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🎰Why I Sold VICI (And What I’m Doing Next)
Published about 1 month ago • 4 min read
Personal reasons that are none of your business. Thanks for reading the newsletter!
Kidding, kidding.
But seriously — I recently sold 100 shares of VICI Properties (VICI). It’s temporary, but first, here’s some quick background for those who don’t know…
Back in 2015, Caesars Entertainment (CZR) was broke. Like, bankruptcy-level broke. So in 2017, they got creative. They took all their casino buildings — places like Caesars Palace and Harrah’s — and spun them off into a new company: VICI Properties.
Instead of paying their debts in cash, Caesars gave their creditors ownership in VICI. Then, Caesars rented the buildings back from VICI in what’s called a sale-leaseback. Caesars kept running the casinos, and VICI became a giant landlord collecting rent. Win-win.
Fast-forward to today, and VICI is the biggest landowner on the Las Vegas Strip — about 660 acres across 10 huge resorts like the Venetian and MGM Grand.
Simplysafedividends.com
I used to own 320 shares in our Self-Directed IRA. Now I have 220. So what happened?
Well… technically, I sold them. But also... I was kind of forced to.
Let me explain.
I sold a covered call option. That’s when you own 100 shares of a stock and agree to sell them at a set price (called the strike price) if the stock reaches that level — in exchange, you get paid cash upfront.
Think of it like this: I agreed to sell 100 shares of VICI at $32.50 if it got there by July 18, 2025. I was paid $0.70 per share, or $70 total, minus a small fee. That cash goes right into our account, no matter what happens.
So what’s the catch?
Well, if VICI goes above $32.50, I have to sell my shares at that price, even if the stock keeps climbing. And that’s exactly what happened — it closed at $32.90. Since that’s above $32.50, my shares got “called away.”
Important tip for beginners: When you sell covered calls, you could lose your shares if the stock goes up and also at any time before the expiration date they could be called away. That’s why it’s best to do this only on stocks you’re okay selling.
The good news? This happened in our IRA, so we don’t pay taxes on the gain right now. And we made a small profit overall. Here's the current VICI situation in our retirement account:
What now?
Well, I could’ve bought those 100 shares back under $33 earlier this week and locked in a small gain factoring in the past option activity (about $20 after fees). But I’m being stubborn — I want to buy them back at $32.50 or below to keep the full option premium we earned.
I could also sell a cash-secured put — basically the opposite of a covered call — but that’s a story for another day.
The big reason I want those shares back soon: VICI’s next ex-dividend date is September 18. That means to get the next dividend, you have to own the shares before that date. The dividend is $0.4325 per share, so that’s an easy $43.25 for holding 100 shares.
SimplySafeDividends.com
I’ve got a gut feeling that VICI will dip under $32.50 again soon… or maybe that’s just bad tacos. We’ll see!
Hope this helped you learn something new about covered calls and how I'm thinking about flirting with options. Ever tried options for extra income? Hit reply — I read and reply to every message!
Disclaimer: This is not investment advice, just one person's opinion that may be incorrect. Do your own research before making any investment decisions.
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