SPY closed below the 21 EMA for the first time in this streak. Price at 761.78 sits under both the 8 and 21 EMA now. The 50 SMA at 754.71 is the next support to watch. Still well above the 200 SMA at 708.29, so the larger structure holds. One close does not make a trend, but the short-term momentum has flipped down.

QQQ took the harder hit, down 1.27% and closing below the 21 EMA. Price at 707.64 is stacked under the 8, 21, and 50 SMA cluster near 711. That is a clean loss of short-term structure. The 50 SMA at 710.98 is now resistance overhead. Bulls need to reclaim that zone fast to avoid extending lower.

VIX 16.34 (+9.52%)

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Market Overview

SPY is at at 761.29, snapping its stretch above the 21 EMA with its first move below that level at 764.74. The 8 EMA at 766.32 is still stacked above the 21, so the short-term trend hasn’t broken down, this looks more like a pause after the run from 754.7 on the 50 day. Volatility is still calm with VIX at 16.1, which tells you this isn’t panic selling, just some give-back after five straight closes above the 21. The Iranian situation is heating up though and oil is up over 5% today. Watch whether we get a second close below 764.74 tomorrow, that would start to matter. Longer term the 50 day at 754.7 and 200 day at 708.29 keep the bigger trend intact.

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Note these bulls showed you direction but probably got fried. GoPro shareholders will receive an aggregate cash payment of $285 million ($1.14 per share) and keep roughly 10% ownership of the combined. When stagging M&A, call spreads are always the better instrument. $1.50 was way too aggressive.

• Major Shareholder: Mark Fischbach (Markiplier) revealed an 8.5% stake worth roughly $9.3 million, making him GoPro’s largest individual shareholder.

• Stock Reaction: Shares skyrocketed over 46% during regular trading on August 31, 2026, and continued climbing past $1.80 in subsequent premarket.

• Delisting Relief: The massive price jump pushed GPRO shares back above the Nasdaq $1 minimum bid threshold, helping alleviate immediate delisting pressures

SPY closed at 767.05, down 0.53%, and marks 6 straight closes above the 21 EMA. Price slipped back to the 8 EMA at 767.44 but holds well above the 21 at 764.68. The 50 SMA at 753.91 and 200 at 707.41 stack cleanly underneath. This is a healthy uptrend cooling off intraday. Bulls stay in control while price holds the 21.

QQQ closed at 716.76, down 0.60%, on its 2nd straight close above the 21 EMA. Price sits just above the 8 at 715.5 and the 21 at 714.06. The 50 SMA at 712.05 is right below, so the near-term structure is tight. The 200 at 654.19 remains far off. This is a weaker hold than SPY but still constructive.

VIX 14.92 (+2.83%)

Opening

Bullish premium led at $218.9M against $90.4M bearish for a net bull read of $128.6M. MU topped the tape at $37.0M with FSLR and SNDK adding to the semi and solar lean. RCL drew the biggest bearish print at $32.3M.

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SPY is at 765.29 today, slipping back below the 8 EMA at 767.36 but holding above the 21 EMA at 764.92, so the stack stays intact after 7 straight closes above that level. This is the first real give-back since the run off the 8/20 low, and it looks more like digestion than damage given the 50 day is still climbing underneath at 754.33. VIX sitting at 15.1 tells you nobody’s panicking here, this is just a normal pause inside an uptrend. As long as we hold above 764.92 the trend structure is fine, a close back below the 21 with any conviction is the first sign something’s changing.

Energy is dominating today’s call buying with CVX, FCX, XOM and COP all seeing large multi-thousand contract call purchases in November and December expiries, all part of the same broad bullish tilt showing up across sectors. MDB flow is a large short put sale into earnings, a bet that the recent run higher holds even through the print. HELE stands out on the bell side with a chunky long-dated Jan27 call buy, a name that rarely sees flow like this.

Top Setups — 5 Signals

CVX — BULL · MEGA

Calls Bought · Strike: 230.0 · Exp: Nov26 · 9996 contracts · $2.8M

This one’s already running, price at 204.84 is well clear of both the 8 EMA at 201.94 and the 21 EMA at 198.13, with the weekly trend confirmed by higher highs and higher lows. The 8 EMA is your nearer support now, not the 21, and the call buyers here are positioning in November with size, betting the energy leg keeps working while IV rank sits at zero, which is about as cheap as calls get on this name.

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SPY is riding a 6-day streak above the 21 EMA and the stack is fully intact, 8 EMA at 768.35 over 21 EMA at 765.05 with price out front at 771.14. This is clean trend behavior, no reason to be hunting for a pullback to the 21 here, the 8 EMA is your nearer guide for pace of the move. The 50 day at 753.99 and 200 day at 707.43 are both well below price and rising, so the longer-term structure backs up the short-term action. VIX sitting at 14.3 tells you there’s no stress in this tape at all. As long as we keep closing over the 8 EMA this stays a buy-the-dip market.

Morning flow skewed bullish across mega cap tech and a handful of names catching fresh attention after long absences from the tape. Call buyers showed up in MSFT and PLTR with size, while put sellers leaned into MRNA and MRVL as a way to get long premium-rich names. A couple of overlooked tickers, CCI and SONY, also picked up notable single-day flow worth watching.

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SPY prints 771.10, up 0.66%, and locks in a 5th straight close above the 21 EMA. Price sits clean above the 8 EMA at 767.56 and the full stack is aligned. The 50 SMA at 753.35 and 200 SMA at 706.96 both trend up beneath price. This is a controlled uptrend with no cracks in the structure.

QQQ leads with a 1.37% gain to 721.11. This is only the 1st close back above the 21 EMA, so the reclaim is fresh. Price cleared the 8 EMA at 715.14 and the compressed 21/50 SMA band around 712 to 713. Follow through above that cluster confirms the turn.

VIX 14.51 (-4.60%)

Opening

Opening directional flow ran heavily long at $301.0M bullish against $87.8M bearish, a net $213.2M bull tilt. NVDA led at $33.8M with MU, EWY, HONA, and META stacking behind it. Bearish premium was thin and scattered across software names.

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SPY is putting in its 5th straight close above the 21 EMA and today’s gap up to 771.8 just extends the trend. The 8/21 stack is fully intact with a +3.21 spread, and the 50 day at 753 and 200 day at 707 are both trailing well below price, confirming this is a clean uptrend. VIX sitting at 14.6 tells you there’s no fear in this tape at all. With price running well clear of the 21 EMA, the 8 EMA at 767.71 is your nearer level to watch on any pullback rather than looking all the way back down to the 21.

Call buyers were active across energy, mining, and tech names today, with size prints in DVN, NEM, APA, DINO, and LITE all leaning bullish. Most of this flow is stacking on top of names already trending above their key moving averages, which fits the broader risk-on tone in the tape.

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SPY holds its four-day streak above the 21 EMA. Price sits just under the 8 EMA at 766.54 but the stack stays constructive. The 50 SMA at 752.9 and 200 SMA at 706.43 are well below and rising. This is a clean uptrend that keeps grinding.

QQQ logs a fifth straight close below the 21 EMA. Price at 711.37 sits under the 8, 21, and 50 all clustered near 712 to 713. That tight compression shows indecision but the bias is lower. Tech is the laggard here and it is not confirming SPY.

VIX 15.21 (-1.55%)

Opening

Net premium leans bull by $147M with $235.6M bullish against $88.6M bearish. Semis lead the tape with NVDA at $26.2M and MU at $22.2M on the buy side. GLD adds $25.9M in bullish premium.

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The SPY is going for its 4th straight close above the 21 EMA and the stack is still intact with the 8 sitting just above at 766.34. Price has been chopping in a tight range the last few sessions but it’s holding the 21 at 763.69, which is what you want to see. The 50 day at 752.88 is well below and the 200 at 706.42 is a distant memory, so the bigger trend is not in question. VIX at 15.4 keeps things calm. As long as we keep closing above the 21, buyers stay in control - the 8 EMA is the level to watch for any near-term wobble.

Top Setups — 2 Signals

MRK — BULL · MEGA

Calls Bought · Strike: 155.0 · Exp: Dec26 · 1000 contracts · $1.2M

MRK is in a clean uptrend with price at 153.37, riding well above the 8 EMA at 148.65 and miles over the 21 at 140.33. Weekly structure is stacked with higher highs and higher lows and it’s above every major moving average. The flow is institutional call buying out in Dec, 1000 contracts of the 155 line for over a million in premium - a straight bet this keeps grinding. It’s extended above the 21 so don’t wait on it, the 8 EMA is your closer reference for support.

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SPY holds a third straight close above the 21 EMA. Price sits at 765.91, just under the 8 EMA at 766.68. The 21 EMA at 763.54 stacks above the 50 and 200. This is a clean uptrend structure with price hugging the fast bands.

QQQ logs a fourth consecutive close below the 21 EMA. Price at 710.72 sits under the 8, 21, and 50, which are all clustered near 713. That compression above price shows sellers still control the shorter timeframes. QQQ is lagging SPY here.

VIX 15.45 (-2.52%)

Opening

Bullish premium dominated at $266.9M against $77.2M bearish, a net $189.7M bull lean. Semis carried the tape with MU at $37.9M, SOXX at $31.0M, and SMH at $16.4M. GLD led the bear side at $20.2M.

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The SPY is holding above the 21 EMA for a 3rd straight close and the stack is still intact with the 8 sitting at 766.6 and the 21 down at 763.51. Price has been chopping in a tight range the last week after that push to 779, so we’re digesting more than breaking down. As long as we keep closing above the 21 this remains a buy-the-dips tape. The 8 EMA is the nearer level to watch now, and losing the 21 would be the first real crack. VIX at 15.6 tells you there’s no fear here.

Top Setups — 3 Signals

PAAS — BULL · LARGE

Puts Sold · Strike: 45.0 · Exp: Jun27 17th · 1500 contracts · $752K

PAAS is running well above the 21 EMA at 49.11 with price up at 53.66 and the full stack pointing higher, this one has been trending clean off the 8. The flow is institutional selling the Jun27 45 puts, 1500 contracts for $752K, a longer-dated bet that gets paid to be long from a much lower level. Weekly structure shows higher highs and higher lows above both the 50W and 200W, so this is real momentum in a strong metals sector

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SPY holds its second straight close above the 21 EMA at 763.31. Price sits right on that level and slipped 0.29% on the day. The 8 EMA at 766.9 is above price, so short-term momentum is stalling. The 50 and 200 SMA remain stacked well below. Structure is intact but the tape is going flat here.

QQQ logs its third straight close below the 21 EMA and lost 1.00%. Price at 706.32 now sits under the 8, 21, and 50 all clustered near 713. That cluster is now resistance overhead. The 200 SMA at 652.19 is the only clear support left below. This is the weaker index right now.

VIX 15.85 (+4.76%)

Opening

Directional flow leaned heavily bullish at $324.6M against $68.6M bearish, a $256M net long. Semis and memory dominated with MU at $43.2M, SNDK at $37.3M, and NVDA at $29.2M leading. Broad semi exposure showed up through SOXL and SMH.

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Today I want to introduce to two of them. There are five in total. These are not new, they are part of my trading platform and have been available since I started my Discord.

The flow data tells you what institutions are doing in the options market. Judah’s Scanner and the Momentum Scanner give you the chart context underneath it. Both tools run against the same broad universe screened each morning, so when a name shows up in flow and in one of these tools at the same time, you have two independent reads pointing in the same direction.

Judah’s Scanner

The Flow Screener and Daily Screen in this Dashboard rank names by composite technical score. Judah’s Scanner does something different. It takes the same daily universe and sorts every name into one of five buckets based on where it is in its cycle. A VCP coiling near its highs and a name recovering from a base are both worth knowing about, but they require different timing and different risk parameters. The buckets make that clear before you spend any time on the chart.

VCP - Volatility Contraction Pattern. The name is fully Stage 2 aligned, above both moving averages, within 12% of its 52-week high, and the daily range is compressing. The stock is coiling. What to look for: a breakout on volume expansion. The tighter the coil and the closer to the prior high, the cleaner the setup. Watch the descending trendline on the chart for the level to clear.

CORE - Full Stage 2 uptrend. Price is above the 50-day and 200-day moving averages, the 50-day is rising, and the name is outperforming the S&P 500 over the last three months. What to look for: pullbacks to the 21 EMA or 50-day on lower volume, with volume re-expanding on the bounce. These are the names institutional money is already in.

SURGE - Momentum breakout in progress. The move is already underway. What to look for: trailing stop management. Entry on a short consolidation or breakout extension is possible, but the easy money has often already been made. The Chandelier exit is your primary tool here.

CUP - Base building. Below the 50-day but above the 200-day, or in the process of crossing back above the 50-day. The pattern is not yet complete. What to look for: a handle forming near the top of the cup, then a breakout on volume. These require patience.

RECOVERY - Early-stage reconstruction. Above the 200-day, moving averages beginning to flatten or turn. The downtrend has ended but a new uptrend has not been confirmed. What to look for: a series of higher lows and a clean break above the 50-day on expanding volume. These are the earliest entries and carry the most risk.

The chart view:

Click any ticker to open the chart. The main panel shows candlesticks with five moving averages: EMA 8, EMA 21, SMA 50, SMA 100, and SMA 200. Support and resistance levels are drawn from recent swing highs and lows. Where a clear descending resistance trendline is visible, it appears as a red dashed line. That is the level to clear on volume.

The lower panel shows RSI with reference lines at 30 and 70. Switch between 15m, 1h, 4h, daily, and weekly using the timeframe tabs. The weekly view gives you the bucket context. The daily view is best for identifying the trendline structure and planning the entry.

Momentum Scanner

The Momentum Scanner starts with a stricter filter than the other tools. To appear in the scan, a name needs a golden cross in place (50-day above the 200-day) and needs to be trading above its 50-day moving average. That removes anything still building a base or recovering. Every name in the scan is already in an established uptrend. From there, the scanner layers in options flow, dark pool blocks, and gamma echo data on top of the technical read.

Click Run Scan to start. Results load in 30 to 60 seconds on the first run and are cached for 30 minutes after that.

Key columns:

Sqz. The TTM Squeeze condition. Bollinger Bands are sitting inside the Keltner Channel, meaning volatility is compressed. When this badge appears on a name that also has options flow or dark pool activity, it is one of the higher-conviction pre-move signals on the platform. A breakout when both indicators agree tends to be sharp.

W.EMA. Weekly EMA 8 recently crossed above weekly EMA 21. A momentum shift on the weekly chart. When the weekly and daily setups are aligned in the same direction, it is a good sign the trend has more room to run.

U/D Vol. Up/Down volume ratio over the last 20 sessions. Volume on up-day closes divided by volume on down-day closes. Above 1.5x means buyers are in control. Above 2.0x is a strong accumulation signal. A high ratio on a rising stock confirms the move is backed by real activity, not drift.

Base (COILED). The price range over the last 10 days is less than 8% of the average price, and volume over those same 10 days is declining versus the prior 20. The stock is coiling inside an established uptrend. When this appears alongside flow and dark pool activity, it is a high-quality pre-breakout signal.

Convergence

The star at the left of each row shows how many signals are aligned at once.

A bright gold star means full convergence: the stock is in a tight base, there is recent bullish options flow in the last five days, and there is recent dark pool block activity in the last seven days. Three independent signals pointing the same direction. These are rare. When one appears, open the detail page and check the chart for the setup.

A dim amber star means options flow and dark pool activity are both present, but there is no tight base. The stock is in an active uptrend with institutional activity confirmed across two signals. It is a meaningful setup, but without the coiling that makes the full star stand out.

Use the Convergence Only filter to surface names with either level of star. The default sort puts full convergence at the top of the list. In both these scanners u can filter by market cap tier - here is a mega cap example showing SQZ, COILED, gold star and amber star against the relevant tickers.

Both tools update pre-market each weekday. This Dashboard is available in the Institutional Grade Trading Platform

Access the Discord via WHOP

The SPY is holding its 2nd straight close above the 21 EMA at 763.36, so we’re back on the right side of that line after the dip earlier this week. The 8 EMA sits just overhead at 767.04 and price is pinned right underneath it, so that’s the nearer level to watch for the next push. Full stack is still intact with the 50 day at 752 and the 200 day way back at 705. VIX at 15.7 is calm, no fear in the tape. As long as we keep closing above the 21 this is fine, but we want to see the 8 flip back to support to confirm the buyers are stepping in.

Top Setups — 4 Signals

BTG — BULL · MID

Calls Bought · Strike: 7.5 · Exp: Jan28 · 20228 contracts · $2.2M

BTG is running well above the 21 EMA at 4.84 with price at 5.68 and the full stack pointed up, weekly higher highs and higher lows intact. The 8 EMA at 5.30 is the closer level to lean on here since the stock is extended and unlikely to revisit the 21. Someone stepped in for 20K January 2028 calls at the 7.5 strike, over $2M in longer-dated bullish premium looking for continuation.

SLS — BULL · MID

Calls Bought · Strike: 30.0 · Exp: Jan27 · 3930 contracts · $1.6M

SLS is trending hard with price at 14.38 sitting above an 8 EMA at 13.64 and a 21 at 12.67, clean stack and fresh weekly highs. The buyer went out to January 2027 for 30 strike calls, nearly $1.6M, but be aware IV is jacked at 154% so those calls are expensive. Given how extended this is, the 8 EMA is your reference for support, not a pullback all the way to the 21.

LYFT — BULL · MID

Calls Bought · Strike: 20.0 · Exp: Dec26 · 5000 contracts · $640K

LYFT is pushing right up near its 20-day high with price at 17.73 over the 8 EMA at 17.34 and the 21 at 16.78, all stacked and rising. Sector is strong too, XLY leading the market by nearly 5%. The December calls at the 20 strike drew $640K in premium, a clean bullish bet on continuation, and the 8 EMA is the level to watch since this one is already running.

NVDA — BULL · MAG7

Puts Sold · Strike: 190.0 · Exp: Sep27 · 1300 contracts · $2.8M

NVDA is coiled right at the 50 SMA at 207.68 with price at 210, just under an 8 EMA at 216.51 and 21 at 214.72. The flow is put selling in September, someone collecting $2.8M by writing the 190 puts, which is a bet the downside stays contained. Just keep in mind earnings are within 5 sessions and XLK is lagging under its 50 day, so there’s some headwind and event risk baked in here.

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