Primary read
Bearish
Put-side pressure
Ticker Options Intelligence
GPZ options intelligence
VANECK ALTERNATIVE ASSET MANAGER ETF options pressure, expected move, strike concentration, and Sharemaestro trend context.
Conviction
56
Market data through 21 Sep 2026
Checked 22 Sep 2026 11:20 · complete available chain
Put-side pressure
Bearish pressure
GPZ currently carries bearish options pressure with a 56/100 conviction score. The nearest-chain expected move is 4.2%, with volume/open-interest participation at 0.26.
Expected move
4.2%
Near-term move context
Activity / OI
0.26
Current volume is quieter versus prior open interest
Put-call
-
Balanced tape
Trend fit
3
Options are not fully confirming trend
Weekly backdrop
-2.9%
RS -15.0
Expected move
4.2%
Put-call volume
-
Volume / OI
0.26
Reference IV
0.16
Max pain
26.00
Underlying
22.45
Nearest expiry
16 Oct 2026
Contracts
168
Research Brief
GPZ has a bearish chain read with 56/100 evidence alignment.
The practical question is whether the underlying confirms the options concentration. The chain prices a reference range of 21.52–23.38; The largest call open-interest concentration is 15.00; the largest put concentration is 26.00. The most active strike by current volume is 25.00.
Priced range21.52–23.38
Call concentration15.00
Put concentration26.00
Max pain reference26.00
- Price remains weak while put-side concentration persists.
- Participation is above the ticker's stored normal, which makes the read more noteworthy.
- Price recovers while put pressure fades or reverses toward calls.
- Options and the weekly trend are not yet giving the same message.
Priced Move
Where the chain says movement becomes exceptional
Options imply 21.52 to 23.38. Max pain at 26.00 lies outside the priced range, so it is a weak near-term anchor.
Spot
Max pain
21.5222.45 ± 0.9323.38
Confirmation level
A close beyond 23.38 or below 21.52 at the 16 Oct expiry would exceed the move currently priced by this chain.
Important limitation
The range is a pricing reference, not a forecast; volatility can reprice sharply after news or as expiry approaches.
Score Construction
Why conviction is 56/100
Pressure is 100/100 toward puts; conviction uses its strength, while the signal label carries its direction.
Directional pressure100 × 42%
+42.0
How strongly activity leans toward calls or puts.
Participation46 × 22%
+10.1
Volume relative to existing open interest and contract-level activity.
Trend agreement3 × 26%
+0.8
How closely the chain read agrees with the underlying trend backdrop.
Volatility28 × 10%
+2.8
The intensity of implied volatility and the priced move.
Positioning by Strike
Where open interest and current activity concentrate
The largest call open-interest concentration is 15.00; the largest put concentration is 26.00. The most active strike by current volume is 25.00. Open-interest concentrations show where positions exist; they are not proven support, resistance or dealer exposure.
Put open interestStrikeCall open interest
0
15.00-33.2%
0
0
16.00-28.7%
0
0
17.00-24.3%
0
0
18.00-19.8%
0
0
19.00-15.4%
0
0
20.00-10.9%
0
0
21.00-6.5%
0
0
22.00-2.0%
0
0
23.002.4%
0
0
24.006.9%
0
2
25.0011.4%
0
21
26.0015.8%
0
0
27.0020.3%
0
0
28.0024.7%
0
0
29.0029.2%
0
0
30.0033.6%
0
0
31.0038.1%
0
Nearest spot strike Max pain strikeBars show relative OI within this expiry
Gamma Profile by Strike
Negative gamma proxy
Put-side gamma sensitivity outweighs the call-side proxy across the retained chain. The largest bars mark levels where delta-hedging sensitivity may be most concentrated.
Net profile-$2,093Delta change / 1% move
Positive peak20.00+$43
Negative peak26.00-$821
Nearest balance20.06Interpolated sign change
StrikeNegativePositiveNet / 1% move
20.00-10.9%
+$43
21.00-6.5%
-$683
22.00-2.0%
-$427
25.0011.4%
-$210
26.0015.8%
-$821
33.0047.0%
+$4
Positive call-side proxy Negative put-side proxyHighlighted row is nearest spot strike
Scenario proxy = gamma × open interest × 100 shares × spot² × 1%. Calls are positive and puts negative by convention. Missing Greeks use a Black-Scholes estimate from stored IV with zero rate and dividend assumptions. Open interest does not reveal who is long or short, so this is not observed dealer positioning or a forecast.
Volatility Curve
Back-loaded volatility
Longer-dated options carry more implied volatility than the front expiry, so risk is priced farther out.
0.16
16 Oct
25d
0.18
20 Nov
60d
0.28
18 Dec
88d
0.20
19 Mar
179d
Volatility by Strike
Downside protection premium
Out-of-the-money puts carry higher implied volatility than comparable calls, indicating richer downside protection.
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
Put IV Call IV
Historical Replay
How matured reads behaved through expiry
Across 6 stored directional transitions, the next stored price moved in the labelled direction 33% of the time.
Directional follow-through33%
Moves contained by pricing13%
Average expiry move6.8%
16 Sep
Bullish · 44
-2.9% through expiry
1.6% priced · v2.0
15 Sep
Mixed · 29
-2.9% through expiry
2.1% priced · v2.0
14 Sep
Mixed · 29
-2.9% through expiry
1.8% priced · v2.0
11 Sep
Bearish · 43
-2.9% through expiry
2.1% priced · v2.0
9 Sep
Mixed · 30
-8.1% through expiry
3.7% priced · v2.0
4 Sep
Mixed · 29
-8.1% through expiry
3.7% priced · v2.0
2 Sep
Mixed · 29
-10.6% through expiry
3.5% priced · v2.0
31 Aug
Mixed · 30
-10.6% through expiry
5.7% priced · v2.0
7 Aug
Mixed · 31
7.3% through expiry
11.6% priced · v2.0
6 Aug
Mixed · 30
7.3% through expiry
10.9% priced · v2.0
5 Aug
Bullish · 47
7.3% through expiry
4.5% priced · v2.0
4 Aug
Mixed · 33
7.3% through expiry
1.7% priced · v2.0
Eligible snapshots must have a dated market session, stored signal, and point-in-time market reference. Each observation uses one read per market session and the first stored weekly close on or immediately after expiry; its original calculation version is retained. It is an evidence audit, not an executable strategy or evidence of future performance.
Evidence Quality
High
Retained chain100%
Implied volatility100%
Two-sided quotes100%
Open interest100%
- Chain status
- Complete available chain
- Market date
- 21 Sep 2026
- Calculation
- v2.0
- Contracts
- 168 / 168
- No material coverage gap was detected in the retained chain.
Aggregate chain data supports concentration, participation and pricing analysis. It does not identify trade aggressor, opening versus closing activity, multi-leg intent or dealer inventory.
Options Intent Radar
Put-heavy activity
Put-side activity dominates. This can reflect hedging or directional positioning, but the chain alone cannot distinguish buying from selling.
Options pressure and weekly price action are both cautionary.
Put-heavy activity matters because it connects the options headline to the actual evidence: $5,092 of estimated gross traded notional, puts · 22-45 days · itm, and a bearish flow confirms price backdrop. Use it as a research priority signal, then validate the chart, liquidity, event calendar, and risk before acting.
Options pressure-100
1W price-2.9%
Call premium0%
Put premium100%
Notional split
C 0% / P 100%
Estimated gross traded notional uses volume × contract multiplier × midpoint, or last price when no valid midpoint is available.
Freshness
0.26
Volume divided by open interest across the visible chain.
Trend fit
3/100
Agreement between options pressure and Sharemaestro market context.
Aggregate chain data does not identify trade aggressor or opening versus closing activity; call/put concentration is not proof of market direction.
Puts · 22-45 days · ITM
puts cluster with 21 contracts traded, $5,092 estimated gross traded notional, and 100% of visible notional.
$5,092
Setup Classification
Opportunity and risk frame
Options positioning is not confirming the underlying trend context.
Activity Anomaly
Above normal
Activity is running above the recent historical baseline.
Baseline: 17 completed sessions
Volume rank76th
Volume/OI rank82th
IV rank41th
Market Context
Underlying confirmation
Close22.45
1W-2.9%
RS-15.0
Fair value-10.4%
Options pressure-100
Speculation46
Volatility28
Trend fit3
Today Versus Normal
Stored-options context
30d avg - · 8/10 sessions
-
90d avg - · 17/30 sessions
-
180d avg - · 17/60 sessions
-
30d avg - · 8/10 sessions
-
90d avg - · 17/30 sessions
-
180d avg - · 17/60 sessions
-
30d avg - · 1/10 sessions
-
90d avg - · 6/30 sessions
-
180d avg - · 6/60 sessions
-
30d avg - · 8/10 sessions
-
90d avg - · 17/30 sessions
-
180d avg - · 17/60 sessions
-
Pressure Trail
Recent pressure and volatility
29 Jul 12:29
Mixed
Pressure 4
Move 3.7%
30 Jul 12:05
Mixed
Pressure 4
Move 2.9%
31 Jul 11:44
Bearish
Pressure -96
Move 1.5%
3 Aug 13:23
Bearish
Pressure -96
Move 2.6%
4 Aug 11:16
Bearish
Pressure -79
Move 1.5%
5 Aug 11:45
Mixed
Pressure 10
Move 1.7%
6 Aug 11:58
Bullish
Pressure 99
Move 4.5%
6 Aug 19:29
Mixed
Pressure 0
Move 10.9%
Strike Map
Where activity is clustering
Strike15.00
Calls · V 0 · OI 0
Puts · V 0 · OI 0
Strike16.00
Calls · V 0 · OI 0
Puts · V 0 · OI 0
Strike17.00
Calls · V 0 · OI 0
Puts · V 0 · OI 0
Strike18.00
Calls · V 0 · OI 0
Puts · V 0 · OI 0
Strike19.00
Calls · V 0 · OI 0
Puts · V 0 · OI 0
Strike20.00
Calls · V 0 · OI 0
Puts · V 0 · OI 0
Strike21.00
Calls · V 0 · OI 0
Puts · V 0 · OI 0
Strike22.00
Calls · V 0 · OI 0
Puts · V 0 · OI 0
Term Structure
Expiration activity
Expiry16 Oct 2026
Contracts42
Avg IV0.16
Put-call-
Expiry20 Nov 2026
Contracts42
Avg IV0.18
Put-call-
Expiry18 Dec 2026
Contracts42
Avg IV0.28
Put-call-
Expiry19 Mar 2027
Contracts42
Avg IV0.20
Put-call-
Skew
Call/put IV balance
16 Oct 2026Balanced skew
Call IV0.03
Put IV0.08
Skew0.05
20 Nov 2026Balanced skew
Call IV0.01
Put IV0.05
Skew0.04
18 Dec 2026Put IV premium
Call IV0.05
Put IV0.30
Skew0.24
19 Mar 2027Balanced skew
Call IV0.03
Put IV0.04
Skew0.01
Contract Tape
Most active contracts
ContractGPZ261016P00025000
SidePut
Expiry16 Oct 2026
Strike25.00
Volume21
OI2
IV0.36
ContractGPZ261016P00026000
SidePut
Expiry16 Oct 2026
Strike26.00
Volume-
OI21
IV0.39
ContractGPZ270319P00020000
SidePut
Expiry19 Mar 2027
Strike20.00
Volume-
OI20
IV0.10
ContractGPZ261218P00021000
SidePut
Expiry18 Dec 2026
Strike21.00
Volume-
OI15
IV0.30
ContractGPZ261218C00020000
SideCall
Expiry18 Dec 2026
Strike20.00
Volume-
OI10
IV0.38
ContractGPZ261218P00022000
SidePut
Expiry18 Dec 2026
Strike22.00
Volume-
OI8
IV0.29
ContractGPZ261218C00033000
SideCall
Expiry18 Dec 2026
Strike33.00
Volume-
OI1
IV0.31
ContractGPZ270319P00025000
SidePut
Expiry19 Mar 2027
Strike25.00
Volume-
OI1
IV0.33
Research Graph
Related research and context
Sharemaestro research
Related News
No recent ticker-specific news yet.
Market Watch
No recent market-watch posts yet.
Earnings
No upcoming matched earnings event.
Plain English Guide
Options context
What usually looks constructive
What usually looks cautious
Options can move quickly and can lose value fast. Treat this as research context, not a buy or sell instruction.