Notable Wednesday Option Activity: TSLA, MCY, COST

Options activity in Mercury General (MCY) and Costco (COST) is elevated: MCY options traded 2,144 contracts today (≈214,400 underlying shares), equal to about 119.5% of MCY’s one‑month average daily volume, with notable interest in the $90 March 20, 2026 call (513 contracts, ≈51,300 shares). COST saw 27,183 option contracts trade (≈2.7 million underlying shares), roughly 113.3% of its one‑month average daily volume, led by the $880 December 12, 2025 put (761 contracts, ≈76,100 shares). These prints point to outsized options positioning in both names—potentially directional bets or hedges ahead of the listed expiries—which could influence near‑term volatility and liquidity in the underlying stocks.

Analysis

Mercury General Corp. (MCY) options printed 2,144 contracts today, equivalent to ~214,400 underlying shares or 119.5% of MCY’s one‑month average daily volume of 179,480 shares. The $90 call expiring March 20, 2026 accounted for 513 contracts (~51,300 shares), indicating concentrated bullish positioning or a large structured trade at that strike.

Costco Wholesale (COST) registered 27,183 option contracts (~2.7 million underlying shares), about 113.3% of its one‑month average daily volume of 2.4 million shares. The $880 put expiring December 12, 2025 saw 761 contracts (~76,100 shares), a sizable print consistent with either protective hedging by longs or directional bearish bets relative to typical flow.

The thematic signals classify overall sentiment as neutral with a modest market‑impact score (0.3) and per‑ticker skews of +0.2 for MCY and −0.3 for COST, which aligns with the call‑heavy read on MCY and put‑heavy read on COST. Given the expiries, these concentrated option positions could amplify near‑term volatility and liquidity in the underlyings; monitoring open interest, implied volatility moves and post‑print price action will help distinguish hedging from speculative positioning.

Key Decisions for Investors

• For MCY: consider a tactical long or call exposure given concentrated $90 Mar‑2026 call activity but size positions conservatively and wait for confirming moves in the underlying and IV behavior
• For COST: consider hedging existing long exposure or tightening risk parameters ahead of the Dec‑12‑2025 put expiry given heavy $880 put activity, or evaluate selling premium only if comfortable with downside assignment risk
• For both names: monitor changes in open interest, bid/ask spreads and implied volatility around the cited expiries to determine whether flows are hedges or directional bets, avoid initiating large directional positions until option flow clarity emerges