Option Focus | Alphabet's Long Call Butterfly Targets Upside to 390, Signaling Bullish Sentiment with Limited Risk

Option Witch
Aug 07

Alphabet Inc. closed at USD 356.62, down 0.97%.

Large options trades in GOOG tilted heavily bullish, led by a $0.89 million long call butterfly that defines a targeted upside zone. The flow suggests a constructive near-term outlook with limited risk, supported by a high call/put volume ratio of 1.97 and subdued option pricing.

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Options Indicators

GOOG’s implied volatility is 32.85%, and with an IV percentile of 28.29%, current option volatility sits on the low side of its recent range, indicating that options are relatively cheaply priced. The IV/HV ratio of 0.65 also suggests implied volatility is running below historical realized volatility, reinforcing the view that current premiums are not stretched and that option pricing remains comparatively subdued. The Call/Put volume ratio is 1.97.

Large Trades

A CALL combination worth $0.89 million was the largest displayed trade, structured as a four-leg long call butterfly using the 362.5/365.0/390.0/397.5 strikes expiring on 2026-08-14. The trader bought the 362.5 calls for $0.46 million and the 365.0 calls for $0.37 million, while selling the 390.0 calls for $0.04 million and the 397.5 calls for $0.02 million, resulting in a net premium of negative $0.76 million, or a net debit paid. With all four legs out of the money versus the $356.62 reference stock price, this appears to be a defined-risk bullish structure aimed at directional upside over the coming week while capping gains above the upper short-call strikes. Strategically, it suggests the buyer is targeting a move higher into the mid-to-upper strike region, seeking leveraged upside exposure with limited risk rather than open-ended speculation.

A PUT buy worth $0.03 million was the other displayed large trade, consisting of 1,460 contracts of the 320.0 put expiring on 2026-08-14. With the strike below the $356.62 reference stock price, the option was out of the money at execution, making this a bearish or protective downside position tied to a relatively sharp drop over a short time frame. The modest premium outlay indicates a low-cost hedge or speculative tail-risk bet rather than a high-conviction outright bearish position, but it still reflects demand for downside protection into expiration.

Overall sentiment is bullish. The large-trade flow was dominated by upside-oriented call positioning, especially the much larger net-debit call combination that expresses a constructive near-term view while keeping risk defined, and the bearish put activity was comparatively small and more consistent with limited-cost protection than aggressive downside conviction. Taken together, the large trades point to a market stance that expects GOOG to trade higher in the near term, with some residual interest in guarding against a downside surprise.

Strategy Reference

For traders seeking to collect premium while the 32.85% implied volatility remains subdued, selling the 280.00 put (farther out-of-the-money) could offer a lower assignment probability with reduced margin requirements compared to at-the-money short puts.

Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.

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