COPX max pain for the Oct 16, 2026 expiry is $85. The last price, $85.75, is 0.9% above it. Call wall $100 · put floor $80.
What the institutional money is doing on COPX right now — dark pool, options positioning, and where the news and the money disagree. Free.
The story is bullish on copper, and options positioning leans a little toward calls, but volume is balanced, so the money signals only partly agree.
The article is bullish, and call positioning leans the same way, but the signal is mild and volume is balanced.
The story is cautious about oil, while COPX options lean slightly toward calls, so the money and the news point in different directions.
Copper is at a record high in this story, and options lean toward calls with balanced volume, so the signals are mildly bullish but not conclusive.
The story is bullish on copper miners, and call positioning leans the same way, but volume is balanced and the signal is modest.
A divergence is when the news narrative and the institutional money flow point in opposite directions — a bearish headline while large call premium is bought, or heavy dark-pool selling under a bullish story. It signals the crowd and the desks may disagree.
Dark-pool volume — The share of trading executed off-exchange, at wholesalers and dark pools. About half of all US share volume prints there on an ordinary day, so the level by itself says almost nothing. What carries information is the distance from this name’s own recent norm, and whether the off-exchange size ran above its usual.
Off-exchange short share — How much of that off-exchange volume was sold short. The median across all listed names is about 49%, because wholesalers filling retail buy orders sell short and cover later. A reading near half is plumbing, not a bearish vote — compare it to the same name’s own 20-day norm.
Max pain — The price where the most options expire worthless — positioning often gravitates toward it near expiry.
Call wall / Put floor — Strikes with the heaviest call/put open interest — they often act as short-term resistance and support.
Put/Call ratio — Below ~0.7 leans bullish (more calls); above ~1 leans defensive (more puts).
