Bears are loading up on options ahead of NVDA's earnings report. Negative bets in the semiconductor sector dominate the options market this week.
NVDA tops the list for bearish options flow among large-caps. The $5.2 trillion chip giant carries a short score of 29.5. Its RSI sits at 51, neutral but fading. Analysts see 42% upside. Short sellers are not convinced — ORTEX data shows "bears loading up" ahead of what traders are calling NVDA Week.
MU (Micron Technology) stands out on both positive and negative bets. Its options flow is two-sided, which signals real uncertainty. The stock is up 239% YTD. A reset is being priced in by some traders. RSI at 54 gives little directional cover.
AMD draws heavy put interest too. RSI has slipped to 45.8. That's approaching oversold territory. Options bettors appear to be hedging or outright shorting the AI trade ahead of NVDA's results.
LMT (Lockheed Martin) got a fresh upgrade today, with defense stocks attracting renewed analyst attention. Lockheed's market cap sits at $130 billion. Short interest is just 1.4% of free float. The upgrade sentiment looks bullish for call buyers in the sector.
On the bearish extreme, large-cap names with 0% positive options flow this week include JCI (Johnson Controls) and AON. Both saw no bullish bets registered in the past seven days. That is an unusual reading for names of this size.
The dominant theme this week: options flow is heavily skewed toward downside protection across semiconductors. NVDA earnings remain the single biggest event risk in the market right now.
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.
