Home Options SPYReports

SPY

SPDR S&P 500 ETFClose $701.66EOD only

Max Pain

$678.00

Next expiry Apr 17, 2026

Expected Move

±$3.54

0.5% from close

Price Gap

-23.66

Distance to max pain

IV Rank

Middle-high premium

P/C OI

2.45

Slightly put-heavy

Consensus

6.5/10

Range bias

Published snapshot: Apr 16, 2026 close

End-of-day snapshot

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

Published Snapshot

Apr 16, 2026 close

SPY Flow Report

Analysis based on market close April 15, 2026

Directional Theta Gang Flow Earnings Consensus

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

Flow Verdict

Confidence:

9 / 10

base 5; +2 GEX/flow strongly aligned; +1 GEX positive (pinning); +0.5 spot 1.1% from MP; +0.5 VIX 18

Watch next session: Persistence or escalation of call notional at 694-700 (watch if traded call notional remains near or above today's levels, including any >100k-contract prints); Front-expiry exercise/assignment flows around $692-$700 and any large put prints that would force dealers to sell into the market

Flow Summary

Net premium: +$1.5B bullish

P/C volume ratio: 0.81 (put volume slightly higher by contract count)

P/C OI ratio: 2.45

Although raw put/call volume (0.81) shows more put contracts traded by count, the premium-weighted flow is decisively call-biased: the top premium strikes (696-700) show call notional >> put notional (e.g., $697 call net premium +$254.4M). Large, concentrated front-expiry call prints (SPY260415C00699000 vol=561,138; SPY260415C00696000 vol=485,876; SPY260416C00698000 vol=113,496) drive the +$1.5B net premium and produce outsized dealer short-gamma exposure. In short: volume-count metrics understate the bullish, premium-weighted demand; dealers are short near-dated upside and will hedge by buying delta, supporting pinning inside the 2d EM $696.17-$703.71.

Notable Prints

SPY260415C00699000

Vol: 561,138

OI: 9,510

Vol/OI: 59.0x

IV: 0.0%

Notional: ~$31.8M (call notional significant)

Intent: Large short-dated directional call buys or structured call sells being hedged; vol >> OI suggests front-expiry/flow-driven opens/closes with high market impact.

Dual read: Could be aggressive call buying by directional players or dealer-driven structured sales; either way it increases dealer short-delta exposure and forces hedging buys in spot.

Read-through: Major contributor to the premium-led bullish bias; materially increases dealer short-gamma and reinforces pinning around $694-$700.

SPY260415C00696000

Vol: 485,876

OI: 6,828

Vol/OI: 71.2x

IV: 0.0%

Notional: ~$33.0M

Intent: Same-session large call activity (likely opening call buys or rolls into front calls); very high volume-to-OI implies expiry management and aggressive short-dated positioning.

Dual read: Could be delta-hedge heavy market-maker activity, but the scale points to client-driven call demand met by dealers.

Read-through: Reinforces the call-side premium concentration at the 694-700 band and amplifies dealer hedging needs.

SPY260416C00698000

Vol: 113,496

OI: 1,742

Vol/OI: 65.2x

IV: 8.4%

Notional: ~$9.5M

Intent: Next-day/one-day call demand into 4/16 expiry; sizeable relative to OI indicating expiry flow/short-dated call accumulation.

Dual read: Likely fresh short-dated bullish positioning rather than long-term call accumulation.

Read-through: Adds follow-through to the front-expiry call theme and increases short-dated delta pressure on dealers.

SPY260415P00697000

Vol: 623,963

OI: 1,286

Vol/OI: 485.2x

IV: 5.4%

Notional: ~$31.2M

Intent: Front-expiry put selling or expiry churn (closing/assignment activity) rather than fresh long-put buying given low IV and massive vol/OI.

Dual read: Could reflect clients buying puts being met by dealers; however vol/OI and context favor expiry management flows.

Read-through: Contributes to heavy front-dated churn and supports pinning dynamics rather than a new bearish structural signal.

SPY260416P00697000

Vol: 96,722

OI: 184

Vol/OI: 525.7x

IV: 10.9%

Notional: ~$10.1M

Intent: Short-dated put activity likely tied to expiry rolling/closing rather than lasting directional positioning.

Dual read: Could be last-minute protective trades, but high vol/OI and proximity to expiry weigh toward expiry-driven flows.

Read-through: Adds to noise around front expiries; does not negate the premium-weighted call dominance.

Institutional Positioning

Call additions: Heavy, short-dated call additions concentrated at 694-700 (large front-expiry call execution including SPY260415C00699000 and SPY260415C00696000). Institutions/traders are loading or rolling into near-dated upside exposure; premium-weighted call flow dominates despite put-heavy contract counts.

Put additions: Large structural put OI remains in deep strikes ($535, $520, $530, $590, $650) reflecting longer-term defensive positioning, but today's near-term put prints are dominated by expiry churn rather than fresh institutional protective buys.

GEX/DEX consistency: Flow and positioning align with a positive GEX (+$4.1B) and positive DEX (+312.7M shares). The very large front-dated call notional materially increases dealer short-gamma/delta exposure, so dealer hedging (buying underlying into strength) should amplify upside pinning inside $696.17-$703.71.

OI clusters: Structural OI clusters sit far below spot (e.g., $535 PUT OI=204,119; $520 PUT OI=202,381) creating a longer-term put floor ($495-$650). Near-term OI clusters for calls at $700/$694 and puts at $694/$681 generate a tight pin zone around current spot and near-term max pain ($692).

Hedging evidence: Strong evidence of short-dated dealer hedging: concentrated front-expiry call flow has increased dealers' short-gamma exposure, implying delta-buying hedges that support price; broader long-dated put OI indicates macro hedges exist but are not the driver of today's call-premium-led action.

Max pain context: Max pain is sliding downward across expiries (today $692 → $680 later), but current flow and heavy short-dated call premium are consistent with pinning around the near-term MP ($692) and EM guardrails ($696.17-$703.71).

Signal vs Noise

~Front-expiry activity (SPY260415... & SPY260416...) is dominated by very high vol/OI ratios (hundreds of x) — likely expiry closing/rolling and not pure new directional conviction.

~Large OI in deep puts (e.g., $535/$520/$530) is structural and long-dated hedging (not actionable for near-term directional reads).

~Some call prints may be market-maker inventory adjustments or delta-hedge related given zero/low quoted IV for certain front-date contracts; interpret with caution.

Key Conclusions

🐂Short-dated call demand centered at 694–700 plus positive GEX points to a bullish/pinning near-term setup inside the 2d EM $696.17-$703.71.

🧾Much of the largest volume is expiry-driven (4/15–4/16) — expect pinning and hedging churn rather than a clean breakout unless follow-through prints appear next session.

🛡️Structural put OI deep below spot (notably $535/$520/$530 clusters) remains a long-term downside floor ($495-$650) but is not constraining the immediate bullish flow.

Read the Flow analysis for SPY for 2026-04-15. Each report is a market-close snapshot with regime read, key levels, and strategy context that translates options positioning into an actionable setup.