Ahead of earnings, NVDA's short-dated calls are trading at a premium to puts.
The chip giant is almost an asset class in itself, and that makes Wednesday night's earnings a market event. But as investors gear up for the big print, something curious is happening in the options pits.
When it comes to options markets, convention is almost always the same: investors pay up for downside protection, pushing implied volatility on out-of-the-money puts above that of equivalent calls. It's the fingerprint of a market that hedges first and speculates second.
Nvidia is currently flipping that script. Ahead of earnings, NVDA's short-dated calls are trading at a premium to puts. Positive skew is genuinely uncommon in equities. The market is, in effect, pricing more uncertainty to the upside than the downside.
For options traders, that creates a structural edge worth exploiting. With the stock around $222, the options market implies a roughly $14 move by week's end. The $245 calls sit $23 out of the money. The $205 puts sit just $17 out of the money. The calls are further away — and yet they cost more. That gap is the opportunity, and here's two ways to profit: For existing shareholders (or those who buy the stock today), a zero-cost collar with upside tilt: Sell the $245 call at $1.15 to finance the $205 put. The call premium funds your downside hedge — for free. You cap your gain but create a protective "floor," and the math favors you. Max gain: +$23 (~10.4%). Max loss: −$17 (~7.7%).
For bullish participants who only want the options trade with asymmetric risk/reward: the $210 / $240 call spread.
Buy the $210/$240 call spread for ~$13. The implied move is roughly $14 — meaning you nearly break even if the stock goes nowhere and potentially make $17 on a price jump. A defined-risk, asymmetric bet that offers 30% more upside potential than downside risk with virtually no standstill decay (loss) if the stock remains unchanged. Max gain: +$17. Max loss: −$13. Push if flat In short, enthusiasm for Nvidia is creating unique opportunities in the options market. They don't happen often.
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