Bell Direct online share trading

An exchange traded option (ETO) is a contract that gives you the opportunity to profit from movements in the price of an underlying security, such as a share or index. ETOs are publicly traded on the ASX.

If you're trading equity options, a call gives you the right, but not the obligation, to buy a parcel of shares for a pre-determined exercise price on or before a pre-determined expiry date. A put is similar, except it gives you the right to sell the shares, rather than buy them.

If you're trading index options, you receive a cash payment if the underlying index has reached the exercise level on the expiry date. A call option pays if the index has climbed above the exercise level, while a put option pays if the index has fallen below that level.

ETOs are generally considered risky investments for experienced traders. The risks of trading ETOs include:

Like warrants, ETOs give you exposure to changes in the price of an underlying security without buying that security directly. But unlike warrants:

If you know the ASX code for the series, simply log on to belldirect.com.au, then enter the code in the Quote field at the top left of each page and press Enter.

Right now, you can use our ETO trading service to open and close long positions. Soon you will also be able to:

Not right now. This feature will be available soon.

Yes, you can place limit orders outside market hours. ETO orders received after market close (currently 4.20pm (AEST)) will be placed on market the following trading day and will be valid for that trading day only.

If you place an ETO order online during market hours, then as long as it passes our filter it will be placed directly on market within two seconds. If you place an order outside market hours or it is caught by our filter, it will be processed by our options traders as quickly as possible.

Our brokerage and exercise fees are listed on the fees page.

As well as our brokerage, you will need to pay ASX Clear fees. Go to Fees & charges for more details.

Because ETO orders are good for the day only, you may need to place a second order if your first order is only partially filled (that is, not fully completed at the end of the day). If that happens, you will need to pay brokerage for your new order.

If your option expires in-the-money, we will automatically exercise it for you. If you don't want us to exercise an in-the-money option, please call us on 1300 786 199before 4:00 pm (AEST) on the expiry date.

If you wish to exercise an option before expiry, simply call us on 1300 786 199.

Open interest (OI) in an options series is the total number of outstanding contracts in that series. Open interest increases when a buyer buys to open or a seller sells to open. Open interest falls if both buyer and seller close their positions. It remains the same if one party to a transaction is opening a position while the other is closing theirs.

If an equity option is in the money, you can calculate the number of underlying shares that will be exercised or assigned by multiplying the open interest on the expiry date by the contract size.

The ASX releases new figures for open interest at the end of each trading day.

The put/call ratio is an important indicator of market sentiment and the possible future direction of the market. It is calculated by dividing total number of put options traded over a particular security and dividing it by the number of calls traded over the same security.

A ratio over one means that more puts than calls have traded during the day, possibly indicating a bearish market for the underlying security and its options. A ratio under one means that calls are more popular than puts, potentially indicating a bullish market.

This ratio is updated live as trades occur during the day. A second ratio, the put/call OI ratio, is also calculated at the end of each trading day, using the open interest for puts and calls over the security. You can view both ratios by searching for an underlying security on the ETO page.

You can learn more about ETOs on the ASX website or by reading these educational booklets: