Options FlowUpdated daily after close · snapshot 2026-05-23

Unusual Options Activity — Daily Top 30 Bullish & Bearish

SystemTrader's Unusual Options Activity scanner runs daily across ~3,000 US optionable equities. Each name is scored on three CBOE-derivable factors — OTM open-interest growth, today's volume-to-OI ratio on OTM contracts, and IV z-score vs the symbol's own 30-day baseline — then z-score-normalized across the full universe. Top 30 bullish and top 30 bearish lists below. Click any header to see the methodology.

Pair with the SPY Options OI dashboard, Equity Options OI, VIX term structure, and Momentum scanner.

Built by

SystemTrader

Source

CBOE delayed-quotes options chain across ~3,200 US optionable equities

Methodology

3-factor composite z-score: OTM OI growth + vol/OI ratio + IV z-score vs 30d median

Updates

Daily snapshot ~1:30 PM PT (30 min after cash close)

Last: 2026-05-23

⚠ For educational and informational purposes only — not financial advice. Past performance does not guarantee future results. See full disclaimer.

Universe scanned

1,449

of 3,183 tickers

Ranked today

169

eligible after filters

Strong signals

3 / 12

≥1.5σ bullish / bearish

Scoring strength

~65% — 2-factor (IV baseline accumulating)

Top 30 — Bullish OTM Call Positioning30 ranked

#	Symbol	Score	z OI Δ	z Vol/OI	z IV	OI Δ $	Vol/OI	≤30d	Spot
1	CPT CAMDEN PROPERTY TRUST	+12.04σ	—	+12.04σ	—	$0	30.35	4%	$107.47
2	ATEN A10 Networks, Inc.	+3.27σ	—	+3.27σ	—	$0	8.59	7%	$29.16
3	L LOEWS CORP	+2.98σ	—	+2.98σ	—	$0	7.86	3%	$108.87
4	TDS TELEPHONE & DATA SYSTEMS INC /DE/	+0.78σ	—	+0.78σ	—	—	2.40	23%	$39.30
5	ARM ARM HOLDINGS PLC /UK	+0.45σ	—	+0.45σ	—	$0	1.59	53%	$304.00
6	SW Smurfit Westrock plc	+0.43σ	—	+0.43σ	—	—	1.55	58%	$38.06
7	DELL Dell Technologies Inc.	+0.34σ	—	+0.34σ	—	$0	1.31	44%	$294.89
8	RGTI Rigetti Computing, Inc.	+0.31σ	—	+0.31σ	—	$0	1.24	15%	$25.86
9	QBTS D-Wave Quantum Inc.	+0.20σ	—	+0.20σ	—	$0	0.97	28%	$28.65
10	NVTS Navitas Semiconductor Corp	+0.09σ	—	+0.09σ	—	$0	0.69	42%	$29.01
11	IBM INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORP	+0.08σ	—	+0.08σ	—	$0	0.66	29%	$252.01
12	SOXL	+0.06σ	—	+0.06σ	—	—	0.61	55%	$190.56
13	BB BLACKBERRY Ltd	+0.05σ	—	+0.05σ	—	$0	0.61	7%	$8.00
14	QUBT Quantum Computing Inc.	+0.05σ	—	+0.05σ	—	$0	0.60	30%	$12.20
15	QCOM QUALCOMM INC/DE	+0.04σ	—	+0.04σ	—	$0	0.57	45%	$237.19
16	RKLB Rocket Lab Corp	+0.03σ	—	+0.03σ	—	$0	0.56	34%	$134.15
17	VOYG Voyager Technologies, Inc./DE	+0.02σ	—	+0.02σ	—	—	0.51	8%	$45.23
18	AMD ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES INC	+0.00σ	—	+0.00σ	—	$0	0.48	35%	$462.81
19	IONQ IonQ, Inc.	-0.00σ	—	-0.00σ	—	$0	0.46	27%	$62.71
20	CRSR Corsair Gaming, Inc.	-0.01σ	—	-0.01σ	—	$0	0.45	36%	$7.74
21	ASTS AST SpaceMobile, Inc.	-0.03σ	—	-0.03σ	—	$0	0.41	52%	$105.65
22	CRDO Credo Technology Group Holding Ltd	-0.04σ	—	-0.04σ	—	$0	0.37	53%	$216.29
23	TE T1 Energy Inc.	-0.04σ	—	-0.04σ	—	—	0.36	37%	$8.04
24	INTC INTEL CORP	-0.05σ	—	-0.05σ	—	$0	0.36	42%	$118.15
25	SNDK Sandisk Corp	-0.05σ	—	-0.05σ	—	—	0.36	52%	$1466.97
26	TQQQ	-0.05σ	—	-0.05σ	—	—	0.35	30%	$77.32
27	CDNS CADENCE DESIGN SYSTEMS INC	-0.05σ	—	-0.05σ	—	$0	0.34	12%	$373.52
28	CSCO CISCO SYSTEMS, INC.	-0.05σ	—	-0.05σ	—	$0	0.34	31%	$120.14
29	BE Bloom Energy Corp	-0.06σ	—	-0.06σ	—	$0	0.33	34%	$297.94
30	AAOI APPLIED OPTOELECTRONICS, INC.	-0.06σ	—	-0.06σ	—	$0	0.32	46%	$178.60

Top 30 — Bearish OTM Put Positioning30 ranked

#	Symbol	Score	z OI Δ	z Vol/OI	z IV	OI Δ $	Vol/OI	≤30d	Spot
1	AAOI APPLIED OPTOELECTRONICS, INC.	+5.86σ	—	+5.86σ	—	$0	0.62	46%	$178.60
2	BB BLACKBERRY Ltd	+4.89σ	—	+4.89σ	—	$0	0.53	47%	$8.00
3	INTU INTUIT INC.	+3.87σ	—	+3.87σ	—	$0	0.43	36%	$318.50
4	RGTI Rigetti Computing, Inc.	+2.56σ	—	+2.56σ	—	$0	0.32	21%	$25.86
5	F FORD MOTOR CO	+2.37σ	—	+2.37σ	—	$0	0.30	26%	$14.90
6	TCOM Trip.com Group Ltd	+2.10σ	—	+2.10σ	—	—	0.27	47%	$46.37
7	NVTS Navitas Semiconductor Corp	+1.80σ	—	+1.80σ	—	$0	0.25	49%	$29.01
8	TE T1 Energy Inc.	+1.75σ	—	+1.75σ	—	—	0.24	53%	$8.04
9	SOXS	+1.74σ	—	+1.74σ	—	—	0.24	12%	$7.73
10	UPRO	+1.66σ	—	+1.66σ	—	—	0.23	60%	$143.08
11	BILL BILL Holdings, Inc.	+1.55σ	—	+1.55σ	—	$0	0.22	53%	$36.15
12	CIEN CIENA CORP	+1.54σ	—	+1.54σ	—	$0	0.22	53%	$580.89
13	WDAY Workday, Inc.	+1.49σ	—	+1.49σ	—	—	0.22	29%	$127.75
14	TQQQ	+1.32σ	—	+1.32σ	—	—	0.20	54%	$77.32
15	TNA	+1.30σ	—	+1.30σ	—	—	0.20	42%	$65.17
16	SOXL	+1.27σ	—	+1.27σ	—	—	0.20	32%	$190.56
17	LION Lionsgate Studios Corp.	+1.20σ	—	+1.20σ	—	$0	0.19	67%	$14.91
18	NOK NOKIA CORP	+1.14σ	—	+1.14σ	—	$0	0.19	40%	$15.45
19	SNDK Sandisk Corp	+1.14σ	—	+1.14σ	—	—	0.19	43%	$1466.97
20	BMNR BITMINE IMMERSION TECHNOLOGIES, INC.	+1.08σ	—	+1.08σ	—	$0	0.18	45%	$18.81
21	MU MICRON TECHNOLOGY INC	+1.03σ	—	+1.03σ	—	$0	0.18	43%	$745.55
22	ETHA iShares Ethereum Trust ETF	+1.01σ	—	+1.01σ	—	$0	0.18	37%	$15.56
23	QBTS D-Wave Quantum Inc.	+1.00σ	—	+1.00σ	—	$0	0.17	28%	$28.65
24	ZM Zoom Communications, Inc.	+0.99σ	—	+0.99σ	—	—	0.17	40%	$105.40
25	IREN IREN Ltd	+0.98σ	—	+0.98σ	—	$0	0.17	48%	$56.23
26	BE Bloom Energy Corp	+0.89σ	—	+0.89σ	—	$0	0.16	45%	$297.94
27	EWY	+0.88σ	—	+0.88σ	—	$0	0.16	65%	$182.03
28	QUBT Quantum Computing Inc.	+0.85σ	—	+0.85σ	—	$0	0.16	19%	$12.20
29	VOYG Voyager Technologies, Inc./DE	+0.84σ	—	+0.84σ	—	—	0.16	25%	$45.23
30	ASTS AST SpaceMobile, Inc.	+0.76σ	—	+0.76σ	—	$0	0.15	38%	$105.65

Reading the score

+2.5σ or higher — top ~1% of the universe by composite score. Genuinely unusual; warrants a second look at the chart.
+1.5σ to +2.5σ — top ~7%. Notable; cross-reference with your existing setups.
+0.5σ to +1.5σ — interesting but not extreme. The top-30 fills mostly from this band on calm days.
−0.5σ to +0.5σ — near the universe mean; minimal signal.
Signal quality compounds with persistence — a name showing ≥1.5σ for 2-3 consecutive days is the highest-conviction setup.

How Unusual Options Activity Works

1
Pull the full options chain for the universe
Each trading day after the cash close (~1:30 PM PT), we hit CBOE's free delayed-quotes JSON endpoint for every name in the universe — roughly 3,200 US optionable equities sourced from the easy-to-borrow list. The full chain (every strike × every expiration with OI, volume, IV, and Greeks) lands on disk for the scoring pipeline.
2
Aggregate OTM positioning per symbol
For each name we compute the $-notional of open interest in calls more than 3% OTM (above spot) and puts more than 3% OTM (below spot). The OTM book is where directional speculation lives; ATM strikes are dominated by spreads and dealer hedging. We track today's OTM $-notional and compare to yesterday's to measure day-over-day growth.
3
Compute the three scoring factors
Factor 1: OTM OI growth (dollar change vs yesterday) — new positions being opened. Factor 2: today's OTM volume / today's OTM open interest ratio — high values mean fresh flow on top of the standing book. Factor 3: today's average OTM IV vs the symbol's own 30-day median, z-scored — rising IV with rising OI signals demand-driven activity (not writer-driven supply).
4
Filter out the noise
Names with options volume below 5,000 contracts/day are excluded as too illiquid for the score to be reliable. Names with earnings releases in the next 7 days are excluded as their option positioning reflects the event, not directional thesis. Both exclusions get a reason code visible in the UI so you can see exactly what was filtered and why.
5
Z-score normalize across the universe
For each factor we compute the mean and standard deviation across all eligible names that day, then express every symbol as a z-score on each factor. This means "PLTR at 2.4σ on OI growth" reads as "in the top 1% of the universe by that signal today" — comparable across names regardless of their absolute size.
6
Composite weighted score, with graceful fallbacks
Bullish Score = 0.45·z(call OTM OI growth) + 0.25·z(call vol-OI ratio) + 0.30·z(call IV z-score). Bearish Score is the mirror on puts. When IV history is insufficient (<20 sessions accumulated), we rescale to a 2-factor score. On the very first day of operation, only the vol-OI ratio is available — the scanner still surfaces meaningful unusual-activity outliers, just with less precision until OI growth data starts accumulating tomorrow.
7
Rank and surface the top 30
The top 30 names by Bullish Score and top 30 by Bearish Score are surfaced on the page each day. Click any row to see the per-factor breakdown — exactly which z-scores drove that name to the top — plus the rolling history once enough sessions have accumulated.

Who Uses Unusual Options Activity

Active Swing Traders

Scan the daily top 30 bullish for names where the standing options book is showing unusual accumulation. Cross-reference with your own technical setups — a UOA hit on a name already in your watchlist is a high-conviction confirmation.

Options Traders

Use the IV z-score column to find names with unusually elevated implied volatility — candidates for premium-selling strategies if IV is bid AND the directional read is uncertain. Or follow the bullish list into call buying when growth + IV are both rising.

Macro / Cross-Asset Traders

Track the bullish/bearish skew across the universe day-over-day. When the count of qualifying bullish names dwarfs bearish, the broad market is positioning long. The reverse — particularly with high vol/OI ratios on the bearish side — flags broader risk-off positioning.

Long-Term Investors

Watch for unusual put activity on names you own — high bearish scores on your holdings deserve a second look at fundamentals. Conversely, persistent bullish scores on watchlist names suggest the smart-money positioning is aligned.

Pro Tips

Don't trade single-day spikes blindly

One day of high vol/OI ratio is suggestive but noisy — it can be a single block trade. The strongest signals come from 2-3 consecutive days of high scores on the same name, especially when OI growth is also positive (new positions, not just trading existing).

IV z-score is the highest-quality factor

Of the three factors, IV z-score is least gameable. OI growth can be inflated by spread positioning (long lower strike, short higher strike), and vol/OI ratio is noisy. But IV rising on a name with growing OI is unambiguous demand. Filter your watchlist to names where z(call IV) > 1.5σ for the highest-confidence bullish setups.

Cross-check the excluded list

A name showing up with "earnings_in_7d" but huge OI growth IS a signal — just not a directional one. Pre-earnings positioning often telegraphs the implied move size. The UI shows excluded names with their reason; toggling them on for inspection is a legitimate use.

Rising bearish score with falling stock = institutional hedge or sell signal

When a name appears in the top 30 bearish AND the stock is breaking down, you're seeing either institutional hedging on a real fundamental concern, or directional put buying. Either way it's worth a second look. The standalone bearish score on a stock at all-time highs is more often hedging than a sell signal.

Score magnitude matters

A bullish score of 0.8σ is barely noise; 1.5σ is interesting; 2.5σ+ is genuinely unusual. The thirtieth-ranked name on a calm day may have a score under 1.0; on a high-activity day it might be above 2.0. Read the absolute z-score, not just the rank.

The scanner is best used as a starting filter

Treat the top 30 as a daily idea-generation list, not a list to buy outright. Cross-reference with chart structure, sector context, and your existing thesis. The UOA signal answers "where is positioning unusual?" — you still need to answer "and does that fit my strategy?"

Common Issues & Solutions

A name I expected to see isn't on the list▾

Three reasons something might not appear: (1) options volume below 5,000 contracts/day → excluded as illiquid. (2) Earnings inside 7 days → excluded since the positioning is event-driven. (3) Score below the top 30 cutoff. The UI shows the full ranked list with scores, and the "excluded" panel surfaces names that hit a filter with their reason code.

Day 1 scores look weaker than expected▾

On launch day the scanner has no prior history, so OI growth (day-over-day) and IV z-score (vs 30-day baseline) can't be computed yet. The composite falls back to just the volume-to-OI ratio, which surfaces names with unusual flow today but is noisier than the full 3-factor score. Quality steps up on day 2 (OI growth available) and again around day 20-25 (IV baseline established).

A high-score name turned out to be a single block trade▾

The score is computed across an entire day's options book, but one large block trade in OTM options can move the vol/OI ratio significantly. We filter for total options volume > 5,000 contracts to mitigate, but a single $5M call sweep on an otherwise quiet name will still show up. The persistent signal — 2-3 days in a row at high scores — is more reliable than any one-day spike.

Why no "smart money" claim?▾

We don't have access to trade-side identifiers (institution vs retail). What we measure is positioning patterns that historically correlate with directional accumulation: OI growth concentrated OTM, rising IV alongside that growth, and elevated volume relative to standing book. Those patterns don't uniquely identify "smart money" — they identify unusual positioning regardless of who placed it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is unusual options activity?▾

Unusual options activity (UOA) is positioning in the options market that deviates from a name's typical pattern — typically large open interest changes, elevated volume relative to standing book, or rising implied volatility on top of growing OI. The premise is that concentrated unusual positioning often telegraphs directional convictions, though it can also reflect hedging or spread trading. Our scanner makes the "unusual vs. usual" comparison rigorous by z-scoring each factor across the full universe daily.

How do you decide bullish vs bearish?▾

Bullish signal = unusual positioning concentrated in OTM calls above spot. Bearish signal = unusual positioning concentrated in OTM puts below spot. We score each side independently across three factors (OI growth, vol/OI ratio, IV z-score), so a name can theoretically appear on both lists if both sides are showing unusual activity — that's a tell that there's a binary event upcoming and positioning is being added on both sides.

Do you use real-time data?▾

No. CBOE's public endpoint is 15 minutes delayed intraday, and we snapshot once daily after the cash close so the chain reflects end-of-day OI and volume. The scanner is built for daily / swing positioning analysis, not intraday signals. Intraday UOA would require a paid options tape feed.

Can you distinguish call BUYING from call WRITING?▾

Not directly from this data. CBOE's endpoint doesn't expose the trade tape with bid/ask context at each print — that requires a paid feed ($200/mo+). What we can do is look at the pattern of positioning: OI growing alongside rising IV is demand-driven (someone's paying up to open positions), while OI growing with stable or falling IV is supply-driven (institutional writing at the going price). The 3-factor composite captures this distinction without needing per-trade data.

What's the universe?▾

Roughly 3,200 US optionable equities, sourced from the easy-to-borrow list (a strong liquidity proxy). On a typical day, ~1,500-2,000 of those clear the 5,000-contract minimum-volume filter to be scored. Names below the threshold are listed in the excluded panel with their reason code.

Why exclude names with earnings within 7 days?▾

Pre-earnings options positioning is dominated by the implied move on the binary event, not directional thesis. Including those names would crowd the top 30 with the same earnings names every quarter. Once earnings pass, the name re-enters the scoring universe.

How long until the scoring becomes "fully strong"?▾

Day 1: 1-factor score (vol/OI ratio only) — surfaces unusual flow but no growth context. Day 2: 2-factor score (vol/OI + OI growth) — strong directional read. Day 20-25: full 3-factor score (vol/OI + OI growth + IV z-score vs name's own baseline). The UI surfaces which mode is active.

Why is this free?▾

It costs us nothing — CBOE's endpoint is public, SEC's ticker mapping is free, and the compute fits on existing infrastructure. Pro subscription on SystemTrader gates the live strategies (Gemini, Mars, etc.) and the momentum scanner — not market-data tools like this one.

Related Tools

SPY Options Open Interest

Index-level dealer positioning, P/C ratio, max-pain, dealer gamma flip

Equity Options OI (NVDA/AAPL/GOOG)

Deep-dive options book + price-chart overlay for individual names

Momentum Scanner

7-factor momentum rank across the full universe (Pro)

Unusual Volume Detector

Stock-level volume spikes (the equity-volume analog of UOA)

Earnings Calendar

Upcoming earnings reports — context for the 7-day exclusion filter

VIX Term Structure

Broader implied-vol regime context

Last updated: 2026-05-23