CBOE's Benchmark Indexes

Key Links

CBOE BuyWrite Indexes—"Roll" Information re: Monthly Options Premiums
CBOE Benchmark Indexes (2-page PDF)

Options-based Benchmark Indexes

Would you like extra income for your portfolio?
Do you need a cushion against downside moves in the market?
Are you willing to limit upside potential in return for potentially less volatility in your portfolio?

If so, explore these indexes—

• CBOE S&P 500 BuyWrite Index (BXM^SM) www.cboe.com/BXM


• CBOE Russell 2000 BuyWrite Index (BXR^SM) www.cboe.com/BXR


• CBOE S&P 500 2% OTM BuyWrite Index (BXY^SM) www.cboe.com/BXY


• CBOE DJIA BuyWrite Index(BXD) www.cboe.com/BXD


• CBOE NASDAQ-100 BuyWrite Index(BXN)www.cboe.com/BXN


• CBOE S&P 500 PutWrite Index (PUT) www.cboe.com/PUT


• CBOE S&P 500 95-110 Collar Index(CLL) www.cboe.com/CLL


• Volatility Indexes at CBOE www.cboe.com/volatilitywww.cboe.com/volatility

Key Papers on BuyWrite Strategies

• Callan Associates."An Historical Evaluation of the CBOE S&P 500 BuyWrite Index Strategy." (October 2006).
• Ennis Knupp & Associates."Evaluating the Performance Characteristics of the CBOE S&P 500 PutWrite Index" (December 2008).
• Feldman, Barry, and Dhruv Roy,"Passive Options-Based Investment Strategies: The Case of the CBOE S&P 500 BuyWrite Index." The Journal of Investing. (Summer 2005).
• Fund Evaluation Group."Evaluation of BuyWrite and Volatility Indexes: Using the CBOE DJIA BuyWrite Index (BXD) and the CBOE DJIA Volatility Index (VXD) for Asset Allocation and Diversification Purposes."(2007).
• Ibbotson Associates."Highlights from Case Study on BXM Buy-Write Options Strategy." (2004).
• Schneeweis, Thomas, and Richard Spurgin."The Benefits of Index Option-Based Strategies for Institutional Portfolios" The Journal of Alternative Investments, (Spring 2001), pp. 44–52.
• University of Massachusetts. "VIX Futures and Options—A Case Study of Portfolio Diversification During the 2008 Financial Crisis" (July 2009) Two-page version; 43-page version.
• Whaley, Robert. "Risk and Return of the CBOE BuyWrite Monthly Index" The Journal of Derivatives (Winter 2002), pp. 35–42.
• Bibliography on Options and on Buy-Write Strategies.

Buy Writing Makes Comeback as Way to Hedge Risk "Pension executives are once again beginning to consider a long-standing but long-dormant derivatives strategy - covered call writing, or buy writing - to hedge their downside equity risk and add incremental alpha ... While options industry executives said the strategy is not new, two developments have given it more credibility. First, in 2002, the Chicago Board Options Exchange created a buy-write index based on the S&P 500, the CBOE S&P 500 BuyWrite Index, or BXM. ... Second, and possibly more important for institutional investors, Ibbotson Associates, Chicago, released a report... Pensions & Investments. May 16, 2005.

Links to More Up-to-date Price Information

Delayed Price Quotes
Advanced Charts

Spreadsheets with Historical Price Data

Historical Daily Prices - Spreadsheet with Closing Prices for Several Indexes
Historical Month-end Prices - Spreadsheet with Closing Prices for Several Indexes
In addition, Market Data Express gives users access to more than 16 years of historical options data

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