CAVA Group Inc (NYSE:CAVA) and Sweetgreen Inc (NYSE:SG) are slated to report fourth-quarter results after the close tomorrow and on Wednesday, Feb. 26, respectively. Below, let's check in with the restaurant groups, as well as competitor Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG).

CAVA Cools Before Earnings

CAVA is down 3.3% to trade at $104.37 at last check, trading at its lowest level since December and pacing for a fourth-straight loss. Last week, the shares suffered a 17.5% weekly drawdown, their worst of the year. The stock still sports a 105.2% year-over-year lead though, and has an encouraging history of post-earnings reactions, finishing four of its five next-day sessions higher to average a move of 7.4%, regardless of direction. This time around, the options pits are pricing in a much larger swing of 20.6%. 

SG Bounces Back

SG was last seen up 6.4% to trade at $23.22, eyeing their best single-day percentage gain since November. The shares are bouncing off a pullback to their lowest level since May, and remain below all long- and short-term moving averages despite a 103.8% year-over-year lead. SG usually fares well after earnings, settling higher the following session in five out of the last eight quarters. The equity averaged a move of 24.3% over the past two years, regardless of direction, but this time the options pits are pricing in a smaller move of 17.4%.

CMG Eyes 6th-Straight Loss

CMG is down 0.2% to trade at $51.41 at last check, and dropped 18.5% in the last nine months. Should these losses hold, Chipotle stock will etch a sixth consecutive loss, just after marking a third-straight weekly drop. CMG is trading at its lowest level since August after failing to conquer overhead pressure at the $60 level, which snapped into place in January.

Iron & steel stock Cleveland-Cliffs Inc (NYSE:CLF) was last seen down 9.1% at $10.13, after the company posted wider-than-expected fourth-quarter losses of 68 cents per share alongside a revenue miss. Demand for steel remains cautious amid the early stages of Trump's tariffs and the potential merger between Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel (X), which is still on the table. 

Cleveland-Cliffs stock is headed for its worst daily percentage loss since its Nov. 5 post-earnings drop of 11.5%. The stock has been struggling to stage a meaningful breakout from its Dec. 30 roughly four-year low of $8.99, and was just rejected multiple times by the 150-day moving average above the $12 level. Support appears to be consistent at the $10 level, however. 

Over in the options pits, 21,000 calls and 11,000 puts have already been exchanged, which represents double the overall options volume typically seen at this point. The weekly 2/28 10.50-strike and 12-strike calls are the most popular, with new positions being bought to open at the May 12 call. 

Notably, while short interest has started to unwind, down 8.2% over the last two weeks, it still represents 8.7% of the stock's available float. It would take three days for shorts to cover, at CLF's average pace of trading. 

Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD) surpassed Wall Street’s fourth-quarter estimates, reporting earnings of $3.02 per share -- slightly above the expected $3.01 -- while revenue came in at a higher-than-anticipated $39.70 billion. Despite this strong showing, the company still issued a lackluster forecast for 2025, as higher interest rates and housing prices hurt demand for large remodeling projects. 

At last glance, HD was up 2.9% to trade at $393.33, bringing it back above breakeven for 2025. On track to snap a six-day losing streak, the shares still face resistance at their 150-day moving average. Longer term, Home Depot stock has added 19.3% in the last nine months.

Options volume is already running at five times the intraday average, with 15,000 calls and 11,000 puts traded so far today. The most active contract is the weekly 2/28 400-strike call, where new positions are being bought to open.

Calls have been the preferred choice for some time, per HD's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) that ranks in the 4th percentile of annual readings. Echoing this, the stock's 50-day call/put volume ratio of 1.52 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) stands above 88% of readings from the past 12 months.

PayPal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL) stock is up 3.5% in premarket trading, after the fintech company issued an upbeat 2027 margin growth outlook and reaffirmed its 2025 forecast. PayPal also laid out plans to drive $2 billion in revenue for Venmo by 2027, including boosting merchant adoption, retaining funds within the online payments platform, and encouraging in-store and online spending.

PYPL yesterday snapped a three-day losing streak, and is looking to add to its 27.2% year-over-year lead. The security has taken a breather after January's failed attempt to conquer its Dec. 9, two-year high of $93.66, but could today come one step closer to filling the 3.5% gap lower on Friday.

Today's potential rally comes as PYPL was drifting deeper into "oversold" territory, per its 14-Day Relative Strength Index (RSI) of 21. A shift in analyst sentiment could keep the wind at the stock's back, too, as 22 of the 41 firms in coverage still rate it a tepid "hold" or worse.

Now looks like an great time to weigh in with options, with one specific strategy in mind. The equity's Schaeffer's Volatility Scorecard (SVS) sits at a 13 out of 100, making it a prime premium-selling candidate. 

IT stock Super Micro Computer Inc (NASDAQ:SMCI) just staged a massive rally, up 90.7% since the start of February. Now on track for a third-straight daily loss, the stock is slipping from last week's five-month peak, and on the short sell restricted (SSR) list amid the volatility.

SMCI has remained popular among options traders amid the upturn. The stock once again made its way onto Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White's list of stocks with the highest options volume in the past 10 days. In this period, 12,786,779 calls and 6,860,390 puts were exchanged, with most activity at the February 60 call. Notably, the top five contracts over the past two weeks were calls. 

Options traders leaned bullish over the past 10 weeks as well. The stock's 50-day call/put volume ratio of 2.08 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) sits in the 98th percentile of its annual range, showing a strong preference for calls.

Options look like a good way to weigh in on SMCI, too, as it has tended to outperform options traders' volatility expectations over the past year. This is per its Schaeffer’s Volatility Scorecard (SVS) of 94 out of 100. 

Meanwhile, short interest has been building despite the positive price action, up 18.8% over the past two weeks, and now represents 18.3% of the stock's available float. 

Shares of computer networking firm Arista Networks Inc (NYSE:ANET) are experiencing a pullback, last seen down 4.1% at $94.28 and on track for their fourth consecutive daily decline. The stock is also fresh off its third-straight week of losses and is down 15.2% year-to-date. However, a potential breakout may be on the horizon as ANET has recently encountered a historically bullish trendline.

Per Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White, ANET has come within striking distance of its 200-day moving average after a lengthy period above it (defined by White as 80% of the time over the past two months and 8 of the last 10 trading days).

This pattern has emerged five times in the past three years, with the stock gaining an average of 14.4% one month later in 86% of those instances. A similar rebound from its current level would push Arista Networks stock to $107.86, further strengthening its 40% year-over-year gain.

Additionally, the equity’s 14-day relative strength index (RSI) of 27.1 signals an "oversold" condition, which typically precede a short-term bounce. For traders looking to capitalize, options appear attractively priced, too. ANET's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 48% ranks in the 14th percentile of its annual range, indicating that options traders are currently expecting low volatility.

Shares of Domino's Pizza Inc (NASDAQ:DPZ) are down 5.6% at $436.68, after the company's fourth-quarter earnings and revenue missed estimates. Plus, U.S. same-store sales rose just 0.4%, compared to the expected 1.63% growth. 

On track for its fourth-straight daily loss, DPZ is now trading at its lowest levels since January as it extends its pullback from last week's seven-month highs. Year over year, the equity has slipped back below is breakeven mark.

Options traders are chiming in straight out of the gate. So far, 1,740 calls and 3,351 puts have been exchanged -- 9 times the amount typically seen at this point. The March 400 put is the most popular, with new positions being sold to open. 

This bearish-leaning sentiment has been the case over the last 10 weeks, too. DPZ's 50-day put/call volume ratio of 1.78 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) ranks higher than 94% of readings from the past year. 

Robinhood Markets Inc (NASDAQ:HOOD) revealed earlier today that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is ending an investigation of its crypto unit and taking no action. This follows the SEC's decision to drop its its lawsuit against Coinbase Global (COIN) last week.