Weekly Pulse – Week of Aug 17-21, 2026 – Free-source build
Bull regime held; net call premium 2.0x put across 5 sessions; no single-name positioning carried through the week.
How to read this Pulse
KPI strip → Sector tape → Concentration (top single-name net premium) → This Week’s Tell → Dark-pool prints (FINRA T-14) → What changed → Next session catalysts → Data quality + methodology + disclaimer. The KPI strip carries the headline reads; the rest is the structure beneath them.
Key Level
SPY $766
Above gamma flipCall Premium
$29.09B
vs Put $14.24BP/C Volume
0.65
ratioSector TapeClose · net options premium
| ETF · Sector | Day % | Call prem | Put prem | Net |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SPY S&P 500 (broad market) | +0.41% | $721.0M | $749.8M | -$28.8M |
| XLB Materials | +2.14% | $943.4K | $5.2M | -$4.3M |
| XLC Communication Services | +0.65% | $255.4K | $20.3K | $235.1K |
| XLE Energy | -0.17% | $12.3M | $3.6M | $8.6M |
| XLF Financials | +0.93% | $27.8M | $4.5M | $23.3M |
| XLI Industrials | +0.27% | $756.7K | $417.2K | $339.5K |
| XLK Technology | +0.11% | $7.1M | $4.9M | $2.1M |
| XLP Consumer Staples | +0.79% | $1.5M | $1.3M | $166.8K |
| XLRE Real Estate | +0.00% | $50.8K | $48.1K | $2.7K |
| XLU Utilities | -2.28% | $1.9M | $3.6M | -$1.7M |
| XLV Health Care | +1.29% | $6.4M | $1.1M | $5.3M |
| XLY Consumer Discretionary | +1.15% | $1.2M | $148.2K | $1.1M |
ConcentrationTop single-name net premium
Tech anchors
- MU+$946.5K
- NVDA+$660.6K
- SMH-$353.5K
- TSLA+$164.7K
- AMZN+$148.5K
Non-tech anchors
- SPY-$2.8M
- RUTW+$1.3M
- SPXW+$1.2M
- GCT-$650.0K
- PLTR+$616.3K
This Week’s TellStandout single-name positioning
Quiet Tape
No standout single-name positioning today.
Flow distributed evenly across index products. No single ticker accumulated the kind of one-sided ask-side imbalance or concentrated dark-pool absorption that draws institutional attention. Tape stayed in observation mode.
Dark-Pool TellsFINRA OTC ATS · T-14 lag
| Ticker | Total premium | Mega-prints (≥100K) | Print count |
|---|---|---|---|
| AAPL | $1.84B | 12 | 500 |
| SPY | $1.65B | 9 | 500 |
| NVDA | $1.43B | 12 | 500 |
| QQQ | $1.41B | 7 | 500 |
| MSFT | $1.41B | 6 | 500 |
| GOOGL | $974.4M | 4 | 500 |
| AVGO | $697.1M | 3 | 500 |
| META | $625.8M | 3 | 500 |
| AMZN | $559.7M | 3 | 500 |
| TSLA | $486.2M | 2 | 500 |
FINRA ATS publishes with a T-14 lag — the off-exchange tape here reflects institutional activity two weeks ago, not the current session.
Cross-Sector Insider HeatmapSEC Form 4 net flow – last 5 sessions
Heaviest selling in Technology.
What ChangedSession deltas
- ▲ Week call-premium total $29.09B vs put $14.24B = 2.0x call-heavy.
- ▲ Materials (XLB) closed Fri at $53.54 (+2.14%).
- ● Five-session window covered: 2026-08-17 through 2026-08-21.
Next Session CatalystsEyes on the tape
No major confirmed catalysts · week of Aug 24-28
Sector heatmap · Concentration · Dark pool · By-the-numbers