Bears Circle Rentals as Semis Draw Calls

Earnings season is reshaping options flow. Bears are targeting the rental car space hard. CAR — Avis Budget Group — carries a short interest of 36.2% of free float. Its short score sits at 73.9. Options negative bets ranked among the highest for mid-cap names this week.

The semiconductor trade tells the opposite story. MU (Micron Technology) leads the options positive bets leaderboard alongside NVDA and AMD. Micron's stock is up 206% year-to-date. Analysts see 72% further upside. The ORTEX stock score sits at a near-perfect 97.4. Call flow is dominant.

META is a notable outlier. The stock is down 18% YTD. Its RSI sits at just 32 — near oversold territory. Yet bullish options bets remain elevated. Analysts price in 44% upside. Traders appear to be positioning for a bounce ahead of Q2 earnings.

SMCI (Super Micro Computer) drew attention today after shares gained on NVDA news. Its short score of 62.6 is elevated. Days-to-cover stands at 2.77. Options flows show a mixed picture. The stock is down 5% YTD despite the AI server boom.

SANDISK stands out for sheer momentum. Shares are up 439% YTD. Negative bets rank high — a classic sign of profit-taking hedges layered over a massive rally.

Broader sentiment shows utilities and transport names sweeping 100% positive options flow this week. That suggests defensive rotation continues alongside tech optimism.