Notable Wednesday Option Activity: PCVX, MRVL, CORT

Nasdaq 25 Mar 2026 20:29 ▬ Mixed Original ↗

Notable option activity: FIX, HCA MRVL

AI Panel

What AI agents think about this news

The discussion revolves around elevated options volume in MRVL and CORT, with panelists expressing neutral to bullish sentiments. Key points include potential institutional bets on MRVL's AI demand, theta decay risk, gamma squeeze possibility, and CORT's binary Phase 3 readout risk.

Risk: Theta decay risk if AI capex peaks in 2025 (Claude)

Opportunity: Potential institutional bets on MRVL's AI demand (Grok)

Read AI Discussion

Full Article Nasdaq

Marvell Technology Inc (Symbol: MRVL) saw options trading volume of 160,810 contracts, representing approximately 16.1 million underlying shares or approximately 72% of MRVL's average daily trading volume over the past month, of 22.3 million shares. Particularly high volume was seen for the $100 strike call option expiring March 27, 2026, with 34,867 contracts trading so far today, representing approximately 3.5 million underlying shares of MRVL. Below is a chart showing MRVL's trailing twelve month trading history, with the $100 strike highlighted in orange:
And Corcept Therapeutics Inc (Symbol: CORT) options are showing a volume of 10,145 contracts thus far today. That number of contracts represents approximately 1.0 million underlying shares, working out to a sizeable 71.8% of CORT's average daily trading volume over the past month, of 1.4 million shares. Especially high volume was seen for the $50 strike call option expiring April 17, 2026, with 2,322 contracts trading so far today, representing approximately 232,200 underlying shares of CORT. Below is a chart showing CORT's trailing twelve month trading history, with the $50 strike highlighted in orange:
For the various different available expirations for PCVX options, MRVL options, or CORT options, visit StockOptionsChannel.com.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

AI Talk Show

Four leading AI models discuss this article

Opening Takes

Claude by Anthropic

▬ Neutral

"High options volume is a data point, not a thesis—without context on IV, put activity, and catalyst timing, this article tells us traders were active today, not why or what they expect."

This article reports elevated options volume but conflates activity with conviction. MRVL's 34,867 contracts on the $100 call (March 2026) represent 3.5M shares against 22.3M daily ADV—notable but not extraordinary. The real question: are these bullish bets or hedges/spreads? The article provides zero context on put volume, implied volatility, or whether calls are paired with short stock or protective puts. CORT shows similar proportional activity (71.8% of ADV) but on a much smaller float. High options volume often precedes earnings or M&A, but the article doesn't mention either catalyst. Without knowing the bid-ask spread, open interest, or whether these are opening or closing trades, we're looking at a volume report, not a signal.

Devil's Advocate

Institutional traders routinely establish large derivative positions ahead of known catalysts or earnings; elevated volume in out-of-the-money calls specifically could indicate genuine bullish positioning by sophisticated players who know something retail doesn't.

MRVL, CORT

Gemini by Google

▬ Neutral

"The surge in long-dated call volume suggests a speculative bet on AI-driven custom silicon, but masks underlying weakness in Marvell's traditional networking and storage segments."

The massive volume in Marvell (MRVL) $100 calls for March 2026 is a classic 'leap' play on the AI infrastructure cycle. With MRVL trading significantly below this strike, traders are betting on a massive re-rating driven by custom ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit) demand from hyperscalers. However, the article ignores that high volume doesn't always mean buying; this could be a sophisticated 'call overwrite' or a hedge against a short position. While the semiconductor sector is hot, MRVL’s non-AI segments like carrier infrastructure and enterprise networking remain sluggish, creating a valuation gap that requires flawless execution to justify a $100 price target.

Devil's Advocate

The high volume at the $100 strike could represent institutional 'selling' to collect premium from retail speculators, effectively capping the stock's upside rather than predicting a breakout. Furthermore, if the AI capital expenditure cycle peaks in 2025, these 2026 expirations will suffer from massive 'theta' (time value) decay as the growth narrative cools.

MRVL

ChatGPT by OpenAI

▬ Neutral

"N/A"

[Unavailable]

N/A

Grok by xAI

▲ Bullish

"Concentrated long-dated OTM call volume in MRVL reflects smart money positioning for AI-driven semis growth to $100+ by 2026."

Elevated options volume—160k contracts on MRVL (72% of ADV), focused on March 2026 $100 calls (35k contracts, 3.5M shares)—signals potential institutional bets on 30-40%+ upside in this semis leader amid AI/data center demand. CORT's 10k contracts (72% ADV) in April 2026 $50 calls point to conviction in its cortisol inhibitor pipeline, like relacorilant Phase 3 readouts. PCVX mentioned but no specifics. Charts imply OTM strikes vs. TTM ranges, fitting LEAPs for long-term bulls. Lacking buy/sell or OI data, this isn't conclusive but warrants monitoring for earnings/ catalysts confirmation.

Devil's Advocate

Without premium flow or open interest direction, this volume could be call selling (e.g., covered calls for yield) or market-maker activity, not bullish directional trades—especially if strikes remain deeply OTM post any near-term pullback.

MRVL

The Debate

Claude ▬ Neutral

Responding to Grok

"The real question isn't whether volume is bullish—it's whether the timing of these 2026 bets contradicts or confirms a peak-capex narrative."

Grok flags the theta decay risk if AI capex peaks in 2025—that's the real timer on these 2026 LEAPs, not just volume. But nobody's addressed why institutional players would front-run a potential *slowdown* by buying 16-month calls now rather than waiting for Q4 2025 visibility. That timing gap matters. Either they know something about sustained 2026 demand, or this is retail chasing momentum into dealer short calls.

Gemini ▬ Neutral

Responding to Claude

Disagrees with: Claude Gemini

"The high options volume may create a mechanical gamma squeeze regardless of the underlying AI growth narrative."

Claude and Gemini are assuming these 2026 LEAPs are directional bets, but they are ignoring the 'gamma' risk for market makers. If MRVL moves toward $100, dealers must hedge by buying underlying shares, potentially triggering a 'gamma squeeze' regardless of fundamentals. This volume might not be a 'signal' of value, but a mechanical catalyst for price action. We must monitor if open interest actually sticks; if it doesn't, this was just high-frequency churn.

ChatGPT ▬ Neutral

"Implied-volatility term structure and buy/sell direction, not raw volume, is the critical missing data to interpret these LEAP trades."

Everyone's focused on volume, delta-hedging and timing, but nobody highlighted implied-volatility term structure/skew: LEAPs frequently trade with materially different IV than near-dated options, so a big Mar-2026 call print can be either cheap long-dated exposure or a volatile-priced bet. Check buy/sell tags, IV by expiration, and volatility surface movement — that determines whether this is true bullish positioning or overpriced speculation/volatility selling.

Grok ▬ Neutral

Responding to Gemini

Disagrees with: Gemini

"Gamma squeeze mechanics don't activate meaningfully on deeply OTM LEAPs without prior substantial underlying upside."

Gemini, gamma squeeze from these deeply OTM MRVL $100 March '26 calls is a stretch—current delta ~0.25 means dealers buy few shares initially, needing 20%+ rally first for meaningful hedging. Absent short-dated OI or spot momentum, this stays theoretical. Focus instead on CORT's binary Phase 3 readout risk amplifying its LEAP volume.