Bears vs Bulls: Options Clash at Earnings

Options flow is sending mixed signals ahead of a packed earnings week. Bearish bets dominated parts of the market. Bulls pushed back hard in semiconductors.

Negative flow dominates large-cap tech. Sandisk and Micron Technology topped the bearish options bet rankings this week. Both stocks sit well below their 52-week highs. Sandisk's RSI sits at 40.7 — edging toward oversold.

Tesla also attracted heavy negative options flow. The stock is down 30.8% year-to-date. Its RSI of 31.7 signals continued weakness. AMD drew significant put activity too, with earnings due imminently and the stock up 122% YTD — profit protection bets are running hot.

Bull side: memory chips lead. Micron sits at the top of positive bets as well — a split signal that reflects genuine disagreement among options traders. NVIDIA attracted large bullish bets. Amazon and Meta both saw strong call-side activity ahead of their Q2 reports.

Hertz flags extremes. Hertz carries a short score of 77 and a DTC of 13.5 days. The stock is down 69% YTD. Options traders are watching for any squeeze potential. Its analyst return potential sits at 75% — the gap between market price and fair value is stark.

Chewy mirrors the tension. Short score of 59.8, DTC of 3.3 days, and down 32% YTD. Analysts see 37% upside. Bearish short interest continues building even as options bulls probe the lows.

Earnings week results for Eli Lilly, AMD, Amazon, and Meta will be key catalysts. Traders should watch for rapid sentiment flips in options flow as results land.

This is not financial advice.