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options-flowPRO

Options flow

A board of unusual options activity: contracts trading far above their open interest on 55 liquid stocks and ETFs, kept for 24 hours, so you can spot fresh positioning early.

Most options trade against positions that already exist. When a contract trades several times more than its open interest, someone is likely opening a large new position. Options flow flags those contracts and keeps them on a board for 24 hours. It shows you where big bets are being placed, not who placed them. Options flow needs a Pro plan.

The options flow boardThe options flow board
The options flow board

How a contract gets flagged

Tapeboard checks a fixed list of 55 liquid names every 15 minutes during market hours, covering half the list on each pass. That list holds the big index and sector ETFs, mega-cap stocks and popular high-volume names. A contract is flagged when:

  • its volume is at least 2.5 times its open interest, and
  • it has traded at least 500 contracts.

Very cheap contracts are skipped, and each stock shows at most five flagged contracts. Each flagged contract gets a score of volume × the volume-to-open-interest ratio × last price, so big, concentrated and expensive activity ranks first.

How to read the board

  1. Click Options Flow in the sidebar.
  2. At the top, the Tape rollup shows one card per stock with the net premium flagged over the last 24 hours, a bar splitting call premium from put premium, the top strike and the positioning lean.
  3. The table below lists each flagged contract: symbol, type, lean, strike, expiration, last price, volume, open interest, V/OI, IV, days to expiration and how long ago it was flagged.
  4. Click CHAIN on a card to open that stock's options chain, or GEX to open its gamma exposure.

The lean chip reads BULLISH, BEARISH or HEDGE. It is worked out from where the strike sits against the stock price. It is a hint about positioning. The board shows a snapshot of the chain, not individual trades, so it cannot tell you who bought or sold.

How to filter and sort

  1. Click ALL, CALL or PUT to show one side.
  2. Use the sort menu: Top score, Top volume or Most recent.
  3. Type a ticker in Filter symbol to narrow the table. The rollup cards do not change with the filters.
  4. Click the refresh button at the top right for the newest data.

How to get alerted to flow

  1. Open Settings and go to Notifications.
  2. Find Options flow, described as unusual options activity.
  3. Choose in-app, push or email. In-app and push are on by default.

Good to know

  • The data is delayed. A badge at the top right shows the freshness.
  • The cards fill in during the regular session, 9:30 to 4:00 Eastern. Outside those hours the board shows the last 24 hours.
  • Flow is a clue, not a signal to trade. Big volume can be a hedge or a spread as easily as a bet.

If something doesn't work

  • An upgrade card shows: options flow needs Pro. See Pricing.
  • A stock is missing: only the 55 tracked names are scanned. Use the Scanner to find others.
  • The board is empty: nothing met the thresholds in the last 24 hours, or you have a symbol filter on. Clear the filter.
  • The rollup says it is unavailable: the table below still updates. Try again in a minute.