Sentiment read — Options activity split sharply this week. Earnings-driven put buying dominated in EDA software, construction, and biotech. On the other side, banks and energy names saw aggressive call buying — several hitting 52-week PCR lows before results.
CPAY — PCR 1.54 | Z-score +4.3 | 52-week high The highest-severity signal of the week. CPAY's put-call ratio hit 1.54 against a 20-day mean of just 0.38. That is a 4.3 standard deviation breach. Heavy put buying flooded the tape, making this the most extreme bearish lean in a year.
CDNS — PCR 1.91 | 52-week high Cadence Design Systems saw its PCR reach 1.91 — the highest in 52 weeks. The move followed a 12.7% weekly share price loss. Traders piled into downside protection after the stock's sharp decline.
BWB — PCR 12.1 | 4-sigma | 52-week high Bridgewater Bancshares logged the most extreme absolute PCR of the week at 12.1. The read is a 4-sigma move. Options traders positioned heavily for downside on earnings day.
MSGE — PCR 7.80 | Z-score +4.3 | 52-week high Madison Square Garden Entertainment's PCR exploded to 7.80 — the highest in 52 weeks and 4.3 standard deviations above its 20-day mean. That is a rare level of options market fear. No earnings catalyst was cited, making the move notable.
GME — PCR 0.60 | Z-score +4.1 | 52-week high GameStop appeared twice in the dataset — readings of 0.60 and 0.59 on consecutive days, both at 52-week highs. The 20-day mean sits at 0.31. Unusual put demand followed an earnings miss the prior week.
BBIO — PCR 1.24 | Z-score +4.0 | 52-week high BridgeBio Pharma triggered two separate 52-week-high PCR alerts, on July 22 and July 24, with the ratio holding at 1.24. The 20-day mean is 0.25–0.26. Pre-earnings hedging ahead of a July 31 print drove the activity.
GVA — PCR 0.86 | Z-score +4.05 | 52-week high Granite Construction's PCR hit 0.86 — a 52-week high and a 4-sigma move from a 20-day mean of just 0.11. The signal fired twice in 24 hours. Options traders positioned defensively ahead of July 30 earnings.
XNCR — PCR 0.37 | Z-score -4.0 | Extreme call dominance Xencor moved the other direction. Its PCR crashed to 0.37 — four standard deviations below the 20-day mean of 1.25. The stock rallied 48.8% in one month. Call buying overwhelmed puts by a wide margin.
PBR.A — PCR 0.14 | Z-score -4.18 | 52-week call extreme Petrobras preferred shares saw the sharpest bullish PCR read of the week. The ratio fell to 0.1391 — 4.18 standard deviations below mean. Calls dominated the options flow by a wide margin.
WAL — PCR 0.48 | Z-score -4.3 | Earnings call buying Western Alliance's PCR dropped to 0.48 against a 20-day mean of 0.98. The -4.3 sigma move marked the lowest reading since mid-June. Aggressive call buying arrived ahead of an earnings report the same evening.
Earnings-driven put hedging Pre-earnings defensive positioning was the dominant theme. Names including RSI, NWL, RGNX, CALX, WH, CVBF, SON, and ITW all registered PCR spikes of 4 standard deviations or more in the run-up to results. Traders paid up for protection before prints across industrials, consumer, and technology names.
Biotech — skewed bearish Biotech saw concentrated put activity. RGNX hit a PCR of 0.6145 (4.1 sigma) ahead of July 28 earnings. BBIO triggered two 52-week-high alerts. IMMX spiked to a 4.3-sigma PCR extreme as short interest in the name surged 96% in a month to 25.2% of float — a rare convergence of bearish signals.
Financials — split between fear and conviction Banks split cleanly this week. Regional names BWB and CVBF attracted heavy put flow into earnings. Meanwhile WAL, INDB, EWBC, and SFBS all saw call buying dominate, with PCRs falling to multi-week or multi-month lows. The contrast reflects stock-by-stock earnings uncertainty rather than a sector-wide directional view.
International ETFs — Japan flagged EWJ, the iShares Japan ETF, triggered a 4.3-sigma put spike with a PCR of 1.76 against a 20-day mean of 0.65. That is one of the cleaner macro bearish signals of the week. No equivalent bearish signal appeared for other developed-market ETFs in the dataset.
Bullish outliers in energy and consumer OKE and PARR both hit 52-week PCR lows, signaling heavy call dominance. REYN and ABEV posted multi-year low PCRs ahead of earnings. PHG and BCS also hit 52-week call-dominance extremes, extending a trend of bullish European financials positioning.
ORTEX Market Intelligence content is generated by AI from a snapshot of ORTEX's proprietary data. Content is informational only and does not constitute investment advice.
