weekly-roundup
Weekly Whale Roundup: May 24 - May 31, 2026
This week's biggest whale moves: CSCO saw the most activity with over $3M in unusual options flow.
Whales on the Hunt: Palantir Demands $23M+ as Tech and Cloud Sectors See Massive Inflows
Welcome to another weekly Whalor Market Wrap-Up.
Every single day, institutional investors—the "whales" of Wall Street—place massive, market-moving bets in the options market. Because these players have access to elite research, deep pockets, and sophisticated algorithms, tracking their footprints gives retail traders a unique window into where the "smart money" is positioning itself.
This past week, the Whalor scanners captured a staggering 500 total unusual activity trades.
While the broader market navigated its usual twists and turns, options flow data revealed a highly concentrated, overwhelmingly bullish bias in several key sectors. From massive cloud infrastructure bets to a historic surge in artificial intelligence interest, let’s dive into the data to see where the whales laid their cash this week.
The Big Picture: Bullish Dominance with a Side of Caution
If there was one overarching theme to this week's options flow, it was bullish conviction.
Out of our top ten most active tickers, nine of them saw strictly bullish positioning. Whales were aggressively buying calls and selling puts to express upward bias. However, the one outlier is a crucial one: the iShares Semiconductor ETF ($SOXX).
While individual tech names saw massive inflows, the broader semiconductor sector saw a notable bearish print of $0.57 million in premium on a single trade. This suggests that while whales are highly selective about which tech stocks they want to own, they may be hedging their exposure to the broader chip sector.
Top Tickers by Whale Activity
+--------+------------------+--------------+-----------+----------+
| Ticker | Total Premium | Total Trades | Sentiment | Sweeps |
+--------+------------------+--------------+-----------+----------+
| $PLTR | $23.78 Million | 24 | Bullish | 8 |
| $DOCN | $11.35 Million | 3 | Bullish | 0 |
| $CSCO | $2.94 Million | 3 | Bullish | 0 |
| $PRMB | $2.55 Million | 1 | Bullish | 0 |
| $DVN | $1.75 Million | 2 | Bullish | 2 |
+--------+------------------+--------------+-----------+----------+
1. Palantir ($PLTR) — The Undisputed Heavyweight
- Total Premium: $23.78M
- Trades: 24 (100% Bullish)
- Sweeps: 8
Palantir continues to be an absolute magnet for institutional options volume. This week, Whalor tracked an eye-popping $23.78 million in bullish premium spread across 24 distinct trades.
What makes the $PLTR flow particularly interesting is the presence of 8 sweep orders. In options trading, a "sweep" occurs when a trader breaks a large order into smaller pieces to execute across multiple exchanges simultaneously. This is a high-urgency tactic; it tells us that the buyer wanted to get filled immediately, regardless of price. The data shows that whales aren't just accumulating $PLTR—they are chasing it with urgency.
2. DigitalOcean ($DOCN) — The Silent Giant
- Total Premium: $11.35M
- Trades: 3 (100% Bullish)
- Sweeps: 0
In stark contrast to Palantir’s highly active, multi-trade flow, DigitalOcean saw a massive concentration of capital in just 3 trades. A total of $11.35 million in bullish premium was deployed here, averaging nearly $3.8 million per trade.
Because there were zero sweeps, these trades were likely executed as block trades. This indicates highly calculated, patient, and deep-pocketed buyers who are quietly building massive positions in the cloud hosting provider. When a stock with a relatively modest market cap like $DOCN sees this level of concentrated institutional buying, it’s a signal that retail traders should not ignore.
3. Cisco Systems ($CSCO) & Promis Neurosciences ($PRMB) — Heavy Blocks
- $CSCO: $2.94M premium across 3 trades (Bullish)
- $PRMB: $2.55M premium on a single trade (Bullish)
Legacy tech giant Cisco ($CSCO) and biotechnology micro-cap Promis Neurosciences ($PRMB) both saw significant institutional block-trade activity.
The $2.55 million trade in $PRMB is especially notable. For a smaller biotech stock, a single multi-million dollar options bet represents an incredibly high-conviction play. The data suggests that a major player is positioning for a significant move, potentially ahead of clinical data or industry catalysts.
Analyzing the Patterns: Urgency vs. Accumulation
When analyzing options flow, it is crucial to look at how the trades were executed, not just the dollar amount.
The Urgency of Sweeps: $QUBT and $DVN
We saw fascinating behavior in Quantum Computing Inc. ($QUBT) and energy player Devon Energy ($DVN):
- $QUBT saw $0.88 million in premium across 4 trades—all 4 of which were sweeps.
- $DVN saw $1.75 million in premium across 2 trades—both of which were sweeps.
When 100% of the unusual options activity in a ticker consists of sweeps, it indicates that buyers are aggressively crossing the bid-ask spread to get filled. They aren't trying to hide their tracks or negotiate a price; they want exposure now.
The Broad Base: Materials and Precious Metals
We also saw a quiet but steady bid in hard assets. Alcoa ($AA) pulled in a solid $0.88 million on a single bullish trade, while the silver trust $SLV saw a $0.54 million bullish bet. As macroeconomic uncertainty lingers, the data shows that some whales are keeping their portfolios anchored in metals and materials.
Why This Matters for Retail Traders
As a retail trader, you are navigating the market with a rowboat, while institutions are steering aircraft carriers. Trying to fight their wake is a losing battle. Instead, the goal is to ride in their slipstream.
Tracking unusual options flow allows you to:
- Identify Institutional Interest Before the Move: Large block trades and sweeps often precede major stock movements or news announcements.
- Gauge Market Sentiment: Seeing 500 unusual trades with an overwhelmingly bullish bias in tech and cloud tells you exactly where the market's risk appetite lies.
- Understand Urgency: Differentiating between patient block trades (like $DOCN) and urgent sweeps (like $QUBT) helps you understand the time horizon of the smart money.
Disclaimer: Whalor does not provide financial advice. Options trading involves significant risk. Whale activity shows where large traders are positioning, but it does not guarantee stock performance. Always perform your own due diligence and manage your risk.
Never Miss a Whale Move Again
The options market moves fast. By the time a major institutional trade makes the evening news, the move is often already over. To stay ahead of the curve, you need real-time data delivered straight to your fingertips.
With Whalor, you can track institutional sweeps, massive block trades, and unusual options activity as it happens. Filter by premium, sentiment, and ticker to find the exact setups that match your trading style.
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