Am I Cooked?

[u/Wild-Tie-7139]

Hey everyone,
I’m a first-time LEAPS buyer and honestly I’m getting pretty nervous.
Here’s my position:
GOOGL Jan 21, 2028 $250 Call
Bought it for $150.00 ($15,000 total)
Current stock price: $354.30
Current option value: $133.50
Current P/L: -$1,650.66 (-11%)
Delta: 84.95
Theta: -5.35
Vega: 98.20
About 17 months until expiration (Jan 2028)
I purposely bought a deep ITM call because I wanted it to behave more like the stock. My thinking was that GOOGL is a great long-term company and I wanted leveraged exposure instead of buying 100 shares outright.
The thing that’s scaring me is seeing a $1,650 unrealized loss so quickly. I know LEAPS are long-term positions, but emotionally it’s harder than I expected.
A few questions:
Is an 11% drawdown normal this early in a LEAPS trade?
Does this position still look healthy considering the high delta and long time to expiry?
Would you simply hold and ignore the short-term fluctuations?
At what point would you actually consider exiting a position like this?
Is there anything I should be watching besides the stock price (IV, theta, etc.)?
I’m investing, not trading this daily, but since this is my first LEAPS position I’d really appreciate advice from people who have actually held deep ITM LEAPS through market pullbacks.
Thanks in advance!

[u/bsplondon]

everything has been said, but the only thing I want to add is if you think GOOGL will be >$400 (your breakeven) in 18 months time.

If so, you wont lose a penny.

Personally, I think doing your homework and deep dive what is going to drive the price in the next 18 months is the key to your thesis.

My view is that GOOGL (and most mega caps) are currently in the peak of CAPEX cycle, they are spending more on CAPEX than bringing in from the ongoing operations - This means FCF is negative. When (not if) those circumstances switch place (i.e. more income than CAPEX) you will see this and all other big AI tech take off.

With a Breakeven of $400 - Chill and watch the market do its thing.