Tape is SpotGamma’s options flow tool which displays live trade details for US stocks. Encompassing over 3,000 tickers, Tape highlights high-volume activity and empowers you to scan through the noise to see trends and impactful trades. With actionable visualizations and customizable filters, both Flow Data and Contract Data can be paired with HIRO and other SpotGamma indicators to unveil the impact of options flows on underlying stocks.

Image description: SpotGamma Tape interface, showing highlights, summary charts, filters, and flow data.

The flow data in Tape brings you real-time info on options transactions as they take place, providing you with a detailed look into the options market.

Tape's flow data can be used to gauge the market sentiment towards a name, the conviction behind each trade, and the magnitude of the order.

Features included with SpotGamma Tape

The Tape page in the SpotGamma dashboard includes five sections to support your trading:

• Highlights: Identifies names to watch and specific trades.
• Filters: Provides a customizable way to examine options flows..
• Summary Charts: Aggregates flow data based on your selected settings. 
• Flow Data: Streams the full breadth of option trades taking place.
• Contract Data: Groups the options flow data based on specific contract details.

The flow data from Tape is also available beneath the HIRO window, so traders can see both options trades and the HIRO signal at the same time. This can be valuable to understand the specific trades that are influencing hedging pressure, and can help validate insights from the HIRO indicator.

Image description: Flow data tab, available in both the Tape page and beneath the HIRO indicator chart.

Using Tape to Trade

Reading flow data provides a real-time feed of options trades showing you key info for each transaction. This data can be helpful in identifying the sentiment of market participants, with three important dimensions to watch for:

• Direction: Call buying or put selling can indicate a bearish outlook behind the trade, while put buying or call selling can indicate a bullish outlook.
• Conviction: Large premiums, options purchased above the ask or sold below the bid, and longer-dated expirations may indicate more certainty behind the trade.
• Size: Orders that are large in size may have a more significant impact on the market, and can indicate institutional interest in the name.

For additional information on Tape’s functionality, including use cases for trading with options flow data, download the SpotGamma Tape User Guide.

SpotGamma Alpha subscribers can access SpotGamma Tape here.