The Best LEAPS to buy in 2024
As we are looking for the best investments in 2024, it pays to know what are the best long-term options (LEAPS) to invest in.
Many of my clients are asking me what are the best LEAPS for them to invest in for 2024.
There are a lot of factors that go into deciding what are the best LEAP stock options to buy for an investor.
I can't give specific advice for any particular LEAPS in this article - although in my monthly investing newsletter I give a long list of LEAPS and stocks I like as good buys at this particular time.
But I do know that whatever they are, they will be included in the complete list of 2026 LEAPS that I have compiled.
That's because the best LEAPS to buy in 2024 are going to be in the list of LEAPS that expire in January 2026!
I put this list together myself. It took a lot of time to make that list! For some strange reason nobody else makes a comprehensive list of all the LEAPS expiring in January 2026.
FIRST - look for LEAPS with a January 2026 expiration date
If you have been reading my monthly newsletter for a while or read my books you already know my answer: you want the LEAPS with the expiration date farthest in the future!
Right now, that means LEAPS with an expiration date in January 2026.
Investing in 2026 LEAPS allows you to have up to ONE YEAR of safe trading before you have to roll over your options contracts.
I always prefer and recommend LEAPS with the January expiration date, just to keep things simple. At the end of each year (typically in September), the LEAPS for January of 2 years + 4 months ahead become available.
The months of October-December are when I recommend and help all my AIM investors roll over and rebalance their portfolios with the new LEAPS.
SECOND - FIND LEAPS AT OR NEAR THEIR 52-WEEK LOW (with SOME EXCEPTIONS)
Successful investors always buy low and sell high. That is the philosophy behind the AIM method developed by Robert Lichello. Lichello created this system for stocks, and I have extended it into LEAPS for even greater profits.
So, you want to find LEAPS that are at or near their 52-week low.
When new LEAPS come out you don't have a history with them yet. But you do always have a history with the stock price of the company they are tied to so this is the price you should use for your 52-week trend.
With the long growth history of the market we are in now this may not be easy. That's when you may want to consider other factors.
But keep in mind that there are over 500 LEAPS with an expiration date of January 2026 so with some looking or some help you could find some good opportunities.
THIRD - CONSIDER YOUR TOTAL PORTFOLIO VALUE AND DIVERSIFICATION
Another factor to help you pick your new LEAPS is your total portfolio value.
Remember with the AIM method you keep half of your portfolio in cash. If you have read Lichello's book or any of my books you know why this is a unique and major benefit of the AIM method:
- It protects your portfolio from a major market crash
- It allows you to quickly buy more stocks or options when the price drops
- It doubles as an emergency fund
Like every good investor, you also want a diversified portfolio. Ideally, I like to see my clients hold LEAPS in at least 10 companies in any portfolio that I help them manage.
Let's say you have $1,000,000 in your retirement portfolio. First you need 1/2 in cash so that means you have $500,000 to invest in LEAPS.
Then if you want to find 10 LEAPS that means you want an average of $50,000 per LEAPS.
FOURTH - HAVE ENOUGH LEAPS CONTRACTS TO BUY AND SELL WITH AIM
The fourth thing to consider is that you want to start with at least 15 contracts for each company LEAPS. You need to have enough contracts to buy and sell at least 2-3 contracts as prices go up and down. Having more than 2-3 contracts to trade with is better.
When you have fewer than 12 contracts or so, making a buy or sell according to the AIM calculations could be less than 1 contract. And the trading fees become a larger percentage of your trade. So, using the previous example you want to find a LEAPS where you can buy at least 15 contracts for $50,000, or a LEAPS for $3,333 per contract or less.
Having LEAPS from more than 10 companies in a portfolio would be a way to have more diversification but starting with more than 20 contracts for each LEAPS might be even better.
FINALLY - KNOW WHAT LEAPS ARE AVAILABLE
Eventually you will want to look through the complete list of LEAPS with a 2026 expiration date to find ones that fit your goals and needs. I'm confident you'll find your best LEAP options to buy in 2024 are in this list - because it is the list of all the 2026 LEAPS!
You would think that with the internet and Google it would be easy to find.
But it isn't! So, I created this list myself after looking up my list of LEAPS from previous years and confirming they exist for 2026 again too.
This list is what I use when I help my clients decide what LEAPS are best for them.
One of my new clients in 2021 was Kerry G. in Fairbanks, Alaska. He loves the cold weather - which is a good thing in Alaska!
He owns a business and is thinking of retiring soon and says he will really get into AIM after he is retired. Kerry has extensive experience trading options for 20 years but told me he never made any profits before.
He even spent money flying to Florida for an options seminar that didn't help him. But after talking with me he quickly grasped the principles of AIM. He was ready to go solo with AIM after two weeks! (This is not typical but I am happy to tell this story.)
He said I'm the only person who showed a real way to make a profit! In a little more than one month his portfolio was up 26%!
Here is what he wrote to me in a nice email when he decided to go solo:
I think I'm good to go. You have greatly helped move me from a bystander to a full-fledged self-reliant manager of my accounts. I've gained valuable insight and tips that have been very useful. You should be rightfully proud that you have improved and carried on the Robert Lichello AIM system...
The month has gone by quickly. My portfolio is up significantly and I can thank you for it. Even though I stumbled at first, you gently corrected me and made it possible for the long term outlook and appreciation I know I will enjoy.
Best regards,
your friend,
Kerry
I love to see when I have helped people become successful AIM investors with LEAPS like Kerry.
Sometimes people continue to enjoy my help month after month because I watch out for their LEAPS by checking daily to see if they have a buy or sell. And I update their spreadsheets for them to tell them what their next buy and sell should be. And I give them great current advice!
Sometimes I think some people just like to talk on the phone with me or get my friendly emails each month. That is getting harder to do with all my clients but I see them all as friends too so it keeps me happy to talk with them.
I recently helped all of them roll over their 2023 LEAPS to the 2024 LEAPS.
I gave them the complete list of 500+ LEAPS with a 2026 expiration so they could look for the companies and LEAPS that they wanted.
One of them said this list was so nice I should make it available to other investors.
You'll see that I also identified the LEAPS that are with ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds).
And I identified the low-cost LEAPS which I said were for companies with a stock price of $25 or less when I made this list.
Then I identified the LEAPS that were both low-cost and with ETFs.
I spent over 10 hours putting this spreadsheet together. With my time valued at $150/hour or more, you can calculate how much this list could be worth.
But I don't want anyone to have this list without a chance to talk with me about how they can get started with the AIM method and LEAPS. I've been doing AIM since I was a young auditor in the US Army over 30 years ago so I like helping people learn from my experience.
That's why I am offering a complimentary 1-on-1 call with me for 20 minutes for everyone who acquires this list of the best LEAPS to buy in 2024.
Normally I only spend 1-on-1 time with people who are already my clients or paid newsletter subscribers but I am trying something new for both you and me.
You can have this list of over 500 LEAPS with 2026 expiration dates for only $49. If there are any LEAPS that will be the best LEAPS for you in 2024, they will have to be in this list.
Please go to this page my business partner and friend Brett made and you can get the spreadsheet for yourself.
Thanks for doing research on how to be a successful investor with long-term options. If I can help you learn how to use the AIM method from Robert Lichello with long-term stock options you have found the only person in the world who is teaching it to others.
Disclaimer:
Jeffrey Weber is not an investment adviser and gives only his personal view and opinion, never making any investment advice or recommendation to buy or sell specific securities. Investors in financial assets must do so at their own responsibility and with due caution as they involve a significant degree of risk. Before investing in financial assets, investors should do their own research and consult a professional investment adviser.