Intel closed at $122.60, down 1.02% from the previous close.

The largest displayed trade was a $4.83 million put purchase, while a smaller $2.41 million call buy also printed. The put flow was out of the money and geared toward downside protection, whereas the call purchase was in the money and reflected constructive upside participation. However, the heavier bearish positioning in bulk order flow outweighed the smaller bullish call, leaving the overall large-trade tone skewed toward guarding against weakness rather than chasing a sustained breakout.

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Options Indicators

Intel’s implied volatility is 71.21%, and with an IV percentile of 52.59% plus an IV/HV ratio of 1.06, current options pricing looks broadly neutral rather than especially cheap or expensive. In other words, implied volatility is sitting around a middle historical range and is only modestly above realized volatility, suggesting the market is assigning a fairly balanced premium to near-term uncertainty rather than aggressively overpricing or underpricing options.

The Call/Put volume ratio is 1.66.

Large Trades

A PUT buy worth $4.83 million was the largest displayed trade, with buyers taking 4,500 contracts of the 120.0 put expiring on 2026-10-30. With Intel referenced at $122.60, this strike sat out of the money at the time of execution, making it a relatively low-delta bearish position that looks geared toward downside protection or a forward bearish bet if the stock weakens toward or below 120.0 over the coming year. The willingness to commit this amount to long puts suggests demand for convex downside exposure rather than income generation, which is clearly negative in tone.

A CALL buy worth $2.41 million was the other displayed large trade, consisting of 2,093 contracts of the 120.0 call expiring on 2026-10-30. Because the stock reference was $122.60, the contract was in the money, giving this trade a more direct bullish profile with meaningful intrinsic value already embedded. Strategically, this looks like a longer-dated upside participation trade, potentially expressing confidence that Intel can extend gains while capping risk to the premium paid. Even so, while this is a constructive signal on its own, it was smaller than the leading put purchase and therefore does not overturn the broader tone from the large-trade flow. Overall, the bulk-order picture leans bearish: despite some notable upside call buying, the dominant flow shows heavier downside positioning and premium collection strategies that cap upside or favor stability over aggressive upside expansion. Taken together, the large trades suggest the market is more focused on guarding against weakness and fading upside than on chasing a sustained bullish breakout in Intel.

Strategy Reference

For traders who prefer not to post excessive margin or want a defined-risk way to fade the downside skew, a bear put spread using the 120.0/110.0 strikes in the same October 2026 expiration could express a controlled bearish view while limiting capital outlay. Alternatively, sellers looking for a low assignment probability could consider further out-of-the-money puts below the 110.0 level, provided they are comfortable with the convexity risk evident in the displayed put buying.