Expiration: Aug 31, 2026 (Month-End)
Date: Mon Aug 31, 2026 |
We study SPY and Trade SPX SPDR 500 ZERO DTE Index.
🎯 QZ ALGO CREED — Probability Over Prediction
We don’t forecast. We read positioning — where Market Maker exposure sits, where the walls are, and how MM is priced across strikes. That tells us where price is constrained, not where it’s going. Structure decides the trade.
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📋 EXECUTIVE DASHBOARD — SPY Mon Aug 31, 2026
| Snapshot | Value | Read |
|---|---|---|
| Spot | 769.33 | At the 769/770 battle, just under the Flip |
| Max Pain | 760 | Deep below — a monster put wall / magnet |
| Flip | 770.43 | Spot just below → at the regime gate |
| #1 / #2 Absolute | 770 / 760 | 770 huge battle at spot (net −20.9M); 760 deep put wall |
LEVEL LADDER (high → low):
| Dir | Level | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 🔴 | 775 | Bear (−18M) + put wall — overhead |
| 🟢 ▲ | 774 / 772 | Upside pins (+19.1M / +19.4M) |
| 🟢 | 771 | Positive (+12.9M) |
| 🟠 | 770.43 | FLIP |
| 🔴 ◆ | 770 | #1 Abs monster battle (168.7M, net −20.9M) |
| ☕ | 769.33 | WE ARE HERE (spot) |
| 🟢 | 769 | Positive support (+14.8M) |
| 🔴 | 768 / 766 / 765 | Negative shelf |
| 🔵 ▼ | 760 | Max Pain + monster put wall (−50.6M, 37K puts) |
THE THREE PATHS:
| Path | Trigger → Target |
|---|---|
| 🟢 Bullish | Reclaim 770 / the Flip → 771 → 772/774 greens |
| ⚪ Neutral | Battle at 769–770 (huge Abs pin at spot) |
| 🔴 Bearish | Lose 768/766 → toward 760 (deep put wall / Max Pain) |
⚡ OPENING NOTE
SPY Spot: 769.33 · Max Pain: 760 · Flip: 770.43. Month-end, and Friday’s giant +54.6M call pin at 770 flipped overnight into a big negative battle — 770 is now net −20.9M on 168.7M Absolute (the pin became a two-sided wall), and spot eased ~1 to sit just below the Flip (770.43) at the 769/770 battle. Month-end also stacks a monster 760 put wall (−50.6M, 37K puts) + Max Pain as the deep floor. The greens are just above (771/772/774), the negatives just below (768/766/765). Reclaim 770 / the Flip → the 772/774 greens; lose 768/766 → the slide toward 760. Big month-end OI means respect the range. Read it with structure — no levels, no trade.
📊 TV VALUES
📌 OI / Levels Note: These are pre-market LEVELS — a positioning snapshot taken before the open. Open Interest and MM exposure shift as the live chain updates through the session, so treat these as the map and the bias, not real-time truth.
SPY String — paste into QZ ALGO Daily Magnets:
769,774,772,769.33,760,770.43,766,765,760,770
SPX String:
7690,7740,7720,7693.3,7600,7704.3,7660,7650,7600,7700
Options Flow — VOLUME (Strike, Calls, Puts):
775, 74K, 27K
771, 53K, 38K
770, 73K, 82K
769, 46K, 72K
760, 3K, 28K
Options Flow — OPEN INTEREST (Strike, Calls, Puts):
775, 5K, 10K
771, 4K, 2K
770, 10K, 13K
769, 4K, 2K
760, 3K, 37K
🌡️ QZ TEMPERATURE
🌡️ SPY — Level then COLOR (Sign):
770 RED (Minus)
760 RED (Minus)
775 RED (Minus)
765 RED (Minus)
766 RED (Minus)
772 GREEN (Plus)
774 GREEN (Plus)
769 GREEN (Plus)
771 GREEN (Plus)
773 GREEN (Plus)
🧭 STRUCTURE CHECK
Market Structure (5 Min):
| Structure | Level | Status |
|---|---|---|
| LH (Lower High) | ~771.00 | Chop marker |
| LL (Lower Low) | ~768.50 | Pullback low |
| Current | ~769.3 | Chopping under the Flip |
Q ALGO™ Status: 🔄 CHOP / battle under the Flip
SPY is chopping just under the Flip near 769.3, between a Lower High around 771 and a Lower Low near 768.5. Reclaim 770/770.43 to press the 772/774 greens; lose 768/766 and the monster 760 put wall / Max Pain becomes the downside magnet. (Structure chart reads ~769.3; the exposure snapshot reads spot 769.33 — aligned.)
📊 DECISION TABLE
| Level | What It Is | Action |
|---|---|---|
| 775 | 👹 Bear (−18M) + Abs #3 (54.2M) + put wall | Overhead wall |
| 774 | 🎯 Mama Bull (+19.1M) | Upside pin |
| 772 | 🎯 Daddy Bull (+19.4M) | Positive pin/target |
| 771 | Positive (+12.9M) + Abs #4 | Pin |
| 770.43 | 🟠 FLIP | Regime gate |
| 770 | 🎯 #1 Abs (168.7M) — net −20.9M | Monster battle at spot |
| 769.33 | ☕ WE ARE HERE (Spot) | At the battle |
| 769 | 🎯 Baby Bull (+14.8M) + Abs #6 | Positive support |
| 768 | Abs #7 (39.1M) — negative | Shelf |
| 766 | 👹 Baby Bear (−21M) + Abs #8 | Shelf |
| 765 | 👹 Mama Bear (−21.4M) + Abs #5 | Shelf |
| 760 | 🔵 MAX PAIN + Daddy Bear (−50.6M) + Abs #2 + monster put wall | Deep magnet |
🎯 THREE BEARS / THREE BULLS (by MM Exposure size)
THE THREE BEARS (Negative):
| Bear | Strike | MM Exposure | OI | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S1 = DADDY | 760 | −50.6M | 39.8K | 30.5K |
| S2 = MAMA | 765 | −21.4M | 11.3K | 40.3K |
| S3 = BABY | 766 | −21.0M | 8.3K | 31.0K |
S1 (760) is Max Pain + a 37K put wall — the deep month-end floor/magnet. Note 770 (#1 Abs, net −20.9M) is a huge battle, not a directional bear.
THE THREE BULLS (Positive):
| Bull | Strike | MM Exposure | OI | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B1 = DADDY | 772 | +19.4M | 5.6K | 123.3K |
| B2 = MAMA | 774 | +19.1M | 7.3K | 83.6K |
| B3 = BABY | 769 | +14.8M | 6.0K | 117.8K |
🔴 Bearish tilt / battle. Bears 93M vs Bulls 53.3M ≈ 1.75:1. The story is the huge 770 battle at spot (net-flat despite 168.7M Abs) and the deep 760 monster put wall. The greens (771/772/774) sit just above — a reclaim of 770 opens them; a loss of 768/766 opens the drop toward 760.
☕ RANGE ZONE
| Zone | Why |
|---|---|
| 769 — 771 | Spot sits at the 770 battle (huge Absolute, net-flat) between the 769 positive support and the 771/772 greens. Reclaim 770/the Flip to press the greens; lose 768/766 and the month-end 760 put wall is the deep magnet. Trend is harder to build on the 770 battle. |
Commentary: 770 carries the highest total volume on the board (155K), with 772 (123K), 769 (118K) and 775 (100K) behind — enormous churn around the 770 battle. Only strikes with a clean call/put split appear in the flow tables.
🎯 Q ALGO™ CHECKLIST — WE DON’T TRADE EMOTIONS, WE LOOK FOR CLUES
| Step | What We Check |
|---|---|
| 1 | LEVELS (from this newsletter) |
| 2 | 15-Min chart |
| 3 | 5-Min chart |
| 4 | 1-Min chart |
| 5 | BANDS |
| 6 | River |
| 7 | Volume Line (Fair Value) |
| 8 | Candle for Entry |
| 9 | Flip Line |
| 10 | Trend Context (Trend Engine) |
| 11 | Pivots |
| 12 | LQ Areas |
| 13 | Entry Candle |
| 14 | Flow |
| 15 | VSA + QVDD |
No Structure = No Trade. Not all checklist items need to align — build your edge based on your own edge. Month-end battle day: respect the 770 battle and the wide range — wait for the 770/Flip reclaim up or the 768/766 break down.
✈️ Pilots — read the live chain at the open. These newsletter values are pre-market LEVELS; the options chain is real-time data. Check the live chain around 9:45–10:00 AM ET, once conditions settle, and confirm the walls are still where the letter has them. Levels give you the map and the bias — the live chain is the truth at the open, so weight your reliance accordingly before you trade.
📋 OI TABLE — SUPPORT vs RESISTANCE
| Call OI (Resistance) | Strike | Put OI (Support) |
|---|---|---|
| 5,094 | 775 | 10,184 |
| 4,107 | 771 | 2,254 |
| 10,476 | 770 | 13,445 |
| 4,091 | 769 | 1,887 |
| 2,746 | 760 | 37,007 |
🎁 BONUS — PCR CONTRARIAN VIEW (OI-based)
The standard read says put-heavy = support and call-heavy = resistance. The contrarian read flips it: when the crowd is heavily loaded one way, that positioning becomes fuel for the opposite move. Extreme put-heavy = too much fear/hedging = squeeze fuel UP. Extreme call-heavy = too much greed/complacency = a trap/cap.
Top 3 (highest PCR — most put-heavy):
| Strike | PCR (OI) | Standard |
|---|---|---|
| 760 | 13.48 | Support |
| 775 | 2.00 | Support |
| 770 | 1.28 | Support / battle |
Bottom 3 (lowest PCR — most call-heavy):
| Strike | PCR (OI) | Standard | 🔄 Contrarian |
|---|---|---|---|
| 769 | 0.46 | Resistance | Call-lean at spot — mild greed, the flip pin |
| 771 | 0.55 | Resistance | Call-lean — mild cap into the greens |
| 770 | 1.28 | Support / battle | The battle — no clean edge |
Contrarian takeaway: the extreme fear is deep at 760 (37K put wall, Max Pain) — enormous squeeze fuel if price ever tests and holds it, but it’s also the downside magnet, so it cuts both ways on a month-end. At spot, 770 is a genuine two-sided battle with no clean contrarian edge, and 769/771 are only mild call-leans. Net: it’s a battle/range day — no strong contrarian signal at spot; the tradeable extremes are the 760 floor (squeeze fuel if tested and held) and a reclaim of 770/the Flip toward the greens. (Contrarian signals are a secondary lens — trade them only with structure confirmation, never alone.)
⚖️ Disclaimer
This is not investment advisory. I’m not calling trades. I’m teaching you to think. Trading futures and options involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for all investors. Past performance is not indicative of future results. The IKIGAI Algo and any associated indicators, tools, or educational materials are provided for informational and educational purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, or trading advice. You should consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any trading decisions. Q Levels and affiliated parties are not registered investment advisors, broker-dealers, or financial planners. By participation, you acknowledge you are solely responsible for your own trading decisions and any resulting gains or losses. No guarantees of profit or specific results are made or implied. All sales are final. Please trade responsibly and only risk capital you can afford to lose. Errors and omissions excepted.
— Q Levels Trading | Coffee With Q ☕