Analysis tools overview
The Tools hub groups three research tools - an option pricing calculator, a multi-leg strategy builder with a P&L heat map, and technical indicators with trend analysis - and explains which one answers which question.
Overview
Research → Tools opens the Analysis tools hub: three cards, one per tool. Each tool answers a different research question.
- Option pricing calculator: what is the theoretical value of one call or put, and how sensitive is it to price, time, volatility and rates?
- Strategy builder and P&L heat map: what does a position of up to eight option legs make or lose at expiry, and how might its value move between today and expiry?
- Technical indicators and trend analysis: what are trend, momentum and the 30-day implied volatility level telling you about one stock or ETF?
The delay of any market data depends on your plan and is shown on every view. The calculator and the strategy builder work only on the numbers you type in; the technical analysis tool reads the platform's stored end-of-day bars and option snapshots. Every price, payoff and Greek these tools produce is a theoretical model output, an estimate rather than a quote.
Before you start
- Sign in. The Option pricing calculator is open to every signed-in user.
- The cards marked Pro (the strategy builder and technical analysis) need the Pro plan. On another plan the page opens but the calculation is refused with a plan message instead of results.
- Know the basic option terms (strike, expiration, implied volatility, the Greeks). The Metric glossary explains them.
Steps
- Open Research → Tools.
- Read the one-line description on each card and pick the tool that matches your question.
- Click the card. The breadcrumb at the top (Tools › tool name) brings you back to the hub.
Inputs and outputs
| Tool | Inputs you give | What you get back |
|---|---|---|
| Option pricing calculator | Option type, stock price, strike, days to expiration, implied volatility, risk-free rate, dividend yield, optional actual premium | Black-Scholes-Merton call and put price, d1, d2, N(d1), N(d2), delta, gamma, theta, vega, rho; with an actual premium, the dividend yield and implied volatility that reproduce it |
| Strategy builder and P&L heat map | Up to 8 legs (buy / sell, call / put, strike, expiration, contracts, entry premium, IV %), risk-free rate, optional price range | Net credit or debit, entry cost, max risk, max return, breakevens, a payoff-at-expiry chart and a price x date P&L heat map |
| Technical indicators and trend analysis | A symbol | MACD, SMA 5 / 20 crossover, ADX with +DI / -DI, slow stochastics, a 30-day volatility index, and Up / Down / Neutral trend tables for 7 days, 6 weeks, 6 months and 6 years |
How to read it
- Pick by question, not by habit. A single-contract "what is it worth" question belongs to the calculator; a "what happens to my combination of legs" question belongs to the strategy builder; a "what is the stock doing" question belongs to technical analysis.
- The calculator and the strategy builder use the same pricing engine (Black-Scholes-Merton, time in calendar days / 365). A leg valued on the heat map before its expiry matches what the calculator gives for the same inputs.
- Model outputs depend entirely on the inputs. If the implied volatility or premium you type is stale, so is the answer.
Example
An illustrative research flow with invented data for the symbol XYZ:
- Technical indicators and trend analysis for
XYZshows the SMA 5 above the SMA 20, an ADX reading in the Strong Trend band and a volatility index of32.16. - In the Option pricing calculator you price a 30-day call near the money with
32 %implied volatility to see its theoretical value and theta. - In the Strategy builder and P&L heat map you compare that single call with a call spread and see how the maximum risk and breakevens change.
The numbers are illustrative only; they describe no real security.
Using it in your research
- Which tool answers my question with the fewest assumptions? Start there.
- Does the trend picture from technical analysis match the volatility level the option market is pricing?
- How do the Greeks of a single contract compare with the shape of a multi-leg payoff built around it?
Troubleshooting
A Pro tool shows a plan message instead of results
The strategy builder and technical analysis need the Pro plan. Compare plans on the pricing page from See plans, or use the Option pricing calculator, which is open to all signed-in users.
I cannot find the Tools hub in the sidebar
It sits under the Research group, between Insights and Watchlists.