Hey trader,

Most traders look at a single options print and think they see the full picture.

They spot 10,000 contracts come across the screen, maybe take a trade. Then they move on to the next alert.

The problem is that institutional positioning rarely shows up in a single trade on a single day. It builds in layers.

One tranche in January, another in February. A third two weeks later at the same strike.

If you only see today’s print, you are trading with partial information. 

You are sizing your conviction against one layer of a three-layer position.

When the stock breaks through the key level, the gamma pressure from all three layers compounds at once.

The Ghost Prints Surveillance Console caught each of these layers in VFC as they were placed. 

Today, we’re going to look at the full structure so you can see how layered positioning creates a gamma trap that a single print never could.

You can avoid the trade setup where most traders get trapped.

The squeeze trap. It happens when a short squeeze gets started, only to evaporate miserably.

A gamma squeeze play can be great. The Ghost Prints Surveillance Console lit up opportunities on KSS (375% in 13 days), PLUG (206% in 5 days), and on VFC (100% in just 24 hours).

Of course you want to find these excellent opportunities.

Along the way you need to skip over the pit of despair, the trap waiting to suck you in.

Tomorrow at 2PM EST, I will show you how to identify the three impostor setups so you don’t get trapped.

Sign Up For My Upcoming Webinar Training HERE

Three Dates, One Strike, 60,000 Contracts

On January 27, 30,000 put contracts were sold at the $17 strike in VFC. That created a defined floor, a level where the position’s influence fades.

On February 5, someone bought 20,000 put contracts at the $20 strike for the March expiration. Two tranches of 10,000 each, both filled at the ask.

Today, February 17, another 20,000 put contracts hit the $20 strike for this week’s expiration. The first tranche of 9,900 contracts triggered the Ghost Prints Console alert at 9:45 AM.

A second tranche of 9,500 contracts followed at 12:13 PM.

Here is the full layered structure as the Console revealed it:

• January 27: 30,000 puts sold at the $17 strike, creating a defined floor
• February 5: 20,000 puts bought at the $20 strike for March expiration, filled at the ask
• February 17: 20,000 puts bought at the $20 strike for this week’s expiration, filled at the ask

All three fills came at or near the ask price. That confirms aggressive buying rather than passive positioning.

Why the $20 Strike Becomes the Trigger

The February 5 trade carried a 33 delta at the $20 strike. That places it in the range where it functions as more than speculation and closer to a hedge with real directional force.

Today’s trade added another 20,000 contracts at the same level for a shorter expiration. The combined open interest at $20 now spans two expirations with roughly 40,000 contracts of put exposure.

If VFC breaks below $20, delta on these contracts accelerates. Market makers who sold these puts must short stock to hedge as delta climbs toward 50.

That forced selling pushes the stock lower, which increases delta further. The feedback loop becomes mechanical.

The Wall at $17

Not every layer of this structure points in the same direction.

The 30,000 contracts sold at $17 on January 27 create the opposite effect. Sold puts generate positive gamma at their strike, meaning market makers would buy stock as VFC approaches $17.

This creates a defined range for the gamma squeeze. The $20 strike pulls the stock lower through forced hedging while the $17 strike absorbs selling pressure and slows momentum.

The practical target sits between these two levels. The chart structure points to $18 to $18.50 as the zone where squeeze pressure meets the support wall.

What a Single Print Would Have Missed

If you saw only today’s 20,000 contracts, you would know someone is bearish on VFC for this week.

You would not know that 20,000 more contracts sit at the same strike for March. You would not know that the $17 wall defines where the selling pressure likely stalls.

The Ghost Prints Console allows you to trace back through each layer. By right-clicking on the open interest and checking when positions were established, the full structure becomes visible.

February 5 and January 27 both show up clearly. Today’s addition confirms the thesis rather than introducing it.

That distinction matters for trade structure. A single week’s worth of puts might justify a small speculative trade.

Three layers of positioning across three dates, totaling 60,000 contracts with a defined squeeze level and a defined wall, justifies stronger conviction.

How to Structure the Trade

Implied volatility in VFC sits at the 22nd percentile with 53% IV at the March $20 strike. That is moderately elevated but not extreme.

A $20/$18 put vertical in March expiration prices around 73 cents as a debit. You are buying the at-the-money $20 put and selling the $18 put two strikes lower.

There is a slight skew edge in this structure because the put being sold carries higher implied volatility than the put being bought. The higher premium collected on the short leg compresses the debit.

Maximum risk is the 73 cents paid. VFC does not need to reach $18 for the trade to work.

A move to $18.50 or $19 should allow an exit at a meaningful profit, especially as theta decay begins to expand the spread closer to expiration. 

Reading the Full Position

Layered institutional positioning tells you more than any single print can.

The Ghost Prints Console caught each tranche as it was placed. The January 27 wall at $17, the February 5 squeeze level at $20, and today’s confirmation adding another 20,000 contracts at the same strike.

This is how gamma traps get built. Not in one dramatic trade, but in layers that compound when the key level finally breaks.

VFC at $20 is the trigger. Below it, 40,000 contracts of put exposure across two expirations begin forcing market maker hedging.

The $17 wall defines where that pressure is likely to stall.

The Tool That Found Every Layer

The Ghost Prints Surveillance Console is the only forensic-grade pressure detection system built for retail traders. It scans beneath price action for institutional footprints, liquidity shifts, and order flow distortions.

Those are the signals that tell you where the market is going before it gets there.

Every layer of the VFC trade I walked through today was flagged by the Consolein real time. The January 27 sold puts, the February 5 bought puts, and today’s 20,000-contract addition all triggered alerts as they hit the tape.

You would not find this in your broker’s option chain. You would see open interest at the $20 strike, but you would not know when each tranche was placed, whether it was bought or sold, or how the layers interact to create a gamma trap.

The Console showed all of it.

It also flagged 375% on KSS, 206% on PLUG, and 100% on VFC itself in previous setups. Since inception, Ghost Prints has won 78% of its trades.

Right now, the Console is bundled with the Ghost Prints 90-Day Challenge for a limited time. After this window closes, the Console will be sold separately at its full $4,995 price.

The next Master Class is February 27 at 2PM Eastern. I will open the Console live and walk through exactly how I use it to detect pressure, trace institutional positioning, and structure trades around what the data reveals.

If VFC breaks $20 this week, the gamma trap I showed you today activates. The Console will be tracking every contract as it happens.

The only question is whether you will be watching it unfold in real time or reading about it after the fact.

Join the Ghost Prints 90-Day Challenge and get the Surveillance Console before this offer closes.

Brandon Chapman, CMT
Creator of Ghost Prints

Disclaimer: Neither TheoTrade or any of its officers, directors, employees, other personnel, representatives, agents or independent contractors is, in such capacities, a licensed financial adviser, registered investment adviser, registered broker-dealer or FINRA|SIPC|NFA-member firm. TheoTrade does not provide investment or financial advice or make investment recommendations. TheoTrade is not in the business of transacting trades, nor does TheoTrade agree to direct your brokerage accounts or give trading advice tailored to your particular situation. Nothing contained in our content constitutes a solicitation, recommendation, promotion, or endorsement of any particular security, other investment product, transaction or investment.Trading Futures, Options on Futures, and retail off-exchange foreign currency transactions involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for all investors. You should carefully consider whether trading is suitable for you in light of your circumstances, knowledge, and financial resources. You may lose all or more of your initial investment. Opinions, market data, and recommendations are subject to change at any time. Past Performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.

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