Amazon.com ended trading at USD 261.06, a 0.39% decline.

The options tape showed a clear institutional tilt toward downside protection, headlined by a $1.56 million long put position targeting the $240 strike for October 2026. A second notable trade involved selling $875,000 worth of $260 puts for September 2026. On balance, the largest block activity leaned bearish, with more premium directed toward hedging and cautious positioning than toward aggressive upside bets, even as current option pricing remained relatively inexpensive.

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Options Indicators

AMZN’s implied volatility is 31.60%, and its IV percentile of 23.51% places current volatility in the lower end of its historical range, indicating that options are relatively cheaply priced rather than expensive. With the IV/HV ratio at 0.53, implied volatility is also running below realized volatility, reinforcing the view that current option premiums are on the inexpensive side and that the market is not pricing in especially aggressive forward volatility. The Call/Put volume ratio is 1.80, reflecting higher call volume overall, but the largest displayed institutional trades still leaned toward put-side activity.

Large Trades

A PUT buy worth $1.56 million was the largest displayed trade, with buyers taking 4,000 contracts of the $240.00 put expiring on 2026-10-16. With AMZN referenced at $261.06, this strike was out of the money at the time of the trade, making it a bearish position that points to downside anticipation over a longer-dated horizon. The trade suggests the buyer was willing to pay premium for protection or for a directional bet that AMZN could weaken materially before expiration.

A PUT sale worth $875,000 was the other displayed large trade, involving 1,250 contracts of the $260.00 put expiring on 2026-09-18. With the stock reference at $261.06, this strike was also slightly out of the money, so the trade reflects a moderately bullish stance, typically consistent with premium collection and a view that AMZN can hold above the strike into expiration. Overall, the large-trade flow leans bearish on balance, as the biggest order was a sizable long put purchase and the broader block activity also showed more downside-oriented premium than upside-oriented positioning, indicating institutions were more focused on hedging or expressing caution than on aggressively chasing upside.

Strategy Reference

For traders seeking a low assignment probability on the put side, the $240 strike for October 2026 currently sits well below spot and aligns with the biggest displayed bearish order, making it a candidate for sellers who want a wider downside cushion. Alternatively, a bear put spread using the $260/$240 strikes could define risk while still benefiting from the downside bias, without requiring the full margin of a naked long put position.