Motilal Oswal Financial Services Limited Max Pain Analysis
What is Max Pain?
Max Pain theory states the underlying gravitates toward the strike where option writers face minimum collective loss at expiry. For MOTILALOFS, that strike is ₹980. Spot at ₹968 is 1.2% below max pain — possible upward gravitational pull into expiry.
Max Pain Level
The options market’s highest open‑interest strike for MOTILALOFS sits at ₹980. At this level option writers collectively experience the smallest possible loss as the underlying approaches expiry, so the price often gravitates toward it like a magnet.
Spot vs Max Pain Gap
The current spot of ₹968 lies 12 ₹ below the max‑pain strike, indicating a modest upside pull‑back toward the magnet. A negative gap of this size typically suggests that buying pressure may emerge as the price seeks the convergence point.
Shift Signal
The max‑pain level has moved downward by 20 ₹ from the prior day, reflecting that writers have repositioned their short positions to a lower strike. This downward shift implies a bias toward a slightly softer price target as expiry approaches.
Expiry Context
Max‑pain theory posits that, all else equal, the underlying will close near the strike with the greatest combined open interest because option writers prefer minimal payouts. In the week preceding expiry, market participants often test this magnet, but it remains a statistical tendency—not a deterministic outcome.
Data Note
The spot is 1.22 % below the max‑pain level with 26 days remaining until the 23‑Nov‑2026 expiration.
Data as of 2026-10-28