Edited by Peter Hillerberg1 min readStories are generated from ORTEX data and reviewed by the ORTEX team. How we publish
American Express drew heavy bearish options interest Thursday after the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency slapped a $350 million fine on the firm. Regulators cited deficiencies in Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering practices. The stock's 14-day RSI sat at 35.5, deep in oversold territory. AXP is already down nearly 18% year to date, making it one of the weakest large financials of 2026.
The bearish options flow was not isolated. HubSpot saw a sharp sentiment shift after JP Morgan downgraded the stock to Neutral. The bank cut its price target to $240 from $268, implying roughly 9% downside from the most recent close. The same session saw a Jefferies downgrade land simultaneously. Dual downgrades in one day tend to generate outsized put volume as momentum traders follow analyst moves.
Chip names drew the most negative bets by raw dollar volume. NVIDIA, , and topped the negative-bets ranking over the past week. South Korean markets fell more than 5% overnight, dragging AI-linked names lower. NVDA remains a net positive-bet name year to date, but week-on-week the put flow tilted bearish.
One macro datapoint sharpens the industrial picture: Japan machine tool orders rose 65% year on year in August 2026 to JPY 197,867 million, according to ORTEX alt data. Foreign orders matched that pace. That kind of capex surge typically supports names like Deere, where JP Morgan just raised its price target to $625.
AGNC Investment stood out on technical grounds. Its RSI hit 14.4, one of the lowest readings across large-cap US stocks. With days to cover near 15, any options-driven short squeeze could move fast.
ORTEX Market Intelligence content is generated by AI from a snapshot of ORTEX's proprietary data and reviewed by the ORTEX team. Content is informational only and does not constitute investment advice.
