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HYG

iShares iBoxx High Yield Corporate Bond ETFClose $80.13EOD only

Max Pain

$79.50

Next expiry May 29, 2026

Expected Move

±$0.30

0.4% from close

Price Gap

-0.63

Distance to max pain

IV Rank

Low premium

P/C OI

3.91

Slightly put-heavy

Consensus

9.0/10

Bearish tilt

Published snapshot: May 27, 2026 close

End-of-day snapshot

This page reflects HYG options positioning from the latest published market-close snapshot. Intraday price and contract changes are not displayed.

Published Snapshot

May 27, 2026 close

HYG Flow Report

Analysis based on market close April 10, 2026

Directional Theta Gang Flow Earnings Consensus

Historical consensus-supported lens with full content, report chain context, and metric rail.

You are viewing an older report from April 10, 2026. A newer flow report is available for May 26, 2026.

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Flow Verdict

Confidence:

8 / 10

base 8.0 (base 5; +2 GEX/flow strongly aligned; +1 spot 0.6% from MP)

Watch next session: Volume and premium at the $79 strike (puts vs calls) — watch whether the heavy $79 put demand persists; Spot reaction around the gamma flip ~$79 and near-term EM lower bound $79.43 (failure to break lower would weaken bearish thesis)

Flow Summary

Net premium: -$11.9M bearish

P/C volume ratio: 2.96 — strongly put-dominant (unusual skew in volume)

P/C OI ratio: 4.63 — heavy put positioning relative to calls

Flow is clearly skewed toward protective or directional put accumulation concentrated at and below spot ($79, $78, $77, $75, $74). Dealers are net short gamma (Total GEX = $-2.5B) and put premium dominates both volume and premium flows, producing a bearish positioning regime with a near-term magnet at $80 but downside structural put floor in the $74–$75 zone.

Notable Prints

HYG260717C00081000 CALL $81.00 (exp 2026-07-17)

Vol: 6,000

OI: 136

Vol/OI: 44.1x

IV: 7.8%

Notional: ~$678,000

Intent: Directional long-dated call purchase (spec or convexity buy) — one-off bullish kicker against otherwise bearish flow

Dual read: Bought calls (bullish) OR part of a structured tail hedge (e.g., bought call to offset longer-dated put exposure) or dealer positioning unwind

Read-through: While size is meaningful for a single order, it is small vs the concentrated put OI and the negative GEX; this does not offset the dominant put flow but signals selective bullish convexity buys in the July wing.

HYG260717C00079000 CALL $79.00 (exp 2026-07-17) — ITM

Vol: 2,227

OI: 731

Vol/OI: 3.0x

IV: 7.8%

Notional: ~$220,500

Intent: Possibly directional call buys or call spreads (ITM calls suggest delta exposure); could be arbitrage/rolls from existing positions

Dual read: Bought ITM calls (bullish) OR shorted/overwritten by sellers converting into collars against longer put exposure

Read-through: Moderate-size activity in July ITM calls; notable but overshadowed by heavy put premium—could indicate selective dealer/offshore demand for upside convexity but not broad reversal signal.

HYG261120P00082000 PUT $82.00 (exp 2026-11-20) — ITM

Vol: 396

OI: 180

Vol/OI: 2.2x

IV: 19.6%

Notional: ~$164,340

Intent: Long-dated protective put accumulation or outright bearish positioning

Dual read: Bought protective puts (risk hedging) OR sold puts as part of longer-dated spread structure (less likely given high IV and OI change)

Read-through: Consistent with institutional hedging / duration protection — longer-dated put demand complements the near-term put concentration and supports a bearish positioning view.

HYG270219P00084000 PUT $84.00 (exp 2027-02-19) — ITM

Vol: 232

OI: 114

Vol/OI: 2.0x

IV: 22.4%

Notional: ~$163,560

Intent: Long-dated downside insurance or speculative bearish exposure

Dual read: Bought puts (bearish/hedge) OR part of a structured trade (e.g., put leg of a diagonal)

Read-through: Adds to evidence of longer-dated institutional demand for downside protection; not huge notional but consistent across expirations in unusual activity list.

HYG261120P00073000 PUT $73.00 (exp 2026-11-20) — OTM

Vol: 644

OI: 322

Vol/OI: 2.0x

IV: 22.5%

Notional: ~$61,208

Intent: Tail protection/speculative out-of-the-money put accumulation

Dual read: Bought cheap OTM puts (speculative) OR layered hedges as part of broader protective structure

Read-through: Adds tail-hedge flavor to the flows; small absolute notional relative to core put clusters but consistent with risk-off structures.

Institutional Positioning

Call additions: Selective long-dated calls around $79–$81 (July calls showed notable prints), but overall call additions are small vs put demand; near-term call OI concentration at $81.00 (246,639 OI) suggests institutional interest in upside caps or short-call walls.

Put additions: Heavy put accumulation at $79.00 (543,301 OI), $77.00 (423,635 OI), $74.00 (368,381 OI), $78.00 (317,096 OI) and $75.00 (298,229 OI) — puts dominate both volume and OI, indicating institutions are either buying protection or building directional short exposure.

GEX/DEX consistency: Yes — negative Total GEX $-2.5B aligns with the bearish flow and large put clusters; DEX +186.1M shares shows dealers are positioned with delta exposure that complements negative gamma.

OI clusters: $79 put cluster (543,301 OI) creates immediate near-spot resistance to upside and acts as a focal point for dealer hedging; $77 and $74 put clusters create layered support/floor expectations (structural put floor at $74–$75). Call OI cluster at $81 (246,639) and $80 (92,388) create a near-term upside pin/magnet ($81 GEX +$429.4M).

Hedging evidence: Strong evidence of large-scale hedging: concentrated protective put OI across near-term strikes and long-dated put purchases in unusual activity. Some long-dated call buys may be asymmetric hedges, but predominant activity is put protection/capture of downside convexity.

Max pain context: Max pain pins near $79–$80 across multiple expirations (2026-04-10 MP $79.50; 4/17 $80.00; 4/24 $79.50). Spot is 'At' MP per regime; flow and negative GEX push into a dynamic where dealers will hedge into spot moves, increasing sensitivity around $79–$81.

Signal vs Noise

~Large near-term weekly expirations: some put activity in the $79 area reflects expiration rolls/positioning into weekly expiries rather than new directional bets — check if volume is concentrated in expiring series.

~Long-dated single-leg call prints (July calls) can be itemized convexity buys or part of more complex structures — on their own they are not large enough to reverse the put-dominant narrative.

~High P/C OI ratio can be inflated by concentrated multi-lot put OI already on the books; some of today's put volume may be adjustments/rolls by institutions (closing short calls or rebalancing hedges) rather than fresh directional shorts.

~Dealer gamma-led hedging: negative GEX means dealers will buy/sell underlying into moves; some order flow will be market-maker inventory reshuffles rather than pure directional alpha.

Key Conclusions

🐻Flow is bearish and put-dominant: Net premium -$11.9M and P/C volume ratio 2.96 with heavy put OI at $79, $77, $74 reinforces downside bias.

⚠️Dealers are short gamma (Total GEX = $-2.5B) — expect amplified spot moves near the gamma flip ~$79 and increased dealer hedging sensitivity.

📌Near-term magnet between $79–$81: Max pain and large call OI at $81 (+$429.4M GEX) create a pin zone while heavy puts create selling pressure below.

🛡️Institutional hedging evident: longer-dated put buys and concentrated short-dated put OI indicate active downside protection rather than purely speculative noise.

🔍Watch $79 strikes and gamma flip: a break and hold below ~$79 (with continuing put premium) would confirm bearish thesis; failure to break or rapid put roll-off would weaken it.

How to Use These Reports

This flow reflects the market close on April 10, 2026.

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Each report translates the same market-close options snapshot into a specific lens such as directional bias, premium-selling posture, flow quality, or earnings setup.

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These are interpretation layers, not execution guarantees. Validate the setup against chain liquidity, expected move, and exposure before sizing risk.

If the report conviction and the raw data disagree, slow down and resolve the mismatch before sizing risk.