Bet Big on the Bull with Ultra ETF Options

There was a dust-kicking, bull stampede in stocks nearly across the board that
began in mid March that continued until the end of April. Then the calendar
turned to May, and that's when the bulls began to tire. Since the beginning of
the month, major averages such as the Dow Industrials and the S&P 500 are down
about 2%. The tech-heavy NASDAQ 100 is off about 1%, while the small-cap Russell
2000 is down over 3%. Now, there's been a lot of debate about the future
direction for stocks. Some argue that the bull's recent run is over, and that
we will see more selling in May that continues through the traditionally slow
summer months. Others think the recent pullback in equities just represents a
breather for the bulls. Of course, only time will reveal which camp is correct,
but if you count yourself as part of the continued bull crowd, then a good way
to put your money where your thoughts are is via "ultra" funds and the call
options pegged to their bullish future. Ultra funds are exchange-traded funds
(ETFs) issued by ProShares Advisors that are pegged to specific stock indices
such as the aforementioned Dow, S&P 500, NASDAQ 100 and Russell 2000, among many
others. These funds are designed to deliver twice the performance of their
underlying index. So, if an index is up 2%, then its respective ultra fund
should be up 4%. Now that also means that when the index is down 2%, the ultra
fund should be down 4%. So these funds can be like riding a bull and are not for
the faint of heart. Ultra ETFs are designed for aggressive traders who like the
fast-moving action of a two-beta fund. That action heats up even more when
you're talking about adding bullish call options into the mix. If you're an
ultra-aggressive trader, then ultra ETF options offer a great way to make money
very quickly. Of course, the flipside is that you could lose money in these
options very quickly as well. But if you're intrepid enough to venture into
ultra ETF option territory, then your courage just might pay off big time. 
Here are four trades for the fierce-of-heart bullish options player. ProShares
Ultra Dow 30 Fund The ProShares Ultra Dow 30 Fund (NYSE: DDM ) is a two-beta,
leveraged ETF pegged to the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The recent decline in
this fund down below $65 makes the DDM Jun 69 Call an aggressively bullish bet
on the widely followed index. ProShares Ultra S&P 500 Fund The ProShares Ultra
S&P 500 Fund (NYSE: SSO ) is the leveraged bet on the broad-based S&P 500 index.
The fund sank to nearly $54 on Friday, May 13, but if a rebound in the index
does take place we're likely to see SSO break back above $56. That makes the
SSO Jun 56 Call an intrepid bet on the return of the broad-based bull. Click
through for two more Ultra-bullish option trades.