Market Overview

As of Friday's close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average(DJI.US) fell by 0.63% to 44,371.51 points; the NASDAQ(IXIC.US) dropped 0.22% to 20,585.53 points; and the S&P 500 index(SPX.US) declined by 0.33% to 6,259.75 points.

Notably, the trading volume for S&P 500 (SPX) put options reached 1.921 million contracts, while call options totaled 1.519 million contracts, resulting in a put/call ratio of approximately 1.27. This indicates a strong bearish sentiment among investors towards the index. Among these, one particular put option, SPXW 140725 P 6260, saw a trading volume of 12,200 contracts with a VOL/OI ratio of 32.98. The strike price for this contract is 6,260.00, and the option's price increased by 46.54%.

Top 10 Options Trading Volume:

NVIDIA Corporation(NVDA.US): Overnight, Nvidia's stock rose by 0.5%, with daily options trading volume reaching 4.47 million contracts, an increase of 1.9601 million from the previous day, representing a 0.78-fold increase. Open interest stands at 20.39 million contracts. The company's market capitalization surpassed $4 trillion, making it the first publicly traded company globally to achieve this milestone. Multiple institutional investors remain optimistic about Nvidia, and analysts have raised their target prices. Goldman Sachs has issued a "buy" rating with a target price of $185, highlighting Nvidia's leadership in accelerated computing.

Tesla Motors, Inc.(TSLA.US): Overnight, Tesla's stock increased by 1.17%, with daily options trading volume reaching 2.86 million contracts, an increase of 204,700 from the previous day, representing a 0.08-fold increase. Open interest stands at 8.75 million contracts. Tom Narayan, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, believes Tesla's recent sell-off has been excessive, reaffirming an "outperform" rating and raising the target price, boosting investor confidence. Additionally, Elon Musk announced that the AI chatbot Grok will soon be integrated into Tesla vehicles, showcasing the company's innovation in artificial intelligence.

MicroStrategy Incorporated Class A(MSTR.US): Overnight, MicroStrategy's stock rose by 3.04%, with daily options trading volume reaching 1.17 million contracts, an increase of 429,200 from the previous day, representing a 0.58-fold increase. Open interest stands at 2.56 million contracts. The record high in Bitcoin prices and the company's ongoing strategy to increase Bitcoin investments have driven MicroStrategy's stock price higher. Through the "21/21 plan," the company continues to secure financing to purchase Bitcoin, reinforcing its position as a "Bitcoin proxy stock."

Robinhood(HOOD.US): Overnight, Robinhood's stock fell by 0.36%, with daily options trading volume reaching 910,000 contracts, an increase of 252,500 from the previous day, representing a 0.39-fold increase. Open interest stands at 2.38 million contracts. The company's tokenized stock business is facing regulatory scrutiny, with the Lithuanian bank investigating this new venture. Additionally, Robinhood was not included in the latest S&P 500 index restructuring, which may have impacted investor confidence.

PUT/CALL: Counts the percentage of open put and call option holdings for the listed stocks during the trading day.

Options Activity Tracking:

MicroStrategy Incorporated Class A(MSTR.US): Overnight, the stock rose by 3.04%, despite several bearish bets via PUT options. The MSTR 110725 P 427.5 put option, with a strike price of $427.5 and expiring on July 11, 2025, saw a volume of 12,800 contracts, dropping 99.76%. The MSTR 110725 P 425 put option, with a strike price of $425.0 and the same expiration date, had a volume of 29,800 contracts, falling 99.84%. Bitcoin prices reached new highs, closely linking MicroStrategy's stock price to Bitcoin's performance. Additionally, the company continues to increase its Bitcoin holdings through an ATM financing mechanism.

Applied Optoelectronics, Inc.(AAOI.US): Overnight, the stock rose by 0.53%. The AAOI 180725 C 31 call option, with a strike price of $31.0 and expiring on July 18, 2025, saw a volume of 12,900 contracts, dropping 26.73%.

Wolfspeed(WOLF.US): Overnight, the stock fell by 16.35%. The WOLF 110725 C 0.5 call option, with a strike price of $0.5 and expiring on July 11, 2025, saw a volume of 13,100 contracts, dropping 35.45%. Wolfspeed, in collaboration with NXP, launched a fully tested 800 V traction inverter reference design to support automotive partners and accelerate the electrification process.

NVIDIA Corporation(NVDA.US): Overnight, the stock rose by 0.5%. The NVDA 110725 P 167.5 put option, with a strike price of $167.5 and expiring on July 11, 2025, saw a volume of 138,300 contracts, dropping 33.24%. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang recently sold approximately 225,000 shares worth around $36.4 million, as part of a stock sale plan outlined in March.

vol/oi: The ratio of options volume to the number of open positions in the contract, with higher vol/oi indicating that the market is creating an abnormal number of new positions.

Option IV Unusual Movements:

SharpLink Gaming Ltd. - Ordinary Shares(SBET.US): Overnight, the stock surged by 17%, with options trading volume reaching 15,000 contracts and implied volatility at a high of 168.88%.

On the news front, SharpLink Gaming completed a direct purchase of 10,000 ETH from the Ethereum Foundation, which likely contributed to the stock's strong performance and heightened interest in its options.

High IV stocks:

Source: Barchart, data as of Eastern Time, July 11, 2025.

Read More: A quick look at the pros and cons of index options!

Note: Implied volatility estimates the expected fluctuation of a stock's price and is derived from the cost of its options. High and low levels of implied volatility signify market sentiment and option supply and demand dynamics. Feeding into an option's premium, implied volatility, time value, and directional movement embody the core aspects influencing option pricing. Traders navigate their strategies within this three-dimensional framework.

Volume reflects the aggregate volume of options contracts executed in a single day.

IV Rank gauges the standing of the current implied volatility within the highest and lowest values observed over the past year, serving as a relative measure.

IV Percentile denotes the proportion of days during the past year when the implied volatility was lower than the present rate, providing a statistical norm.

IV Yearly High marks the apex of an option's implied volatility recorded within the preceding year, signaling its peak uncertainty or risk