10 Hot Stocks to Watch — Tuesday, July 28, 2026

Schlumberger rallied sharply as Piper Sandler raised its price target to $64, citing a clearer recovery trajectory anchored by deepwater expansion and Middle East stabilization. Q2 earnings revealed management's confidence in gradual regional recovery and rising digital demand, reversing earlier July pessimism. However, options markets are flashing caution: put volume swamps calls (0.65 C/P ratio), with heavy concentration in $49–$54 strikes expiring late July and August, suggesting traders are hedging upside momentum ahead of key support levels.

Rocket Lab shares fell sharply today, erasing Monday's 5% rally that followed the company's largest-ever contract—a $266 million U.S. Space Force multi-launch deal. The reversal suggests profit-taking ahead of August 10 earnings, with investors potentially reassessing growth expectations after the initial euphoria. Options markets remain constructively positioned: heavy call buying (3.42 call-to-put ratio) targets $70–$75 strikes through mid-2026, while put holders anchor downside at $35, indicating a floor near current trading levels.

Palantir jumped 7% today as investors price in a potential earnings beat driven by surging U.S. government demand and the company's role in the newly launched Open Secure AI Alliance alongside IBM, Nvidia, and Microsoft. Options flow remains decidedly bullish, with a 3.68 call-to-put ratio and heavy July 2026 call buying concentrated at the $130 and $140 strikes, signaling conviction above current levels. Watch the $140 level through earnings; a break above could reignite the $200+ thesis, though the stock remains 37% below its 52-week high.

ServiceNow jumped 6.86% today, outpacing a broad tech selloff as enterprise software stocks staged a sharp single-day reversal on AI-driven sector rotation away from semiconductors. The rally defied weakness in chips and modest S&P 500 losses, signaling renewed appetite for application software. Options flow confirms conviction: call volume swamped puts at a 5.34 ratio, with aggressive positioning in $105–$120 strikes through August 21. Watch the $110 level as key resistance.

Salesforce surged 6.07% to $173.60 after securing a $1.6 billion three-year federal contract with the Veterans Affairs department to deploy its Agentforce AI platform—a significant validation of enterprise AI-agent demand. Options traders are heavily positioned for further upside, with a 2.07 call-to-put ratio and 4,530 contracts of $180 calls (July 2026) trading at elevated volume, signaling conviction above current levels. The stack of bullish contracts across the $175–$187.50 strike range suggests institutional buyers see $180 as a near-term target, with technical resistance to test near the 52-week high of $274.

Coinbase surged 5.81% to $167.49 as the exchange launched a multi-year quantum-resistant security initiative for Bitcoin, positioning itself ahead of emerging cryptographic threats. The move coincides with Wall Street backing a $15M quantum-proofing push and renewed focus on crypto regulation—including Senate deliberations on the CLARITY Act. Options traders are hedging upside bets heavily; July 2026 $190 calls saw 4,266 contracts trade while puts clustered at $140–$160, signaling conviction above current levels but caution near $160.

ASML shares tumbled as reports emerged that a Shanghai-based, state-backed firm has begun mass-producing deep ultraviolet lithography tools, threatening the Dutch chipmaker's dominance in older-generation systems sold to Chinese customers. The selloff mirrors broader semiconductor weakness across Asia, though Wall Street analysts view the dip as overblown given ASML's EUV technological moat. Options traders are heavily defensive: put volume dominates with a 0.54 call-to-put ratio, with heavy positioning around the $1,575 and $1,280 strike levels through mid-2026, signaling downside hedging into year-end.

Intuitive Surgical rallied sharply today following announcements of a celebrity patient-awareness partnership with Deion Sanders and the unveiling of a five-layer AI framework for surgical platforms, including live telesurgery demonstrations. Options flow remains mixed, though call volume concentrates at $360–$380 strikes through early August, signaling modest bullish conviction. Headwinds persist: ACA coverage losses now threaten a $50 billion addressable market, and recent earnings showed the market punishes execution misses regardless of beats. Watch the $370 level as near-term resistance.

Advanced Micro Devices fell 5.17% today, extending a sector-wide selloff triggered by China's homegrown chip-manufacturing push and doubts over AI capex sustainability. The Asian semiconductor rout—with SK Hynix down 13%—signals growing concern over supply-chain disruption and competitive pressure from domestic Chinese producers. Yet options markets show conviction: call-to-put ratio of 1.70 reflects heavy buying of $500–$550 strike calls expiring July 2026, suggesting institutional investors are betting on mean reversion toward Baird's newly doubled $1,250 price target within 12 months.

Nvidia shares fell 4.99% today, dragging the chip sector lower amid broader AI capex uncertainty and SK Hynix's 13% plunge. Yet options traders are painting a starkly different picture: a 4.83 call-to-put ratio and 320,000+ contracts flooding the $215–$222.50 July 2026 calls suggest conviction in a rebound toward $220 within 18 months. The $50 billion Texas data center lease announced Tuesday underscores structural AI demand, but near-term volatility—beta 2.24—demands discipline. Watch $205 support and the $215 strike as flashpoints.