excellent = tight spread, deep liquidity. Use Limit = wider spread, demand limit orders only.
Open Interest (OI)
Number of outstanding contracts at this strike. Higher OI = easier to enter/exit. Above 1,000 is comfortable.
Spread (Bid/Ask)
The gap between buyer and seller prices. Tight spreads (under 5%) = good execution. Wide spreads bleed P/L.
Entry Zone
The price range to buy the option. Set your limit at or below the midpoint. Above the high end of the zone, walk away and wait for a pullback.
Mid Price
The midpoint between bid and ask. Where you should aim to set your limit order on entry. If the mid is $4.85, start your limit there. If unfilled in 5-10 minutes, adjust up by a nickel at a time. Never pay the full ask.
Slippage
The difference between your expected fill price and your actual fill price. Market orders on options can slip 2-5% just due to spread. Limit orders eliminate slippage entirely (at the cost of maybe not filling).
Spread Percentage
Bid-Ask spread divided by mid price.
Under 5% = clean execution. 5-8% = use limit only. Above 8% = thin, avoid unless desperate. All 12 setups today are under 7%.DARK POOL & M6
M6 Score (0-30)
A composite read on dark pool / off-exchange volume. Higher score = stronger institutional positioning. Direction tells you bullish, neutral, or bearish prints.
DPI (Dark Pool Index)
Percentage of trading happening off-exchange. Above 50% means institutions are accumulating quietly. Useful confirming signal.
Block Volume
Total dollar volume in single large prints. $500M+ blocks point to institutional conviction. Direction (bullish/bearish prints) matters as much as size.
RISK MANAGEMENT
Position Sizing
Risk no more than 1-2% of your account per setup. Max loss per contract is roughly 50% of the premium (the model stop). Multiply by contract count to size correctly.
Invalidation Level
The stock price at which the setup is broken. Stop is set at this level, not at the option premium. Manage the trade based on the stock.
T1 Target (+50% premium)
First take-profit. Sell half your position when option premium gains 50%. Locks in profit while letting runners breathe.
T2 Target (+120% premium)
Second take-profit on CLEAR path setups. Sell the rest. For CAPPED setups, exit near the call wall instead.
Don't Chase
If the option is trading above the entry zone high, walk away. Wait for a pullback. Chasing premium that has already moved is the single biggest mistake in swing trading. The setup will come back, or another will replace it tomorrow.
Theta Acceleration
Time decay accelerates in the final 30 days. At 38 DTE (today's setups) you're approaching this zone. By 21 DTE, theta dominates and even directionally correct trades can bleed. Plan to take profit or roll to next monthly by then.
Scale Out
Sell half at T1 (+50%), let the rest run to T2 (+120%) on CLEAR setups or to the wall on CAPPED. Locks in profit while leaving runners on. Better than all-or-nothing exits.
Cut Losers Fast
If the stock breaks the invalidation level, exit. Don't average down on options. Time decay punishes hope. The model stop is 50% of premium for a reason.
Robinhood does not auto-stop options. Set price alerts on the stock at the invalidation level and exit manually. TradeStation supports OCO brackets for true auto-stops.
TradeStation Order Entry Walkthrough
Pick a setup below. The OptionStation Pro mockup updates to show exactly what your screen should look like before you click Send Order. Numbered callouts match the steps underneath.
May 16
May 23
Jun 18 2026 ✓
Jul 18
Aug 15
2
BIDASKVOLOI
STRIKE
BIDASKVOLOI
Step by Step
1
Open OptionStation Pro
From TradeStation desktop, click the Apps menu and select OptionStation Pro. In the symbol search bar, type
C and press Enter.2
Pick the expiration
Click the Jun 18 2026 tab across the top of the chain. The options chain populates with calls on one side and puts on the other.
3
Click the Ask on your strike
Find the $125 strike row on the call side. Click the green Ask cell. The Order Bar at the bottom populates.
4
Set the limit price
Change Order Type to
LIMIT. Type limit price $6.85. Set Duration to DAY or GTC.5
Set quantity & review
Enter contract Quantity. Cost = limit price × 100 per contract. Verify all fields before sending.
6
Send the order
Click the green SEND ORDER button. Review the confirmation dialog. Click Confirm. The order is working.
7
Monitor in Trade Manager
Open Trade Manager from the Apps menu. Order shows as Working until filled. Set a price alert on the stock at the invalidation level.
QUICK REFERENCE · ALL TODAY'S SETUPS
| TICKER | EXPIRATION | STRIKE | LIMIT | COST / CONTRACT | PATH | DURATION |
|---|
TradeStation specifics: Options orders require Tier 2 approval or higher. Buying power = limit price × 100 per contract + commission. TradeStation supports OCO bracket orders which Robinhood does not. Spreads under 5% are safest for limit fills.
Report Archive
Past daily reports. Click any date to load it into the dashboard.
MORNING BRIEF
Generate today's AI brief. Pulls from the current scan, your open positions, and the market regime.
TODAY'S TOP CONVICTION
YOUR POSITIONS
TRACKER PERFORMANCE
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SECTOR MOMENTUM
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WIN RATE
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TOTAL P/L
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BEST TRADE
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