GKOS Butterfly Strategy

GKOS (Glaukos Corporation), in the Healthcare sector, (Medical - Devices industry), listed on NYSE.

Glaukos Corporation, an ophthalmic medical technology and pharmaceutical company, focuses on the development of novel therapies for the treatment of glaucoma, corneal disorders, and retinal diseases. It offers iStent, iStent inject, iStent inject W micro-bypass stents that enhance aqueous humor outflow inserted in cataract surgery to treat mild-to-moderate open-angle glaucoma. The company's product pipeline includes iStent Infinite, a three stents product that is designed for use as a standalone procedure in patients with refractory glaucoma; and iDose TR, a targeted injectable implant based on its micro-scale device-platform that is designed to deliver therapeutic levels of medication. The company markets its products through direct sales organization, as well as through distributors in the United States and internationally. Glaukos Corporation was incorporated in 1998 and is headquartered in San Clemente, California.

GKOS (Glaukos Corporation) trades in the Healthcare sector, specifically Medical - Devices, with a market capitalization of approximately $8.06B, a beta of 0.95 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 73.16-146.75, average daily share volume of 767K, a public-listing history dating back to 2015, approximately 995 full-time employees. These structural characteristics shape how GKOS stock options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.

A beta of 0.95 places GKOS roughly in line with broader market moves, so the strategy payoff and realized volatility track the index-equivalent baseline.

What is a butterfly on GKOS?

A long call butterfly buys one lower-strike call, sells two ATM calls, and buys one higher-strike call, paying a small net debit for a defined-risk position that maxes out if the underlying pins the middle strike at expiration.

Current GKOS snapshot

As of May 15, 2026, spot at $143.92, ATM IV 47.30%, IV rank 30.84%, expected move 13.56%. The butterfly on GKOS below is built from the same end-of-day chain, with strikes snapped to listed contracts and premiums pulled from the bid/ask midpoint at a 34-day expiry.

Why this butterfly structure on GKOS specifically: GKOS IV at 47.30% is mid-range versus its 1-year history, so strategy selection should anchor more to the directional thesis than to the IV regime, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 13.56% (roughly $19.52 on the underlying). The 34-day window matched to the front-month expiry keeps theta exposure bounded while still capturing the post-snapshot move; longer-dated GKOS expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on GKOS should anchor to the underlying notional of $143.92 per share and to the trader's directional view on GKOS stock.

GKOS butterfly setup

The GKOS butterfly below is built from the end-of-day chain, with each option leg priced at the bid/ask midpoint of its listed strike. With GKOS near $143.92, the first option leg uses a $135.00 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed GKOS chain at a 34-day expiry; the cross-strike IV skew is reflected directly in the per-leg values rather than approximated. Quantity sizing assumes one contract per option leg (or 100 GKOS shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).

ActionTypeStrike / BasisPremium (est)
Buy 1Call$135.00$13.30
Sell 2Call$145.00$7.45
Buy 1Call$150.00$5.75

GKOS butterfly risk and reward

Net Premium / Debit
-$415.00
Max Profit (per contract)
$549.82
Max Loss (per contract)
-$415.00
Breakeven(s)
$139.15
Risk / Reward Ratio
1.325

Max profit equals the wing width minus net debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins the middle strike); max loss equals the net debit times 100. Two breakevens at lower-wing plus debit and upper-wing minus debit.

GKOS butterfly payoff curve

Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the butterfly on GKOS. Each row is one sampled price point from the computed payoff curve; the full curve uses 200 price points internally before being summarized into 10 rows here.

Underlying Price% From SpotP&L at Expiration
$0.01-100.0%-$415.00
$31.83-77.9%-$415.00
$63.65-55.8%-$415.00
$95.47-33.7%-$415.00
$127.29-11.6%-$415.00
$159.11+10.6%+$85.00
$190.93+32.7%+$85.00
$222.75+54.8%+$85.00
$254.57+76.9%+$85.00
$286.39+99.0%+$85.00

When traders use butterfly on GKOS

Butterflies on GKOS are pinning bets - traders use them when they expect GKOS to settle near a specific level at expiration (often the prior close, a round number, or the max-pain strike) and want defined-risk exposure to that outcome.

GKOS thesis for this butterfly

The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for GKOS extends from approximately $124.40 on the downside to $163.44 on the upside. A GKOS long call butterfly is a pinning play: it pays maximum at the middle strike if GKOS settles there at expiration, with the wing legs capping both the cost and the maximum loss to the net debit. Current GKOS IV rank near 30.84% is mid-range against its 1-year distribution, so the IV signal is neutral; the butterfly thesis on GKOS should anchor more to the directional view and the expected-move geometry. As a Healthcare name, GKOS options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to GKOS-specific events.

GKOS butterfly positions are structurally neutral / pin (limited-risk, limited-reward); the modeled P&L assumes European-style exercise at expiration and ignores early assignment, transaction costs, dividends paid before expiry on the stock leg (when present), and the bid-ask spread on the listed chain. GKOS positions also carry Healthcare sector concentration risk; news flow inside the sector (peer earnings, regulatory shifts, supply-chain headlines) can move GKOS alongside the broader basket even when GKOS-specific fundamentals are unchanged. Always rebuild the position from current GKOS chain quotes before placing a trade.

Frequently asked questions

What is a butterfly on GKOS?
A butterfly on GKOS is the butterfly strategy applied to GKOS (stock). The strategy is structurally neutral / pin (limited-risk, limited-reward): A long call butterfly buys one lower-strike call, sells two ATM calls, and buys one higher-strike call, paying a small net debit for a defined-risk position that maxes out if the underlying pins the middle strike at expiration. With GKOS stock trading near $143.92, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed GKOS chain strike and the premiums come straight from the end-of-day bid/ask midpoint.
How are GKOS butterfly max profit and max loss calculated?
Max profit equals the wing width minus net debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins the middle strike); max loss equals the net debit times 100. Two breakevens at lower-wing plus debit and upper-wing minus debit. For the GKOS butterfly priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 47.30%), the computed maximum profit is $549.82 per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$415.00 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.
What is the breakeven for a GKOS butterfly?
The breakeven for the GKOS butterfly priced on this page is roughly $139.15 at expiration, derived from end-of-day chain premiums. Breakeven is the underlying price at which the strategy's P&L crosses zero ignoring transaction costs and assignment risk. The current GKOS market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move is approximately 13.56%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.
When should you consider a butterfly on GKOS?
Butterflies on GKOS are pinning bets - traders use them when they expect GKOS to settle near a specific level at expiration (often the prior close, a round number, or the max-pain strike) and want defined-risk exposure to that outcome.
How does current GKOS implied volatility affect this butterfly?
GKOS ATM IV is at 47.30% with IV rank near 30.84%, which is mid-range against its 1-year history. Strategy selection depends more on directional thesis and expected move than on a strong IV signal.

Related GKOS analysis