Market Overview
On August 4, The U.S. major indexes closed as follows: Dow Jones up 1.71% at 54,085.88; S&P 500 up 1.79% at 7,736.52; NASDAQ up 2.59% at 26,584.99. A broad risk-on mood, underpinned by easing geopolitical tensions and upbeat corporate earnings, helped all three gauges finish comfortably higher.
According to Marketchameleon, The total trading volume of U.S. stock options on that day was 72,424,938, Average daily option volume was 63,493,863. 38% puts, 62% calls. 1,485 stocks have option volume that is greater than their 30 day moving average volume.
Top 10 Option Volumes
Top 10: NVIDIA、Palantir Technologies Inc.、Tesla Motors、SpaceX、AAPL、Intel、Amazon.com、Microsoft、Advanced Micro Devices、Micron Technology。
Palantir’s $52 Million Bull Call Spread Targets $200 by 2027
Palantir Technologies Inc. closed at USD 162.66, up 29.45% from the prior session.
A monumental $52.32 million bull call spread dominated the options flow, targeting a rise to $200 by 2027, while a separate $8.68 million deep-out-of-the-money put purchase signaled a hedge against a potential long-term drawdown.
Large Trades
A bullish bull call spread worth $52.32 million was the standout large trade of the day, built by buying 12,000 March 19, 2027 $165.00 calls and selling 12,000 March 19, 2027 $200.00 calls. With PLTR referenced at $162.66, both call strikes were out of the money at execution, making this a forward-looking upside position rather than an immediate intrinsic-value play. The strategy’s objective is directional exposure with defined risk and capped upside, allowing the trader to express a bullish long-term view while reducing entry cost versus an outright call purchase.
A PUT buy worth $8.68 million targeted the December 15, 2028 $100.00 strike, with 4,950 contracts purchased. Since the strike sits well below the current share price of $162.66, the option was out of the money at the time of the trade, indicating a downside hedge or a longer-dated bearish tail-risk bet rather than an expectation of immediate weakness into intrinsic value.
Overall, the large-trade flow in PLTR leaned bullish. The dominant influence was the very large long-dated bull call spread, which points to institutional willingness to fund upside exposure in size, and the broader sentiment summary also shows bullish activity exceeding bearish flow.
SPCX’s $8.58 Million Synthetic Short and $8.82 Million Bull Call Spread Reveal a Tug-of-War with a Bearish Tilt
SpaceX ended the session at $125.33, advancing 9.43%.
Despite the strong price surge, a deep bearish undercurrent gripped SPCX's options market, headlined by an $8.58 million synthetic short and a contrasting $8.82 million bull call spread, revealing a high-stakes tug-of-war that ultimately tilts toward a bearish institutional bias.
Large Trades
A bullish bull call spread worth $8.82 million was the largest featured trade, built by buying 6,000 August 21, 2026 $135.0 calls and selling 6,000 August 21, 2026 $150.0 calls. With SPCX referenced at $125.33, both call strikes were out of the money, making this a defined-risk upside position targeting a rally into the $135 to $150 zone over the next year. advance.
A synthetic short position totaling $8.58 million was the second highlighted trade, created by buying 3,500 March 19, 2027 $100.0 puts and selling 3,500 March 19, 2027 $230.0 calls. With the stock at $125.33, the $100.0 put was out of the money and the $230.0 call was deeply out of the money, but together the structure expresses a clear bearish view by replicating short-equity style exposure through options.
Overall, the large-trade flow in SPCX leans bearish. Although the biggest single trade was a sizable bullish call spread that points to interest in a controlled upside scenario, the broader large-order picture shows heavier downside-oriented premium and a meaningful presence of put buying, bearish call structures, and synthetic short exposure. That combination suggests institutional traders are more focused on protecting against weakness or positioning for downside than chasing an outright upside breakout, so the prevailing sentiment from the full large-trade tape is moderately bearish.
Disclaimer: This analysis is based on publicly available market data and is provided for informational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice. Options trading involves substantial risk, and investors may lose more than their initial investment.
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