Understanding the BullFlow SIG Score: Measuring Unusual Options Activity
In options flow trading, not all trades carry the same weight. Some orders are routine, while others stand out as unusually significant. That’s where the BullFlow SIG Score comes in — a proprietary metric designed to help traders quickly identify trades worth investigating.
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What is the SIG Score?
Every trade that hits the BullFlow feed is automatically assigned a SIG Score, a number between 0.0 and 1.0:
- 0.0 → Low significance, typical order flow
- 1.0 → Highly unusual, worth closer attention
The closer the score is to 1.0, the more unusual and potentially informative the trade is. This allows traders to filter out noise and focus on the trades that matter most.
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How is the SIG Score Calculated?
While the full algorithm behind the SIG Score remains proprietary, the score is built from multiple key factors that often signal unusual or aggressive trading behavior. These include:
- Time to Expiration – Short-dated trades carry more urgency.
- Moneyness – How far out-of-the-money or in-the-money the contract is.
- Order Type – Sweeps vs. blocks, which suggest different levels of intent.
- Volume vs. Open Interest – Trades with high volume relative to open interest stand out more.
- Other contextual signals – Additional proprietary factors that capture order flow dynamics.
Together, these variables are weighted and combined into a single score that helps surface the most notable trades in the options market.
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Why the SIG Score Matters
Traders can use the SIG Score to:
- Identify unusual trades instantly – High SIG scores highlight activity that breaks the norm.
- Focus research – Instead of scanning hundreds of trades, zero in on the most unique.
- Spot potential catalysts – High-scoring trades often align with institutional conviction or speculative positioning.
Put simply: if a trade has a high enough SIG Score, it’s worth investigating.
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Filtering & Backtesting with the SIG Score
One of the most powerful features of BullFlow is the ability to filter trades by SIG Score. For example:
- Filter for trades with a SIG Score > 0.8 to see only the most unusual flow.
- Combine SIG Score filters with other settings like ticker, expiration, or order size for deeper precision.
Beyond filtering, BullFlow’s historical flow backtesting lets you analyze how high SIG Score trades have historically performed:
- Peak returns – See how much a trade could have run at its best point.
- Daily highs – Track performance on a day-by-day basis.
- Consistency – Evaluate whether high SIG trades tend to outperform over time.
This makes the SIG Score not just a real-time tool, but also a research engine for strategy development.
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Final Thoughts
Options flow can be overwhelming without a way to separate the ordinary from the extraordinary. The BullFlow SIG Score was built for exactly that purpose — giving traders a quick, data-driven way to focus on trades that might reveal something bigger.
By leveraging filters, backtesting, and the SIG Score itself, traders can gain an edge in spotting unusual activity and making more informed decisions.
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Ready to explore unusual options flow with the SIG Score?
Start filtering, backtesting, and uncovering trades that stand out from the crowd.