Western Digital closed at USD 466.81, down 9.15%. The session's notable options activity was dominated by two large, multi-million dollar trades targeting the July 2026 expiration, both structured to collect premium and expressing a constructive view on the stock's trajectory.
Options Indicators
WDC’s implied volatility is 110.61%, and with an IV percentile of 98.41%, current option volatility sits at an extremely elevated level relative to its own historical range, indicating that options are priced expensively. The IV/HV ratio of 1.04 suggests implied volatility is running only slightly above realized volatility, so the market’s premium is high in absolute terms but still broadly aligned with the stock’s recent actual movement rather than implying a dramatic additional volatility gap. The Call/Put volume ratio is 0.67.
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Large Trades
A $88.70 million three-leg put combination was the largest large trade of the day, built in the July 17, 2026 expiration with two short 670.0 puts totaling 2,880 contracts and one long 600.0 put for 2,090 contracts. With WDC referenced at $466.81, all three legs were in the money. The structure appears to be a ratio-style put combination centered on selling more of the higher-strike 670.0 puts while buying fewer 600.0 puts, creating a net credit position and signaling premium collection with a bullish-to-neutral bias. Strategically, this kind of trade suggests the trader is willing to take on downside exposure below the short strike while using the long 600.0 puts as partial protection, indicating confidence that the stock will remain firm enough over time to let elevated put premium decay.
A $46.71 million bull put spread was the other highlighted trade, also in the July 17, 2026 expiration, consisting of the sale of 1,308 670.0 puts and the purchase of 1,358 600.0 puts. Both strikes were in the money versus the $466.81 reference stock price. This is a classic net-credit bullish spread, designed to collect premium while defining downside risk through the long lower-strike put. The strategic intent is straightforward: the trader is expressing a constructive view on WDC, expecting the shares to hold up sufficiently so that the short 670.0 put loses value faster than the protective 600.0 put, making this a clear premium-collection and moderately bullish positioning trade.
Overall sentiment in WDC large trades was bullish, with total bullish flow of $46.71 million against total bearish flow of $29.73 million, leaving a net bullish difference of $16.98 million. The directional judgment is therefore clearly positive. That bias is supported by the presence of a large defined-risk bull put spread and by the bigger three-leg put structure, which leans toward premium-selling rather than outright bearish downside chasing. Taken together, the large-trade activity points to institutional positioning that is more consistent with constructive outlook, volatility monetization, and confidence that WDC can avoid a materially worse downside outcome than the option structures imply.
Strategy Reference
Traders with a similarly bullish view seeking to collect premium while managing margin could consider a bull put spread like the one observed, or for sellers preferring a lower probability of assignment, selling an out-of-the-money put at a strike like $450.00 could be an alternative, though it would offer less premium given the stock's current price level.