Intel Options Traders Load Up on Puts as INTC Hovers Near $60, Far Below Its 52-Week High
By TrendSpider Editor
Unusual options activity in Intel Corporation flagged four contracts on Tuesday, with bearish positioning dominating the flow and a combined total premium of $1,955,788.20 crossing the tape. The largest single contract, a $77.50 put expiring January 21, 2028, carried a premium of $1,244,000 and is c
Intel Options Traders Load Up on Puts as INTC Hovers Near $60, Far Below Its 52-Week High
Unusual options activity in Intel Corporation flagged four contracts on Tuesday, with bearish positioning dominating the flow and a combined total premium of $1,955,788.20 crossing the tape. The largest single contract, a $77.50 put expiring January 21, 2028, carried a premium of $1,244,000 and is currently in the money, drawing the most attention from traders watching INTC's next directional move. With the stock trading at $60.10, it sits well off its 52-week high of $142.34, though it has recovered from the 52-week low of $32.89, leaving the range wide and sentiment divided.
Key Drivers of the INTC Stock Move
- Main Catalyst: Four unusual options contracts were flagged today, totaling $1,955,788.20 in combined premium. Three of the four contracts were puts, including a deep-premium $1,244,000 put at the $77.50 strike expiring January 2028, and a $55 put expiring November 27, 2026 with 658 contracts and an OI ratio of 26%. A $35 put expiring April 16, 2027 also appeared with a striking open interest ratio of 1,495%, signaling a surge in positioning relative to existing open interest.
- Bull Case: The lone call contract, a $77.50 strike expiring January 21, 2028, saw 500 contracts trade at a premium of $559,500 with an open interest ratio of 397%, suggesting at least some larger players are positioning for a meaningful upside recovery from current levels over the long term.
- Bear Case: Puts represented three of four contracts and accounted for the overwhelming majority of total premium spent today. The in-the-money $77.50 put at $1,244,000 in premium is particularly notable, as a trader paying that much for downside protection at a strike nearly $17 above the current price may be hedging or speculating on a scenario where INTC fails to sustain its current level or reclaim meaningful ground.
The forward setup for Intel remains complex. The stock's current price of $60.10 reflects a modest gain of just 0.21% on the session, but the broader picture shows INTC trading at less than half of its 52-week high of $142.34, illustrating the depth of the correction the stock has endured over the past year. The concentration of put premium in longer-dated contracts, particularly the January 2028 expiration, suggests traders are not making near-term directional bets alone but are also stress-testing scenarios well into 2028. The November 27, 2026 put at the $55 strike, with 658 contracts and expiring in just over three weeks, adds a near-term bearish layer to the flow, implying some traders see downside risk before the month is out.
INTC Unusual Options Activity
- Call: Strike $77.50 | Expiry: January 21, 2028 | Volume: 500 | OI Ratio: 397% | OTM | Premium: $559,500
- Put: Strike $77.50 | Expiry: January 21, 2028 | Volume: 500 | OI Ratio: 32% | ITM | Premium: $1,244,000
- Put: Strike $55.00 | Expiry: November 27, 2026 | Volume: 658 | OI Ratio: 26% | OTM | Premium: $124,427.80
- Put: Strike $35.00 | Expiry: April 16, 2027 | Volume: 284 | OI Ratio: 1,495% | OTM | Premium: $27,860.40
The $35 put expiring April 2027 is especially notable from an open interest perspective. An OI ratio of 1,495% means today's volume dwarfed the existing open interest by nearly 15 times, pointing to a fresh and aggressive wave of positioning at a strike that would imply a significant decline from today's price. Total unusual premium across all four contracts came to $1,955,788.20, with puts accounting for approximately $1,396,288.20 of that total.
INTC Seasonality
Early November has historically been a transitional period for semiconductor stocks as the market digests third-quarter earnings results and begins pricing forward guidance into year-end positioning. Options activity of this nature, particularly in longer-dated contracts, often picks up in this window as institutional players adjust hedges ahead of the holiday quarter.
INTC Relative Performance
INTC's 0.21% gain on Tuesday represents a muted session for the stock, which continues to trade near the lower half of its 52-week range of $32.89 to $142.34. The current price of $60.10 leaves the stock far below its 52-week high and reflects continued underperformance relative to broader semiconductor peers, many of which have recovered more meaningfully from their own 2025 lows as AI-driven demand has remained a tailwind for the sector.
More on INTC
- Intel Shares Crater 8.17% as Stock Revisits Lower End of Its 52-Week Range
- Intel Crushes Q3 2026 Earnings Estimates by 40%, But Stock Crashes Nearly 30% After Hours
- Intel Hit With Massive $1.15M Put Sweep as Stock Craters 27.64% in a Single Session
- Intel Crushes Q3 2026 Earnings Estimates by 40%, But Stock Tumbles Nearly 25% After Hours
- Intel Stock Surges 5.14% as INTC Breaks Out Toward the Top of Its 52-Week Range
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