Enter both legs of a diagonal spread. The analyzer checks the structural rules a PMCC must pass, then prices the return if it works.
Structure check
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*Conservative: values the long call at intrinsic only. In practice the long call usually retains some extrinsic value at the short leg's expiration, so realized profit can be modestly higher.
A poor man's covered call replaces the 100 shares of a covered call with a deep in-the-money, long-dated call (usually a LEAPS), then sells shorter-dated calls against it for income. Done right, it behaves like a covered call at a fraction of the capital, with risk capped at the net debit. Done wrong, it has a failure mode regular covered calls don't: a structure where a big rally loses money. Two tests prevent that.
(Short strike − Long strike) > Net debit
If the stock blows through the short strike and both legs collapse to intrinsic value, you collect the spread width. If you paid more than that width to open the trade, being right on direction still produces a loss. The analyzer above marks the whole structure a fail when this happens — no yield number redeems it.
The extrinsic value in your long call — premium paid above intrinsic — is the true cost of carrying the position. Each short call you sell chips away at it. The cycles-to-recoup figure shows how many short-call cycles it takes before the income has paid off that cost entirely; after that, premium is pure yield. A PMCC needing ten cycles to cover its extrinsic on a nine-month LEAPS is structurally underwater before it starts.
Delta of roughly 0.80 or higher, nine months or more to expiration, and — the piece most guides skip — entered when implied volatility is low. A deep ITM LEAPS still carries meaningful vega, so the whole structure is net long volatility. Opening a PMCC when IV is inflated means a volatility crush bleeds the long leg faster than short-call income replaces it. Plan to roll the long leg out with three to four months remaining, before its own time decay accelerates.
The standard covered-call playbook applies: roughly 30–45 days to expiration, strike around the 0.20–0.30 delta area, above your cost basis. Selling below the width-test threshold or below the stock price converts the position into something much more directional than intended — the analyzer flags both.
Stock at $100. Buy the $70 call expiring in a year for $34 ($30 intrinsic, $4 extrinsic). Sell the $110 call expiring in 35 days for $1.20. Net debit: $32.80. Width: $40 — passes the test with $7.20 of headroom, which is the max profit if called (~22% on capital, far more annualized). Extrinsic coverage: $4 ÷ $1.20 ≈ 3.3 cycles to break even on the carry. Capital required: $3,280 versus $10,000 for shares — a 67% saving that's the whole reason the strategy exists.
A diagonal spread that mimics a covered call: a deep in-the-money LEAPS call stands in for 100 shares, and shorter-dated calls are sold against it for income. Capital required is a fraction of share ownership, and maximum loss is the net debit.
If the structure passes the width test, that's roughly the max-profit scenario: width minus net debit, plus whatever extrinsic remains in the long call. The short call can be rolled up and out, or the whole position closed.
A falling stock loses money on the long leg (capped at the net debit); a volatility crush hurts the long LEAPS since the structure is net long vega; and a structure that fails the width test turns rallies into losses. Early assignment on the short call is possible but manageable — the long call covers it.
A vertical fixes both legs at the same expiration, so it's a one-shot directional bet. The PMCC's long leg outlives many short-call cycles, letting income compound against one block of capital — closer to owning an income-producing asset than making a single wager.