Options flows are sending mixed signals across US markets this week. Bearish bets cluster in semiconductors. Bullish conviction is holding in defensive and financials.
Sandisk tops the options negative-bets leaderboard. The stock is up 561% year-to-date. Traders are hedging hard after a monster run. Micron Technology sits just behind. Despite a 228% YTD gain, put flow is elevated as the memory cycle nears its next inflection point.
Tesla also draws heavy negative options flow. The stock is down 22% this year. Analysts see 12.6% upside. Bears disagree. Meta Platforms joins the bearish camp. The stock is off 17% YTD. RSI has dropped to 37 — near oversold territory.
Advanced Micro Devices shows a similar pattern. RSI sits at 44. Analysts target 31.7% upside but options sellers lean negative.
The bullish side tells a different story. Trane Technologies drew 100% positive options flow over the past week. Analysts just raised targets. pulled in heavy call flow. The stock is up 151% YTD. Trump's semiconductor push is clearly fuelling interest.
Marvell Technology is also attracting bullish attention. Up 179% in 2026, analysts lifted price targets today. Options traders are backing the AI-driven chip story.
Rare earth plays MP Materials are trending too. Trump's "do magnets" comments this week sparked a fresh flow of speculative calls in the sector.
The overall picture: semiconductors are where sentiment is most divided. The post-AI-boom names face heavy put hedging. The newly Trump-favoured names draw speculative call buyers.
This is not financial advice.
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.
