ET Options Chain Analysis

Delayed CBOE data, snapshot 2026-08-18. Spot $20.96.

Put/Call (OI)

0.19

150k P / 797k C

Put/Call (Volume)

0.34

8k P / 24k C today

30d ATM IV

18%

annualized implied move

Call wall

$22

145k contracts

Put wall

$17

29k contracts

Tail hedging

0.5×

deep-OTM puts vs calls

What the positioning says

●Bullish positioning: only 0.19 puts per call outstanding.
●Call wall at $22 (145k contracts), 5% above spot — the upside strike the crowd is already parked on; often acts as near-term resistance.
●Put wall at $17 (29k contracts), 19% below spot — the hedge floor; often acts as support.
●Deep-OTM call OI is 2.1× deep-OTM put OI — speculative upside positioning dominates the tails.
●30-day ATM implied volatility is 18% — calm pricing; option premium is cheap.

Open interest by strike

All expiries combined. Amber lines mark the call and put walls; the dashed line is spot.

IV term structure

At-the-money implied volatility per expiry.

Volatility smile

IV by strike — expiry 2026-09-18. A steep left side = expensive downside protection.

30-day implied volatility history

Daily ATM IV (~30 DTE bucket) collected since March 2026. Rising IV into an event = the market bracing; collapsing IV after = the crush.

Open interest by expiry

Expiry	Call OI	Put OI	P/C	Volume today
2026-08-21	32k	19k	0.60	4k
2026-08-28	7k	2k	0.27	3k
2026-09-04	33k	2k	0.06	842
2026-09-11	3k	464	0.13	1k
2026-09-18	36k	3k	0.08	1k
2026-09-25	2k	357	0.22	192
2026-10-02	149	146	0.98	443
2026-10-16	97k	36k	0.37	1k
2026-12-18	34k	8k	0.25	649
2027-01-15	346k	51k	0.15	5k
2027-03-19	8k	1k	0.14	172
2027-06-17	5k	2k	0.34	73
2028-01-21	165k	23k	0.14	11k
2028-12-15	29k	2k	0.06	3k

Source: CBOE delayed quotes, refreshed daily after US market close. Open interest is exchange-reported and lags one session. Research, not investment advice.