A model and some evidence on pricing compound call options

The most widely accepted option pricing model, derived by Black and Scholes (B-S), studies single priced options. Nevertheless, it has important implications for the relative pricing of compound call options. Compound options are two or more option contracts on a given security with different striking prices but with each expiring on the same day.Studying the relative pricing of compound options provides insight into the efficiency of generally accepted option pricing models. Comparing prices of compound options enables us to analyze factors in option pricing that would remain hidden in studies of single options.We are not primarily concerned with efficiency of option pricing, although some of our results may bear on this issue. Our primary concerns are: (1) to determine the implications of the B-S model for compound options and (2) to explain compound option prices by a number of variables, and thus come to conclusions about option pricing generally.We found difficulty with the B-S model when attempting to explain the relative pricing of compound options. Further, from empirical tests, we found that the most important factor in explaining the relative pricing of compound options is the relative degree of leverage which is operative between the various components of a compound option set.