PLTR Call Flow Piles Into $160-165 Strikes Ahead of Q2 Print

The Flow Snapshot

PLTR options desks lit up today with $155.8M in net bullish premium, a sizable imbalance for a single session. The flow wasn't one headline block. It came via repeated hits, smaller prints stacking into the same strikes throughout the day.

The August 7 expiry dominated. Calls at the $160 strike saw $190k in repeated ascending fills (a pattern where each fill prices above the last, suggesting a buyer lifting offers). The $162.50 strike drew $280k, and the $165 strike pulled in two separate clusters totaling $270k combined. These aren't lottery tickets. With PLTR trading around $162 after Monday's earnings reaction, these strikes sit near or just above the current level.

Why the August 7 Expiry Matters

Palantir reported Q2 results after Monday's close on August 3. The stock moved roughly 29% in response, gapping well above the $123 level it held going into the print. With the August 7 expiry falling this Friday, these calls capture the final days of the earnings move without the full IV crush that would hit longer tenors.

The earnings results were strong. Palantir posted $0.41 EPS against a $0.34 consensus estimate, a 21% beat. Revenue came in near $1.81 billion. The company had already raised its full year revenue guidance to $7.65 billion, representing over 70% growth. Analysts at Baird have a $200 target on the stock. All of this context matters because today's flow isn't random call buying. It's positioning into a name that just delivered and still trades 20% below its 52-week high of $207.

Reading the RepeatedHits Pattern

Every alert on today's list carried the RepeatedHits flag. This pattern triggers when the same strike and expiry see multiple fills over a short window, often from the same counterparty or desk. It doesn't confirm direction on its own, but it does suggest a programmatic buyer or seller working a position.

When you see RepeatedHits on out-of-the-money calls (the $175 November strike, for example, drew $150k), the natural assumption is bullish conviction. But consider the alternative: someone selling covered calls against a long equity position, or rolling an existing short call higher. We don't have visibility into the delta of the counterparty's book. The cleaner read comes from near-the-money strikes like $160 and $162.50 where the gamma is higher and directional exposure is more obvious.

Dealer Positioning and Gamma

With a large call imbalance at strikes between $160 and $165, dealers who sold those calls are likely short gamma in that zone. Short gamma means dealers have to buy stock as it rises and sell as it falls, which can amplify intraday moves in either direction.

If PLTR continues to grind higher toward $165, dealer hedging flows could accelerate the move. But the inverse is also true. A reversal back toward $150 would see dealers selling into the decline. The August 7 expiry concentrates this dynamic into a narrow window. Friday's close will determine whether those calls expire in the money or get pinned worthless. The $160 strike is the inflection point to watch.

Longer Dated Flow

The bulk of today's action sat in the weekly expiry, but there was some activity further out. The October 16 $165 calls saw $50k in repeated hits, and the November 20 $175 calls drew $150k. These prints are smaller in dollar terms but suggest someone is building a position for a continuation move through the second half of the year.

Palantir's next scheduled earnings date is unconfirmed but projected for early November. The November $175 calls would capture that event. At $175, the strike implies roughly 8% upside from today's close. Given that options were pricing a 12% move into the August print, an 8% target into November isn't aggressive. It's roughly one standard deviation.

You can track follow-on flow in these strikes using the [Whale Alerts dashboard](/whalealerts).

What to Watch

The $160 strike is where dealer delta flips. If PLTR holds above $160 into Friday, expect the $165 calls to move into the money and potentially trigger additional hedging demand. If the stock fades below $157, the August 7 calls lose their teeth and the short gamma effect dissipates.

The broader question is whether Monday's earnings gap holds. The stock ran from $123 to $162 in a single session. That kind of move invites profit taking. Today's call buying suggests at least some participants expect the gap to hold or extend. Whether that's new money chasing or existing longs rolling up, we can't know for certain.

Watch for new flow at the $170 strike. If repeated hits start printing there, it would confirm the bullish thesis is spreading up the chain.