Record Volume in SpaceX Options Shows Stock Casino Open for Business
NEWS | 17 June 2026
Are you numb to all the records SpaceX's IPO has broken so far? Does your brain have room for one more? Elon Musk's rockets-and-AI juggernaut took the market by storm (again) on Tuesday during the first day of options trading since its historic offering last week. SpaceX ultimately saw more than 1.6 million lots of options traded, Bloomberg data showed, shattering the previous first-day record of 364,000 set by Meta in 2012. Those familiar with the retail-investor exploits of the Gamestop era know that the introduction of options to the trading equation is when things can get especially wild. Options are the market on top of the market. Sure, they can be used as protective hedges. But they're also a vessel for speculation — a way for traders to add risk and juice possible returns. This is the use case that soared in popularity during the post-COVID retail boom. Take for example the options that offer two-times leverage for popular — and already-volatile— retail stocks like Tesla and Nvidia. No matter what, the bravest investors will find risk. While it's far too early to draw any overarching conclusions from the market's first day slinging Spacex options, it's still useful to monitor the activity. Here are some highlights from day one. All upside percentages were calculated from Tuesday's closing price of $201.80. The 7 most-traded options Call option betting on SPCX to rise 9% to $220 by June 18: 64,893 Call option betting on SPCX to rise 4% to $210 by June 18: 63,425 Put option betting on SPCX to fall 1% to $200 by June 18: 55,473 Call option betting on SPCX to rise 24% to $250 by June 18: 54,140 Call option betting on SPCX to rise 7% to $215 by June 18: 46,199 Call option betting on SPCX to rise 49% to $300 by June 18: 41,146 Put option betting on SPCX to fall 11% to $180 by June 18: 38,866 (Note: Options volume doesn't show whether contracts were bought or sold, making it impossible to determine overall bullish or bearish sentiment from volume alone.) All seven of the most-traded contracts expire Thursday. Some are tied to relatively modest moves in the stock over the next two days, while others would require a dramatic rally to pay off. Other odds and ends:
Author: More Stories. Joe Ciolli. Every Time. Look Out For An Alert In Your Inbox The Next Time.
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