VLO max pain for the Oct 9, 2026 expiry is $395. The last price, $419.33, is 6.2% above it. Call wall $435 · put floor $355.
What the institutional money is doing on VLO right now — dark pool, options positioning, and where the news and the money disagree. Free.
The analyst upgrade drove the stock to a new high, but no new option positions opened to confirm institutional conviction, and off-exchange volume is below the stock's own 20-day norm—suggesting the move may be driven by headline flow rather than deep repositioning.
The momentum pitch aligns with more calls than puts in recent trading, but the lack of new open positions and below-normal off-exchange activity suggests institutional money is not aggressively chasing the momentum story.
The long-term framing contrasts with the absence of new large option positions and subdued off-exchange volume—money is not building the conviction the narrative implies.
The order-flow signal drove a 3% pop, but options positioning remains balanced with no new large bets, and off-exchange volume is below normal—the move appears tactical rather than a shift in institutional conviction.
The earnings-beat narrative is neutral to the options data: balanced call-put positioning and no new large positions suggest the market is not yet pricing in outsized upside surprise.
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).
