January 22, 2026 at Intel headquarters in Santa Clara, California.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
Semiconductor stocks have driven the U.S. stock market to record highs in recent days, and traders predict this will mean big swings in semiconductor stocks. intel After earnings after the bell on Thursday.
In the report, the option is priced at a price move of $6.23, which is about a 9% move. That’s not unusual for semiconductor manufacturers. After announcing fourth-quarter results in January, the stock price fell 18% before rising 50% this month alone.
The semiconductor group is up 145% over the past year, with Intel a major leader, up over 230% over this period.
The problem is that the stock price has fallen after three of the last four earnings reports.
Sentiment seems to be turning more bullish this time around. There are about as many puts as calls, but data compiled by Spot Gamma shows that option traders are paying higher premiums on upside calls, totaling nearly $100 million compared to $50 million for puts.
A large bullish trader spent $2.2 million this morning buying 3,200 $70 strike calls expiring on June 18th. Given the stock’s recent history of falling post-earnings, this seems less like a bet on Friday’s direction and more about the stock’s ability to add to a long-term uptrend that’s been going on since last summer.
