Intel Corp (NASDAQ:INTC) stock is up 26.4% to trade at $31.46 at last glance, following news that sector peer Nvidia (NVDA) will invest $5 billion in the chipmaker to collaborate on the development of PC and data center chips.
INTC is on track for its biggest single-day percentage gain on record, while pacing for its third daily gain in four. Now sporting a 55.8% year-over-year lead, the equity earlier hit a fresh 52-week peak of $31.79, bouncing off a floor at $24 that came into place in late August.
The options pits are buzzing, with 1.06 million calls and 352,000 puts exchanged so far today, which is six times the volume typically seen at this point. The most popular contract by far is the September 30 call, while new positions are currently being sold to open at the 30 put in that series.
Short-term options traders have been much more bearish than usual. Specifically, INTC's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) ranks in the 80th percentile of readings from the past 12 months.
Now looks like a great time to weigh in with options. This is per Intel stock's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 43% that sits in the 8th percentile of annual readings, suggesting options traders are pricing in low volatility expectations.
