J&J Snack Foods Corp. (JJSF) Expected Move

Expected move estimates the probable price range for a given period based on at-the-money options pricing. It reflects the market consensus for volatility over the selected timeframe.

J&J Snack Foods Corp. (JJSF) operates in the Consumer Defensive sector, specifically the Packaged Foods industry, with a market capitalization near $1.51B, listed on NASDAQ, employing roughly 4,600 people, carrying a beta of 0.41 to the broader market. J&J Snack Foods Corp. Led by Daniel J. Fachner, public since 1986-02-04.

Snapshot as of Oct 14, 2026.

Spot Price
$79.48
Expected Move
10.3%
Implied High
$87.68
Implied Low
$71.28
Front DTE
37 days

As of Oct 14, 2026, J&J Snack Foods Corp. (JJSF) has an expected move of 10.32%, a one-standard-deviation implied price range of roughly $71.28 to $87.68 from the current $79.48. Expected move is derived from at-the-money straddle pricing and represents the market's pricing of a ±1σ move. Roughly 68% of outcomes should fall within this range under lognormal assumptions, though empirical markets have fatter tails.

JJSF Strategy Sizing to the Expected Move

With J&J Snack Foods Corp. pricing an expected move of 10.32% from $79.48, risk-defined strategies sized to the implied range structurally target the modal outcome distribution. Iron condors with wings at the ±1σ expected move boundaries collect premium against the ~68% probability that spot stays inside the range under lognormal assumptions; strangles set wider at ±1.5σ or ±2σ target the tails but pay smaller per-trade premium. Long-vol structures (long straddles, ratio backspreads) profit when realized move exceeds the implied move, the inverse trade: they bet against the lognormal assumption itself, capitalizing on the empirically fatter equity-return tails.

How to read the JJSF implied-range chart

The shaded range below shows the one-standard-deviation implied price band at each listed expiration, derived from ATM implied volatility scaled to days-to-expiration. The front-tenor expected move is 10.32%, anchoring an implied range of approximately $71.28 to $87.68. Under lognormal assumptions, roughly 68% of outcomes fall inside that band; 95% fall inside ±2σ; 99.7% inside ±3σ. The empirical equity-return distribution has fatter tails than lognormal, so true tail-outcome frequency is moderately higher than these closed-form numbers suggest.

JJSF expected move and event pricing

Expected move widens with √time: a 5% 30-day move corresponds to roughly a 2.5% 7.5-day move and a 10% 120-day move. JJSF term-structure is in backwardation (slope -0.031), so near-dated tenors price in disproportionate vol - usually because of a known event in the front-month window. With IV rank at 7.1%, the implied move is at the low end of the typical JJSF range - cheap optionality for buyers, thin premium for sellers.

Sizing JJSF structures to the expected move

Iron condors with wings at ±1σ collect the modal-outcome premium; ±1.5σ widens probability of inside-range to ~87% but cuts collected premium roughly in half. Strangles do the inverse trade - they pay against the same lognormal distribution, profiting when realized exceeds implied. Calendar spreads bet on the slope of the term structure rather than the level. JJSF put/call volume ratio currently at 1.17 indicates balanced flow without strong directional skew. The expected move is the inputs the chain is pricing, not a forecast - realized moves above or below are normal under any distribution.

Learn how expected move is reported and how to read the data →

JJSF one-standard-deviation implied price range by days-to-expiration, with current spot marked as the midpointJJSF Implied Price Range by Expiration$60$70$80$9050d100d150d200dDays to ExpirationImplied Price Range ($)
Shaded band shows the ±1σ implied price range (~68% probability under lognormal assumptions) at each expiration; the center line marks current spot. Bands widen with longer DTE since volatility scales with √time.

Per-expiration expected move for JJSF derived from ATM implied volatility at each listed expiration. Implied high/low bounds are computed as $79.48 × (1 ± expected move %). One standard-deviation range under lognormal assumptions, roughly 68% of outcomes fall inside.

ExpirationDTEATM IVExpected MoveImplied HighImplied Low
Oct 16, 2026263.4%4.7%$83.21$75.75
Nov 20, 20263736.0%11.5%$88.59$70.37
Feb 19, 202712832.9%19.5%$94.97$63.99
May 21, 202721932.6%25.3%$99.55$59.41

Frequently asked JJSF expected move questions

What is the current JJSF expected move?
As of Oct 14, 2026, J&J Snack Foods Corp. (JJSF) has an expected move of 10.32% over the next 37 days, implying a one-standard-deviation price range of $71.28 to $87.68 from the current $79.48. The expected move is derived from at-the-money straddle pricing and represents the market consensus for a ±1σ price move.
What does the JJSF expected move mean for traders?
Roughly 68% of outcomes should fall within ±1 expected move and 95% within ±2 under lognormal assumptions, though equity returns have empirically fatter tails than log-normal predicts. Strategies sized to the expected move (iron condors at ±1σ, strangles at ±1.5σ) target the typical outcome distribution; strategies that profit from tail moves (long-vol structures, ratio backspreads) target the tails the lognormal model under-prices.
How is JJSF expected move calculated?
The expected move displayed here is derived from at-the-money implied volatility scaled to the chosen tenor: expected move % is approximately ATM IV times sqrt(T / 365), where T is days to expiration. An equivalent straddle-based form: the ATM straddle (call + put at the same strike) is roughly sqrt(2/pi) times spot times IV times sqrt(T/365), so the implied one-standard-deviation move is approximately 1.25 times ATM straddle divided by spot. The two formulations agree once the sqrt(2/pi) constant is reconciled.