Market Overview

U.S. stocks advanced on Wednesday (Mar. 12) as cooler-than-expected inflation data helped stanch a sharp selloff, while the escalation of U.S. President Donald Trump's chaotic, multi-front tariff war kept gains in check.

Regarding the options market, a total volume of 49,314,177 contracts was traded, down 8% from the previous trading day.

Top 10 Option Volumes

Top 10: NVDA, TSLA, VIX, AAPL, PLTR, AAL, AMZN, AMD, SMCI, MSTR

Source: Tiger Trade App

Nvidia shares jumped 6.3% on Wednesday in anticipation that the company’s upcoming GTC conference starting on March 17 will serve as a much-needed catalyst for its stock price recovery.  

There are 3.55 million Nvidia option contracts traded on Wednesday, down 2% from the previous trading day. Call options account for 63% of overall option trades. Particularly high volume was seen for the $125 strike call option expiring March 14, with 160,214 contracts trading. NVDA 20250314 125.0 CALL

Tesla stock soared 7.6% on Wednesday after President Donald Trump and CEO Elon Musk decided to run a kind of commercial for the electric-vehicle maker at the White House.

There are 2.69 million Tesla option contracts traded on Wednesday, down 22% from the previous trading day. Call options account for 51% of overall option trades. Particularly high volume was seen for the $250 strike call option expiring March 14, with 132,665 contracts trading. TSLA 20250314 250.0 CALL

Palantir stock jumped 7.2% on Wednesday after the data analytics company made a cryptic post on X that investors are reading as a signal that a major AI announcement is coming. Walgreens and Heineken are among the AI analytics company’s latest clients, along with convenience store operator RaceTrac, data digitization firm Ripcord, and others, Palantir also said late Tuesday.

There are 629.68K Palantir option contracts traded on Wednesday, up 1% from the previous trading day. Call options account for 60% of overall option trades. Particularly high volume was seen for the $90 strike call option expiring March 14, with 29,237 contracts trading. PLTR 20250314 90.0 CALL

Unusual Options Activity

Source: Market Chameleon

NIO Inc. shares pulled back 2.3% on Wednesday after soaring 17% on Tuesday. The Chinese EV maker will report its critical fourth-quarter and full-year financial data before the opening bell on Friday, March 21.

There are 394.07K NIO option contracts traded on Wednesday, down 32% from the previous trading day. Call options account for 79% of overall option trades. Particularly high volume was seen for the $10 strike call option expiring April 17, with 31,265 contracts trading. NIO 20250417 10.0 CALL

D-Wave Quantum stock jumped 8.2% on Wednesday after the company claimed to achieve a breakthrough. D-Wave said its quantum computer outperformed one of the world's most powerful classical supercomputers. The company will release its financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2024 on Thursday, March 13 before market open.

There are 133.94K D-Wave option contracts traded on Wednesday, down 2% from the previous trading day. Call options account for 74% of overall option trades. Particularly high volume was seen for the $6 strike call option expiring March 14, with 14,281 contracts trading. QBTS 20250314 6.0 CALL

TOP 10 S&P 500 Bullish & Bearish

This report shows stocks with the highest volume of bullish and bearish activity by option delta volume, which converts option volume to an equivalent stock volume (bought or sold).

If we take the total positive option delta volume and subtract the total negative option delta volume, we will get the net imbalance. If the net imbalance is positive, there is more bullish pressure. If the net is negative, there is more bearish pressure.

Based on option delta volume, traders bought a net equivalent of 2,610,796 shares of Nvidia stock. The largest bullish delta came from buying calls. The largest delta volume came from the 28-Mar-25 Call, with traders getting long 1,078,000 deltas on the single option contract.

Top 10 bullish stocks: NVDA, PLTR, TSLA, SCHW, DAL, AMD, FCX, PG, WBD, VZ

Top 10 bearish stocks: AAPL, XOM, NKE, AVGO, T, WFC, WMB, INTC, BMY; BA

Source: Market Chameleon

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