Today's Options Market Update

Stocks edged up after a news report said President Trump told aides he is willing to end the war in Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed. However, recent rallies haven't shown much staying power and White House statements appear to be getting less credence from market participants. Also, crude remained above $100 per barrel, and U.S. gas prices hit $4 a gallon.

The last day of the quarter kicks off a parade of labor reports that crescendo Friday with March nonfarm payrolls. Another gloomy reading after February's 92,000 decline would likely reignite recession concerns, especially considering high oil prices. Before that, consumer confidence data is due at 10 a.m. ET, along with job openings. Nike (NKE) reports after the closing bell and three Federal Reserve speakers are peppered through the day.

Major indexes mostly flopped Monday when an early yield-fueled rally lost steam amid growing risk-off sentiment. Only the Dow Jones Industrial Average managed to buck the lower trend, and chip shares plunged. The S&P 500 Index remains in a technical downtrend, though the last day of a quarter sometimes features "window dressing" where fund managers sell losing stocks and buy gainers, providing some positive momentum.

Source: Schwab Center for Financial Research

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield (TNX) is lower by ~1 basis point to 4.327%.

The U.S. Dollar Index ($DXY) is lower by 0.51 to 100.00.

WTI Crude Oil (/CL) is lower by 0.30% to $102.57/barrel.

Gold prices have traded in a range of $4,510.00-4,656.10 and were last seen trading higher by ~2.00% to $4,648.70/oz.

Natural Gas prices for March futures have traded in a range of $2.803-2.977 today and were last seen trading higher by 2.08% to $2.946.

Bitcoin (BTC) is higher by ~1.03% over the last 24 hours to $67,416.23 today.

Shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (FDS + $11.11 to $215.66) after the financial data services provider reported Q2 adjusted EPS of $4.46 ($0.09 beat) on Q2 revenue that increased 7.07% year-over-year to $611.019M (above the $604.51M expected). The company also raised its full-year 2026 (FY26) EPS guidance to a range of $17.25-17.75 (from $16.90-17.60) and FY26 revenue to a range of $2.45-2.47B (from $2.423-22.448B). Calls and puts are trading roughly even with the April 17^th 195.00 put being the highest volume contract (volume is 56).

Also trading to the upside this morning is Shake Shack Inc. (SHAK + $3.87 to $87.40) after Bank of America Securities (BofA) upgraded the burger chain to “Neutral” from “Underperform” and increased their price target on the stock to $101.00 from $88.00. BofA analyst Sara Senatore cited menu innovation and supply chain improvements as primary drivers of the ratings change. Calls and puts are trading roughly even with the April 2^nd 90.00 call leading the way (volume is 93).

New 52-week highs (40 new highs today): Dow Inc. (DOW + $0.68 to $42.55), Pfizer Inc. (PFE + $0.43 to $28.20), Westlake Corp. (WLK + $2.33 to $118.33)

Some unusual call activity (~100:1 calls over puts) is being seen in AstraZeneca PLC (AZN + $0.22 to $194.10) as option traders primarily target the April 17^th 220.00 call. Volume on this contract is 5,761 versus open interest of 120, so it’s likely that nearly all the volume represents fresh positioning. The bulk of the transactions consisted of various-sized blocks that were bought at various times for between $0.25-0.32 each, which suggests bullish intent.

Shares of McCormick & Co. Inc. (MKC - $3.15 to $50.57) are moving lower this morning after the maker of herbs, spices and seasoning mixes announced that it is has entered into an agreement to merge with Unilever’s (UL - $2.70 to $57.28) Foods business, excluding India and other excluded businesses. MKC shareholders are expected to own 35% of the combined company (UL shareholders will own 65%) and the companies said the merger is expected to realize $600M in synergies by year 3 following the closing of the transaction. MKC also reported Q1 earnings, which beat analysts’ estimates, along with providing in-line FY26 guidance. MKC calls are outnumbering puts ~2:1 with the April 17^th 50.00 call being the highest volume contract (volume is 1,285).

Also trading to the downside is Progress Software Co. (PRGS - $1.48 to $26.79) despite delivering better-than-expected quarterly results last night after the market close. PRGS posted Q1 adjusted EPS of $1.60 ($0.03 beat) on Q1 sales of $247.799M (above the $246.401M expected). Looking ahead, the company said that Q2 adjusted EPS is expected to come in a range of $1.47-1.53 (above the $1.41 consensus estimate) on Q2 sales that are expected to come in a range of $240-246M (vs. the $241.247M expected). The stock received two price target cuts this morning – Oppenheimer lowered their PT to $57.00 from $70.00 and Wedbush cut their PT to $45.00 from $65.00 (both maintained their “Outperform” rating). Calls are outnumbering puts ~4:1 with the April 17^th 30.00 call seeing the most action from traders (volume is 861).

New 52-week lows (72 new lows today): Avalonbay Communities (AVB + $1.06 to $160.84), Kimberly-Clark Corp. (KMB - $0.99 to $95.36), Unilever PLC (UL - $2.83 to $57.15)

Some unusual put activity (~100:1 puts over calls) is being seen in Host Hotels & Resort Inc. (HST + $0.01 to $18.97) as option traders primarily target the May 15^th 18.00 put. Volume on this contract is 3,685 versus open interest of 28, so it’s likely that nearly all the volume represents fresh positioning. The bulk of the transactions consisted of various mid-sized blocks that were sold within a 10-minute window at the bid price of $0.45 each. The put sales suggest that the block trader(s) believe that HST will close above the $18.00 price level and/or are comfortable taking a long position in the stock at an effective purchase price of $17.55 if HST closes below $18.00 at expiration.

Hexcel Corp. (HXL + $2.41 to $79.47): Option volume is running at ~289x the daily average on this maker of aerospace and defense components which is primarily driven by a 5,250 contract block that was bought on the April 17^th 60.00 call for $19.50 when the bid/ask spread was $17.20 x $20.10 (open interest is 0). We know that this block is a new position based on the open interest figure, and we can assume that the intent is bullish in nature since the trade took place above the midpoint of the bid/ask spread.

Primo Brands Corp. (PRMB + $0.11 to $18.57): Option volume is running at ~47x the daily average on this beverage maker which is primarily driven by a 13,000 contract block that was bought on the April 17^th 14.00 call for $4.80 when the bid/ask spread was $4.10 x $5.40 (open interest is 4). We know that this block is a new position based on the open interest figure, and we can assume that the intent is bullish in nature since the trade took place above the midpoint of the bid/ask spread.

COMPASS Pathways PLC (CMPS + $0.22 to $5.46): Option volume is running at ~12x the daily average on this biotech firm which is primarily driven by activity on the May 15^th 7.00 call. Volume on this contract is 3,727 versus open interest of 757, wo we know that the activity primarily represents fresh positioning. The activity included an 1,800 contract block that was bought at the ask price of $0.30. We know that this block is a new position based on the open interest figure, and we can assume that the intent is bullish in nature since the trade took place at the ask price.

The Cboe Volatility Index (VIX - 2.83 to 27.78) has been in negative territory all day today (the intraday range is 27.21-29.34), as equity markets are higher around the midday mark (DJI + 412, SPX + 78, $COMP + 345). VIX option volume is average today at 375,389 contracts, and calls are outnumbering puts ~3:2 so far today.