Skip to main content
All CollectionsStrategy Outlines
Unusual Options Activity Strategy
Unusual Options Activity Strategy
Ryan Faloona avatar
Written by Ryan Faloona
Updated over 6 months ago

Datapoint filters:

Trade Count = # of routes taken to get the order filled

  • Greater than or equal to 30

  • Trade count represents the number of routes taken in a trade “sweep”, where the order must take multiple routes to be executed.

Confirm with Total Trade Price

  • Total trade price = size x price x 100

  • Greater than $50,000

  • Larger position is “smart money”

Volume/Open Interest

  • Greater than 0.1

  • Size of trade compared to all open contracts

Risk Management / Scaling in and out of positions

  • Respect the risk so you win big and lose small.

  • Nothing wrong with taking profits at any given time

  • You can always take profit and then enter again.

  • If it comes back but you think your thesis is still right, then you can actually buy more. Don’t chase - use the charts to make sure you are entering at the right time

Examples:

TIGR - $35 calls 3/19 expiry at $2/option

  • $315,000 total trade price, Vol/OI 4.17, Trade Count 38

  • Chart - RSI not overbought, waited for price action on the pivot points to enter ● $2 to $4.90 in 3 business days

GSX - $95 calls, 2/12 expiry at $2

  • 2 detections

  • 72 Trade count, 27.78 Vol/OI, $100,000 Total Trade price

  • 83 trade count, 27.78 Vol/OI, $102,550 total trade price

  • Pulled back some and high short interest would normally make me not want to hold overnight

  • But repeat detection made me more confident

  • Sold at $3.20 the next day

  • Chart - Look at the time of sweeps. The buyer added more contracts when the price went down, going into the close.

  • Price at the R2 support level, and there was a gap to fill

  • Supply zone - where there are more buyers and fewer sellers

  • If it breaks through the supply zone then contract value will go through the roof, but there is too much risk involved.

  • Don’t like to hold part of the position because it messes up my trading discipline. However, I will be monitoring for another entry.

Option decay - Didn’t want to hold over the weekend because of decay and potential to lose profits.

Upside of options is the ability to leverage money and lock in quick profits. Allows you to define your risk upfront.

Squawk - sometimes Charlie calls out repeat detections of sweeps

Option Price filter - filter for options under a certain price per contract

Sunny’s rule - never trade options going into earnings.

  • Example - SNAP - don’t buy before earnings, but watch for the dip after earnings.

  • Implied volatility can creep up and inflate the premium

All trades in the calendar are straight calls/puts. There is no way to tell if the transaction is a leg of a spread.

Selecting the right strike price - does it matter?

  • Just look at what the filters detect.

  • Buy whatever strike you are comfortable with

  • Further OTM contracts have less premium, but more risk

Do you use debit or credit spreads to protect yourself?

  • Not for this strategy. This is just in and out in one direction.

  • You can use puts to protect a long stock position

What range of premiums do you find successful?

  • Sunny is comfortable with any contract price, but this is up to your own risk profile.

  • The ask and bid to be close to each other.

  • Stay away from illiquid options so you know you can get out of it.

In money, at money, or out of money? (ITM vs OTM)

  • Out of the money is a big plus for Sunny when looking at the detections

  • Contract will be cheaper the farther out of the money you are

  • Out of the money is viewed as a stronger signal. That strike price may not be achieved, but it’s just about the direction.

DKNG - $70 Call, March 5 expiry

  • 2 detections within 6 minutes of each other

  • Solid trade price, above $100K and $200K

  • Not as high Vol/OI

  • News about entering into NFL in Canada

  • Bought on Feb 3 for $2.20 and sold for $3.15, so 30% gain within a couple days.

  • Sold knowing it could go higher, bought in again on the dip for a quick 10% flip.

  • Decent amount of resistance on all-time highs, but the catalyst going into the Super Bowl

  • Sat perfectly on the pivot point on the original entry.

High-Level Simple Process

  • Put filters on to detect trades

  • Look at chart to detect entry

  • Determine exit level

  • See signals on the calendar before people are talking about the same stocks on Twitter

  • Have the newsfeed open as well in case anything pops up on a symbol we’re tracking.

  • Use the full feed, or filter by watchlist

Did this answer your question?