Married Put Calculator

A married put is one hundred shares bought together with a put. The put sets a floor under the shares at the strike, less the premium paid, for the life of the option. Above that the position behaves like the shares, minus the cost of the put.

When it is used

Investors use it to own a stock through an event or a volatile period with a known worst case, or to buy a stock they like with a safety net while the thesis plays out. A protective put on shares already held is the same position; the name only describes when the put was bought. It is insurance, and like insurance it costs money most of the time.

How it makes and loses money

The shares rising is what makes money, and the put's premium is the drag: at expiry the stock must rise by at least the premium for the position to break even. Below the strike the losses stop. Rising implied volatility helps a little, because the put gains value; time decay costs a little every day.

What to check in the grid

Compare the bottom rows with and without the put leg. The floor is the reason to hold the position, and the gap between the floored line and the shares alone near the current price is the premium being spent. Longer-dated puts cost more and decay more slowly, which the columns make visible.