Skip to main content
December 20, 2024
Question

How Does The Wash Sale Rule Apply For A Cover Called Assigned For A Gain & Loss On The Same Day

  • December 20, 2024
  • 1 reply
  • 0 views

Hello,

 

Today (12/20/24) covered calls for a stock I purchased last year were assigned (I sold the covered calls in November 2024). My current average cost price for the underlying stock is $6.32. Subsequently, 3 contracts of the underlying stock were assigned at a strike price of $5 and 2 contracts of the underlying stock were assigned at a strike price of $7.50. The average premium received for the $5 contracts was $0.24 and the average premium received for the $7.50 strike price was 0.61. The stock closed at the date of assignment at $8.99. I calculated the difference between the amount assigned for a gain and the amount assigned for a loss and it was a gain of $40 (soley from the difference of the average cost basis of the stock from the strike price, I did not include the premiums in the calculation). My question is: Does the wash sale rule apply to this situation and I am not able to rebuy until 1/20/25 or do the two sales cancel each other out. Any help would be greatly apprciated, and let me know if there's additional information needed in answering my question.

 

Thank you,

 

1 reply

fanfare
Employee
December 22, 2024

A) you can't average the two assignments as you did in your example.

wash sale only applies to a trade that incurs a loss, and another trade where the security is bought.

 

B) wash sale rule on an option only limits you from buying that option within plus/minus thirty days.

 

 

 

@TaxInTaxOut