Market Overview
Wall Street advanced on Wednesday (September 2), notching a partial rebound from a three-day losing streak as investors searched for deals among stocks and sectors that might have been oversold amid recent risk-off moves.
Regarding the options market, a total volume of 54,624,674 contracts was traded, of which 59% were call options.
Top 10 Option Volumes
Top 10: NVDA, TSLA, AAPL, META, MU, AMZN, PLTR, Dell, VIX, INTC.
Source: Tiger Trade APP
Dell closed at USD 492.20, up 15.81%.
Despite the sharp single-day rally, the options tape painted a much more cautious picture. The standout transaction was a substantial bearish call spread valued at $750 thousand in net credit, executed in the November 2026 expiration. This institutional-grade block suggests that while the stock is enjoying strong upside momentum, sophisticated traders are actively positioning for a cap on future gains and are willing to collect premium against any sustained rally toward the $550–$580 region.
A bearish call spread with a net credit of $750 thousand was the standout large trade, built by selling 1,500 Nov. 20, 2026 $550 calls and buying 1,500 Nov. 20, 2026 $580 calls. With DELL referenced at $492.20, both strikes sit out of the money, making this an out-of-the-money bear call spread that profits if the stock stays below the short $550 strike or at least fails to rally aggressively toward the upper wing. The net-credit structure points to a premium-collection strategy with a defined-risk bearish outlook, expressing the view that upside will remain capped into that expiration.
Source: Tiger Trade APP
Overall, the large-trade flow was clearly bearish. The only notable block was a defined-risk call-credit spread positioned above the current stock price, which suggests traders are comfortable fading upside and collecting premium rather than paying for bullish exposure. That setup indicates expectations for restrained price action or a weaker trend ahead, so the institutional tone around DELL appears negative.
Unusual Options Activity
Palantir closed at $169.46, down 5.81% from the previous session.
Institutional options flow in PLTR flashed a decisively bearish signal on Wednesday, driven by two large trades that together point to sustained downside conviction. A $5.80 million synthetic put structure and a $2.42 million in-the-money put purchase dominated the tape, while the broader bulk-order skew leaned heavily toward puts. The positioning suggests hedging or speculative positioning for further weakness in the stock.
A synthetic put position with a net debit of $82 thousand was one of the standout large trades, built by buying the January 15, 2027 $150.00 put and selling the January 15, 2027 $200.00 call, with the synthetic structure totaling $5.80 million in gross leg value. With PLTR referenced at $169.46, both legs were out of the money at execution, and the structure expresses a clearly bearish longer-dated view similar to being short the stock on a synthetic basis. The modest net cash outlay suggests the trader was willing to use options to establish downside exposure efficiently while also capping the upside through the short call, pointing to a strategic directional bet on weakness over time.
Source: Tiger Trade APP
A put purchase worth $2.42 million was the other key large trade, consisting of 3,233 contracts of the September 18, 2026 $170.00 put bought outright. Since the strike sat slightly above the reference stock price of $169.46, the option was in the money at execution, giving the buyer immediate downside sensitivity. This is a straightforward bearish trade that likely reflects either protection against a pullback or a direct speculative view that PLTR may trade lower, and the size indicates meaningful conviction behind that downside stance. Overall, the large-trade flow is decisively bearish, as the biggest highlighted orders were both put-driven downside expressions and the broader bulk-order picture also leaned heavily to the downside, suggesting institutional positioning is tilted toward caution, hedging, or an outright expectation of further weakness in PLTR.
Source: Tiger Trade APP