NVIDIA closed at USD 230.86, up 1.09%.

NVIDIA’s options market presented a mixed but cautious institutional posture, led by a $2.02 million put sale on the December 18, 2026 $230.00 strike and a $1.08 million put purchase on the January 15, 2027 $200.00 strike. The largest displayed trade was an income-oriented short put, yet the wider flow included protective put buying and call-side selling, keeping the overall skew defensive.

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Options Indicators

NVIDIA’s implied volatility is 37.83%, and with an IV percentile of 13.15%, current volatility sits on the low side relative to its own recent history, indicating that options are cheaply priced rather than expensive. At the same time, the IV/HV ratio of 1.52 shows implied volatility is still running above realized volatility, suggesting the market is assigning a meaningful premium to future movement expectations even though overall option pricing remains in a relatively inexpensive zone historically.

The Call/Put volume ratio is 1.57.

Large Trades

A put sale worth $2.02 million was the largest displayed single-leg trade, with investors selling the December 18, 2026 $230.00 put for 1,500 contracts. With NVDA referenced at $230.86, this strike sat slightly out of the money, making the position a moderately bullish income-style trade that benefits if shares hold above the strike and the option decays. Strategically, this suggests willingness to accumulate stock near current levels or, at minimum, confidence that downside will remain limited over the long horizon into late 2026.

A put purchase worth $1.08 million was the other highlighted large trade, with buyers taking 1,857 contracts of the January 15, 2027 $200.00 put. That strike was also out of the money versus the $230.86 reference price, so this was a bearish downside hedge or directional protection trade aimed at covering the risk of a deeper drawdown over an extended timeframe. Overall, the large-trade picture leans bearish: while the biggest displayed put sale shows some willingness to monetize premium and express support near current levels, the broader block-flow profile is dominated by bearish positioning, especially through protective put buying and call-side selling, indicating institutions are still skewed toward caution and downside risk management rather than outright upside conviction.

Strategy Reference

For sellers seeking lower assignment probability, the December 18, 2026 $180.00 put sits roughly 22% below spot and may offer a more defensive premium-collection point than the displayed $230.00 short put, while a $200.00/$180.00 January 2027 put spread can define risk without tying up excessive margin.