Market Overview
Wall Street ended higher on Friday (October 9), as investors shifted their focus to next week, with third-quarter earnings season set to start and inflation data expected, which could shed light on the Federal Reserve's next policy decision.
Regarding the options market, a total volume of 66,112,434 contracts was traded, of which 60% were call options.
Top 10 Option Volumes
Top 10: TSLA, NVDA, AAPL, SPCX, MU, AMZN, INTC, GME, MSTR, COIN
Source: Tiger Trade APP
Palantir: closed at $209.05, up 5.17%.
Options flow showed a distinct split in institutional conviction, dominated by a $5.89 million long-dated call purchase and a $714,000 bear put spread. The bullish call buying points to strong upside expectations, while the bearish spread reflects simultaneous downside hedging or speculative positioning, leaving the overall large-trade read cautiously bullish rather than one-sided.
A bearish put spread with a net credit of $714,000 stood out as one of the session’s key complex trades. The structure involved selling the January 21, 2028 $130.00 put and buying the November 20, 2026 $180.00 put, both in 1,200 contracts, and it was explicitly classified as a bear put spread with bearish sentiment. Because this is a spread strategy combining a short put and a long put, the correct way to gauge its size is by the provided net credit, not by adding the legs. The net credit indicates the trader collected premium upfront while positioning for downside, suggesting a bearish directional bet that also benefits from structuring efficiency rather than paying a large debit outright.
Source: Tiger Trade APP
A call purchase worth $5.89 million was the single largest outright options trade in the displayed set, consisting of 1,400 contracts of the January 21, 2028 $250.00 call bought at an out-of-the-money strike. With PLTR referenced at $209.05, this long-dated upside call is a clear bullish expression, implying the buyer is seeking substantial upside participation over time while limiting risk to the premium paid. The far-dated tenor and out-of-the-money strike suggest a conviction-based directional bet on continued appreciation rather than a short-term hedge.
Source: Tiger Trade APP
Unusual Options Activity
AST SpaceMobile: closed at $50.965, down 10.48%.
Option flow showed aggressive institutional positioning despite the down day, highlighted by a $9.48 million put sale at the $50 strike and a $1.39 million long call combination. The dominant prints leaned decisively bullish, using out-of-the-money structures to express confidence in downside support near $50.00 while adding significant upside convexity into late 2026.
A put sale worth $9.48 million was the largest displayed trade, with 11,042 contracts sold at the $50.00 strike expiring on 2027-01-15. With ASTS referenced at $50.965, the strike sat slightly out of the money at the time, making this a moderately bullish income-style position that suggests the seller was willing to accumulate shares near $50.00 while collecting premium upfront. Strategically, this kind of large cash-secured-style put sale typically reflects confidence that the stock can hold around or above the strike over time, and it often signals constructive medium-to-longer-term sentiment rather than an outright short-term speculative bet.
Source: Tiger Trade APP
Source: Tiger Trade APP
A call spread-style directional buy was also prominent, structured as a same-direction double call purchase with a net debit of $1.39 million. The trade bought 4,000 contracts of the 2026-11-20 $60.00 call and 4,000 contracts of the 2026-11-20 $70.00 call, with both strikes out of the money versus the $50.965 reference stock price. As a bullish call combination entered for net debit, this position points to an aggressive upside view and a willingness to pay premium for a potentially large move higher into late 2026, rather than a premium-collection approach. The use of two out-of-the-money long call legs indicates a directional bet on substantial upside convexity and heightened participation if ASTS breaks materially above current levels.
Source: Tiger Trade APP
Overall, the large-trade flow was clearly bullish. The dominant print was a very large out-of-the-money put sale that implied confidence in downside support near $50.00, while the featured call combination added a higher-volatility upside expression through long out-of-the-money exposure. Although there were some smaller bearish call sales in the broader tape, they were overwhelmed by the scale and character of the bullish flow. Taken together, the figures point to institutional positioning that favors upside or at least stability above key support, with sentiment best described as confidently constructive on ASTS.