Binomial Option

Pricing: Basic
Concepts

Introduction to Binomial Option

Pricing
The binomial option pricing model enables us to
determine the price of an option, given the
characteristics of the stock or other underlying
asset
The binomial option pricing model assumes that the
price of the underlying asset follows a binomial
distributionthat is, the asset price in each period
can move only up or down by a specified amount
The binomial model is often referred to as the CoxRoss-Rubinstein pricing model

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10-2

A One-Period Binomial Tree

Example
Consider a European call option on the stock of XYZ, with a
$40 strike and 1 year to expiration
XYZ does not pay dividends, and its current price is $41
The continuously compounded risk-free interest rate is 8%
The following figure depicts possible stock prices over 1
year, i.e., a binomial tree

$60
$41
$30

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10-3

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10-4

Computing the Option Price

Next, consider two portfolios
Portfolio A: buy one call option
Portfolio B: buy 2/3 shares of XYZ and borrow
$18.462 at the risk-free rate

Costs
Portfolio A: the call premium, which is unknown
Portfolio B: 2/3 $41 $18.462 = $8.871

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10-5

Computing the Option Price

(contd)
Payoffs:
Portfolio A:

Portfolio B:
2/3 purchased shares
Repay loan of $18.462
Total payoff

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Stock Price in 1 Year

$30 $60
Payoff
0
$20
Stock Price
$30
$20
$20
0

in 1 Year
$60
$40
$20
$20

10-6

Computing the Option Price

(contd)
Portfolios A and B have the same
payoff. Therefore
Portfolios A and B should have the same cost.
Since Portfolio B costs $8.871, the price of one
option must be $8.871
There is a way to create the payoff to a call by
buying shares and borrowing. Portfolio B is a
synthetic call
One option has the risk of 2/3 shares. The value
2/3 is the delta () of the option: the number of
shares that replicates the option payoff

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10-7

The Binomial Solution

How do we find a replicating portfolio consisting of
shares of stock and a dollar amount B in lending,
such that the portfolio imitates the option whether
the stock rises or falls?
Suppose that the stock has a continuous dividend yield of
, which is reinvested in the stock. Thus, if you buy one
share at time t, at time t+h you will have eh shares
If the length of a period is h, the interest factor per period
is erh
uS denotes the stock price when the price goes up, and dS
denotes the stock price when the price goes down

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10-8

The Binomial Solution (contd)

Stock price tree:
uS
S
dS

Corresponding tree for

the value of the option:
Cu
C
Cd

Note that u (d) in the stock price tree is interpreted as one plus
the rate of capital gain (loss) on the stock if it goes up (down)

The value of the replicating portfolio at time h, with stock

price Sh, is

Sh e h erh B
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10-9

The Binomial Solution (contd)

At the prices Sh = uS and Sh = dS, a successful
replicating portfolio will satisfy

( uS e h ) (B erh ) Cu
( dS e h ) (B erh ) Cd
Solving for and B gives
e h

B e rh
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Cu Cd
S(u d)

uCd dCu
ud
10-10

The Binomial Solution (contd)

The cost of creating the option is the net
cash flow required to buy the shares and
bonds. Thus, the cost of the option is S+B
e( r ) h d
u e( r ) h
S B e rh Cu
Cd

ud
ud

The no-arbitrage condition is

u e(r )h d
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10-11

Arbitraging a Mispriced Option

If the observed option price differs from its
theoretical price, arbitrage is possible
If an option is overpriced, we can sell the option.
However, the risk is that the option will be in the
money at expiration, and we will be required to
deliver the stock. To hedge this risk, we can buy
a synthetic option at the same time we sell the
actual option
If an option is underpriced, we buy the option.
To hedge the risk associated with the possibility
of the stock price falling at expiration, we sell a
synthetic option at the same time
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10-12

A Graphical Interpretation of
the Binomial Formula
The portfolio describes a line with the formula

Ch Sh erh B
Where Ch and Sh are the option and stock value after one
binomial period, and supposing = 0

We can control the slope of a payoff diagram by

varying the number of shares, , and its height by
varying the number of bonds, B
Any line replicating a call will have a positive slope
( > 0) and negative intercept (B < 0). (For a put,
< 0 and B > 0)

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10-13

A Graphical Interpretation of
the Binomial Formula (contd)

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10-14

Risk-Neutral Pricing
We can interpret the terms (e(r)h d )/(u d) and
(u e(r)h )/(u d) as probabilities
Let
e( r ) h d
p*
ud
Then equation can then be written as

C erh [ p * Cu (1 p*)Cd ]
We call p* is the risk-neutral probability of an increase
in the stock price

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10-15

Summary
In order to price an option, we need to know

Stock price
Strike price
Standard deviation of returns on the stock
Dividend yield
Risk-free rate

Using the risk-free rate and , we can approximate

the future distribution of the stock by creating a
binomial tree.
Once we have the binomial tree, it is possible to
price the option.

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10-16

Continuously Compounded
Returns
Some important properties of continuously
compounded returns
The logarithmic function computes returns from prices

rt ,t h ln St h / St
The exponential function computes prices from returns

St h S t e t ,th
r

Continuously compounded returns are additive

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10-17

Volatility
Suppose the continuously compounded
return over month i is rmonthly,i. Since returns
are additive, the annual return is
12

rannual rmonthly,i
i 1

The variance of the annual return is

12

Var(rannual ) Var rmonthly,i

i 1

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10-18

The Standard Deviation of Continuously

Compounded Returns (contd)
Suppose that returns are uncorrelated over time and
that each month has the same variance of returns.
Then from equation we have
2 = 12 2monthly
where 2 denotes the annual variance

Taking the square root of both sides yields

monthly 12
To generalize this formula, if we split the year into n
periods of length h (so that h = 1/n), the standard
deviation over the period of length h, h, is

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10-19

Constructing u and d
In the absence of uncertainty, a stock must
appreciate at the risk-free rate less the
dividend yield. Thus, from time t to time
t+h, we have

Ft,t h St h St e(r )h
The stock price next period equals the
forward price

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10-20

10

Constructing u and d (contd)

With uncertainty, the stock price evolution is
uSt Ft ,t h e

dSt Ft ,t h e

Where is the annualized standard deviation of the

continuously compounded return, and h is standard
deviation over a period of length h

We can also rewrite as

u e( r ) h
d e( r ) h

h
h

We refer to a tree constructed using equation as a

forward tree.
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10-21

Estimating Historical Volatility

We need to decide what value to assign to , which
we cannot observe directly

One possibility is to measure by computing the

standard deviation of continuously compounded
historical returns
Volatility computed from historical stock returns is
historical volatility
For example, calculate the standard deviation with weekly
data, then annualize the result.
For standard options, the volatility that matters excludes
dividends

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10-22

11

One-Period Example with a

Forward Tree
Consider a European call option on a stock, with a
$40 strike and 1 year to expiration. The stock does
not pay dividends, and its current price is $41.
Suppose the volatility of the stock is 30%
The continuously compounded risk-free interest
rate is 8%
S = 41, r = 0.08, = 0, = 0.30, and h = 1
Use these inputs to

calculate
calculate
calculate
calculate

the final stock prices

the final option values
and B
the option price

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10-23

One-Period Example with a

Forward Tree (contd)
Calculate the final stock prices
uS $41e ( 0.080)10.3 1 $59.954
dS $41e ( 0.080)10.3 1 $32.903

$59.954 59.954

1.4623
S
41
$32.903 32.903
d

0.8025
S
41

Calculate the final option values

Cu max( uS K ,0) max( 59.954 40,0) 19.954

Cd max( dS K ,0) max( 32.903 40,0) 0

Calculate and B

19.954 0
0.7376
$41 (1.4632 0.8025)
1.4632 $0 0.8025 $19.954
B e 0.08
$22.405
1.4632 0.8025

Calculate the option price

S B 0.7376 41 $22.405 $7.839

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10-24

12

One-Period Example with a

Forward Tree (contd)
The following figure depicts the possible stock
prices and option prices over 1 year, i.e., a
binomial tree

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10-25

A Two-Period European Call

We can extend the previous example to
price a 2-year option, assuming all inputs
are the same as before

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10-26

13

A Two-period European Call

(contd)
Note that an up move by the stock followed
by a down move (Sud) generates the same
stock price as a down move followed by an
up move (Sdu). This is called a
recombining tree. Otherwise, we would
have a nonrecombining tree

Sud Sdu u d $41

e(0.080.3) e(0.080.3) $41 $48.114
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10-27

Pricing the Call Option

To price an option with two binomial
periods, we work backward through the tree
Year 2, Stock Price=$87.669:
since we are at expiration, the option value
is max (0, S K) = $47.669
Year 2, Stock Price=$48.114:
similarly, the option value is $8.114
Year 2, Stock Price=$26.405:
since the option is out of the money, the value is
0

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10-28

14

Pricing the Call Option (contd)

Year 1, Stock Price=$59.954:
at this node, we compute the option value
using equation (10.3), where uS is $87.669
and dS is $48.114

e0.08 0.803
1462
.
e0.08
e 0.08 $47.669
$8.114
$23.029
1462
.
0.803
1462
.
0.803

Year 1, Stock Price=$32.903:

again using equation (10.3), the option value is $3.187

Year 0, Stock Price = $41:

similarly, the option value is computed to be $10.737

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10-29

Pricing the Call Option (contd)

Notice that
The option price is greater for the 2-year than for
the 1-year option
The option was priced by working backward
through the binomial tree
The options and B are different at different
nodes. At a given point in time, increases to 1
as we go further into the money
Permitting early exercise would make no
difference. At every node prior to expiration, the
option price is greater than S K; hence, we
would not exercise even if the option had been
American
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10-30

15

Many Binomial Periods

Dividing the time to expiration into more
periods allows us to generate a more
realistic tree with a larger number of
different values at expiration
Consider the previous example of the 1-year
European call option
Let there be three binomial periods. Since it is
a 1-year call, this means that the length of a
period is h = 1/3
Assume that other inputs are the same as before
(so, r = 0.08 and = 0.3)

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10-31

Many Binomial Periods (contd)

The stock price
and option price
tree for this option

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10-32

16

Many Binomial Periods (contd)

Note that since the length of the binomial period is
shorter, u and d are smaller than before: u = 1.2212
and d = 0.8637 (as opposed to 1.462 and 0.803 with
h = 1)
The second-period nodes are computed as follows

Su $41e0.081/ 3 0.3
Sd $41e

1/ 3

$50.071

0.081/ 3 0.3 1/ 3

$35.411

The remaining nodes are computed similarly

Analogous to the procedure for pricing the 2-year

option, the price of the three-period option is
computed by working backward using equation (10.3)
The option price is $7.074
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10-33

Put Options
We compute put option prices using the
same stock price tree and in almost the
same way as call option prices
The only difference with a European put
option occurs at expiration
Instead of computing the price as
max(0, S K), we use max(0, K S)

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10-34

17

Put Options (contd)

A binomial tree for
a European put
option with 1-year
to expiration

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10-35

American Options
The value of the option if it is left alive (i.e.,
unexercised) is given by the value of holding it for
another period, equation (10.3)
The value of the option if it is exercised is given by
max (0, S K) if it is a call and max (0, K S) if it
is a put
For an American put, the value of the option at a
node is given by

P(S , K , t ) max K S , e rh P(uS , K , t h) p * P(uS , K , t h)(1 p*)

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10-36

18

American Options (contd)

The valuation of American options proceeds
as follows
At each node, we check for early exercise
If the value of the option is greater when
exercised, we assign that value to the node.
Otherwise, we assign the value of the option
unexercised
We work backward through the three as usual

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10-37

American Options (contd)

Consider an American
version of the put option
valued in the
previous example

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10-38

19

American Options (contd)

The only difference in the binomial tree
occurs at the Sdd node, where the stock
price is $30.585. The American option at
that point is worth $40 $30.585 = $9.415,
its early-exercise value (as opposed to
$8.363 if unexercised). The greater value of
the option at that node ripples back through
the tree
Thus, the American option is more valuable
than the otherwise equivalent European
option
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10-39

Options on Other Assets

The binomial model developed thus far can be
modified easily to price options on underlying
assets other than non-dividend-paying stocks
The difference for different underlying assets is the
construction of the binomial tree and the riskneutral probability
We examine options on

Stock indexes
Currencies
Futures contracts
Commodities
Bonds

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10-40

20

Options on a Stock Index

Suppose a stock index pays continuous dividends
at the rate
The procedure for pricing this option is equivalent
to that of the first example, which was used for our
derivation. Specifically

the
the
the
the

up and down index moves are given by?

replicating portfolio by?
option price by equation?
risk-neutral probability by?

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10-41

Options on a Stock Index

(contd)
A binomial tree for an
American call option
on a stock index:

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10-42

21

Options on Currencies
With a currency with spot price x0, the
forward price is

F0,h x0e

( r rf ) h

Where rf is the foreign interest rate

Thus, we construct the binomial tree using

ux xe( r r ) h

dx xe( r r ) h

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10-43

Options on Currencies (contd)

Investing in a currency means investing in a
money-market fund or fixed income obligation
denominated in that currency
Taking into account interest on the foreign-currency
denominated obligation, the two equations are
r h
uxe f erh B Cu
r h

dxe f erh B Cd
The risk-neutral probability of an up move is
p*
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( r rf ) h

d
ud
10-44

22

Options on Currencies (contd)

Consider a dollar-denominated American put
option on the euro, where

The
The
The
The

current exchange rate is $1.05/

strike is $1.10/
euro-denominated interest rate is 3.1%
dollar-denominated rate is 5.5%

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10-45

Options on Currencies (contd)

The binomial tree for
the American put
option on the euro

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10-46

23

Options on Futures Contracts

Assume the forward price is the same as the
futures price
The nodes are constructed as

u e h
d e h

We need to find the number of futures contracts, ,

and the lending, B, that replicates the option
A replicating portfolio must satisfy

(uF F) erh B Cu
(dF F) erh B Cd
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10-47

Options on Futures Contracts

(contd)
Solving for and B gives

Cu Cd
F (u d )

u 1
1 d
B e rh Cu
Cd

ud
ud
tells us how many futures contracts to hold to hedge the
option, and B is simply the value of the option

We can again price the option using the standard

equation
The risk-neutral probability of an up move is given
by
1 d
p*
ud
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10-48

24

Options on Futures Contracts

(contd)
The motive for early-exercise of an option
on a futures contract is the ability to earn
interest on the mark-to-market proceeds
When an option is exercised, the option holder
pays nothing, is entered into a futures contract,
and receives mark-to-market proceeds of the
difference between the strike price and the
futures price

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10-49

Options on Futures Contracts

(contd)
A tree for an
American
call option on a
futures contract

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10-50

25

Options on Commodities
It is possible to have options on a physical
commodity
If there is a market for lending and borrowing
the commodity, then pricing such an option
is straightforward
In practice, however, transactions in physical commodities
often have greater transaction costs than for financial
assets, and short-selling a commodity may not be possible

From the perspective of someone synthetically

creating the option, the commodity is like a stock
index, with the lease rate equal to the dividend
yield
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10-51

Options on Bonds
Bonds are like stocks that pay a discrete
dividend (a coupon)

Bonds differ from the other assets in

two respects
The volatility of a bond decreases over time as
the bond approaches maturity
The assumptions that interest rates are the same
for all maturities and do not change over time
are logically inconsistent for pricing options on
bonds

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10-52

26

Summary
Pricing options with different underlying assets requires
adjusting the risk-neutral probability for the borrowing cost or
lease rate of the underlying asset
Thus, we can use the formula for pricing an option on a stock
with an appropriate substitution for the dividend yield

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10-53

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10-54

27