The idea of trading volatility is appealing to many investors. Because volatility rises when prices fall, volatility seems like it should be a hedge against stock market losses. In this way, volatility could act like insurance and deliver profits when stocks deliver losses. Unfortunately, volatility tends to make quick spikes,… Read More

Amber Hestla is Lead Investment Strategist behind Profitable Trading's Income Trader, Profit Amplifier and Maximum Income. She specializes in generating income using options strategies that minimize risk by applying skills she learned on military deployments and intelligence training to the markets.
While deployed overseas with the military, Amber learned the importance of analyzing data to forecast what is likely to happen in the future, a skill she now applies to financial markets. Prior to that, Amber studied risk management working undercover. While risk management is no longer a matter of life and death, she believes it is the most important factor in long-term trading success.
And although she makes her living in the markets, she continues to study the markets and trading daily. Her writing has been featured in trading magazines including the Market Technicians Association newsletter, Technical Analysis of Stocks & Commodities and Stocks, Futures and Options in the United States, and Shares, a weekly trading magazine published in the United Kingdom.
Analyst Articles
Let’s be frank for a minute. After the pain and suffering caused by the global financial crisis, not to mention the losses many investors experienced, a lot of people still feel disillusioned with Wall Street. Maybe you’re one of them. I don’t blame you, if that’s the case. After all,… Read More
The week after options expire is one of my favorite times of each month. That’s because, as usual, it means it’s time for readers of my premium advisory, Income Trader, and me to review our trades. And so far, we’ve seen outstanding results. #-ad_banner-# In January, six put positions expired… Read More
The week after options expire is one of my favorite times of each month. That’s because, as usual, it means it’s time for readers of my premium advisory, Income Trader, and me to review our trades. And so far, we’ve seen outstanding results. #-ad_banner-# In January, six put positions expired… Read More
Today, I’m going to let you in on one of the market’s best-kept secrets… It turns out investors are willing to pay you to sell stocks you already own at a profit. You read that right. And you want to know the funny thing? Often, you don’t even end up… Read More
Today, I’m going to let you in on one of the market’s best-kept secrets… It turns out investors are willing to pay you to sell stocks you already own at a profit. You read that right. And you want to know the funny thing? Often, you don’t even end up… Read More
For the past year, I’ve shown you how to generate hundreds or even thousands of dollars in income a week without relying on dividends. In August, using my “Instant Income” strategy, subscribers collected $130 from a $1,100 investment on SodaStream (NASDAQ: SODA), a company that produces and sells home… Read More
After a big year, many investors are wondering whether they should lock in gains. SPDR S&P 500 (NYSE: SPY) provided a total return of 32.3% in 2013. Unfortunately, there is no way to know for sure whether there is additional upside or if a decline will begin, but using covered… Read More
Stock charts are used by traders to forecast price action. These patterns are useful, but they are certainly not infallible. Rather than using them for market forecasts, I prefer to use patterns to develop complete trading strategies. Each pattern offers a forecast of the potential gain and a point where… Read More
In the long term, stock market returns are the result of earnings growth translated to gains in stock prices and dividend payments. Studies using decades of data show that dividends account for a large amount of market returns. Data from Professor Robert Shiller, author of Irrational Exuberance and other books… Read More
Investment profits or losses are simply the difference between the price you sell an investment for and the price you paid for it. This is true whether you invest in a stock, an ETF, a mutual fund or options contracts. One of the easiest ways to boost profits is to… Read More
I want to show you something that will likely raise a lot of eyebrows. Some of these claims might seem “outrageous” or “improbable.” But keep in mind, they came straight from readers of my premium newsletter, Income Trader — voluntarily, just six months after we launched the service earlier this… Read More
I want to show you something that will likely raise a lot of eyebrows. Some of these claims might seem “outrageous” or “improbable.” But keep in mind, they came straight from readers of my premium newsletter, Income Trader — voluntarily, just six months after we launched the service earlier this… Read More