MaxLinear, Inc. (MXL) Volatility Skew
Implied volatility skew shows how IV varies across strike prices for a given expiration. Steeper skews indicate higher demand for downside protection relative to upside speculation.
MaxLinear, Inc. (MXL) operates in the Technology sector, specifically the Semiconductors industry, with a market capitalization near $9.05B, listed on NASDAQ, employing roughly 1,294 people, carrying a beta of 3.96 to the broader market. MaxLinear, Inc. Led by Kishore Seendripu, public since 2010-03-24.
Snapshot as of May 29, 2026.
- Spot Price
- $93.52
- ATM IV
- 133.9%
- IV Skew 25Δ
- -0.088
- IV Rank
- 65.7%
- IV Percentile
- 91.7%
- Term Structure Slope
- -0.037
As of May 29, 2026, MaxLinear, Inc. (MXL) at-the-money implied volatility is 133.9%. IV rank is 65.7% (where 0% is the 52-week low and 100% is the 52-week high). IV percentile is 91.7%. The 25-delta skew is -0.088: puts carry meaningful premium over calls, a classic equity downside-protection skew. High IV rank typically favors premium-selling strategies; low IV rank favors premium-buying.
MXL Strategy Selection at Current Volatility Levels
For MaxLinear, Inc. options at 133.9% ATM IV, mid-range IV rank (65.7%) is the regime where directional conviction matters more than vol-regime positioning; strategy choice should follow the event calendar and the dealer-positioning view rather than IV rank alone. The 25-delta skew is meaningfully put-skewed, so put-credit spreads capture more premium for the same width than call-credit spreads. Pair the vol-rank read with the dealer-gamma view and the upcoming-events calendar to confirm the strategy fits both the structural regime and the path-dependent risk. The variance risk premium - the persistent gap between implied and subsequently realized vol - is positive in equity markets on average; high IV rank typically reflects a stretch where the premium is wider than usual.
How to read the MXL volatility surface
ATM IV currently prints at 133.9%, 65.7% IV rank, against 97.2% realized over the trailing 20 trading days. Implied is pricing above realized by 36.7 vol points, the typical variance-risk-premium positive state in which premium sellers earn the gap. The 25-delta skew is meaningfully put-skewed at -0.088, meaning out-of-the-money puts are bid up relative to equivalent-delta calls - the classic equity-tail-risk pricing pattern. The term-structure slope of -0.037 is inverted (backwardation) - near-dated IV trades above longer-dated, signaling acute near-term event risk.
MXL IV rank and the variance risk premium
MXL IV rank of 65.7% sits in the middle of its 1-year range - neither premium-selling nor premium-buying carries a structural edge from rank alone. Strategy choice should follow event calendar, dealer positioning, and the directional thesis. Compared with 60-day realized HV of 156.6%, current ATM IV is 22.7 vol points cheap.
Trading vol on MXL: practical notes
The variance risk premium - the persistent gap between implied and subsequently realized volatility - is positive on equity-market averages, which is why premium-selling carries a long-run edge. But the edge is averaged across a distribution; individual realizations can blow past the implied move in either direction. MXL front-month expiration sits at 20 days; near-dated structures get the highest theta decay but also the largest gamma sensitivity, so the same vol-rank read translates into very different structures at 7 DTE vs 45 DTE. Pair the rank read with the dealer-gamma view, the term-structure shape, and the upcoming-event calendar to confirm the trade fits both the structural regime and the path-dependent risk. Risk-defined structures (credit/debit spreads, condors, butterflies) are usually safer than naked positions when the regime is uncertain.
MXL volatility surface: linking strikes to tenors
The skew-by-strike chart higher up and the term-structure-by-DTE chart together describe the MXL implied-volatility surface - the two-dimensional grid of IV across strike and expiration that determines every option premium on the chain. Currently the 25-delta skew is -0.088 and the term-structure slope is -0.037, a combination that flags acute near-term concern: put-skewed AND backwardated means both the strike and the tenor dimensions are pricing risk. Term structure tells you when the market expects the action; skew tells you which direction. Combined with the 65.7% IV rank, the surface gives a complete read on whether MXL options are cheap, fair, or expensive across both dimensions. Practitioners watch surface dynamics (skew steepening, term-structure inversion) alongside level (IV rank) - level moves are common but surface shape changes typically signal regime-level shifts in how the chain is being positioned.
For MXL specifically, the surface read fits into a broader options-trading toolkit. Single-leg directional positions (long calls or puts) depend almost entirely on level: cheap IV at any skew/term shape favors buyers, rich IV favors sellers. Risk-defined spreads (vertical credit/debit spreads, iron condors, butterflies) depend on both level and skew: put-skewed surfaces make put-side credit spreads collect more premium per width than call-side, and the asymmetry can compound or offset the directional thesis. Calendar and diagonal spreads depend on term shape: contango makes long-back-month / short-front-month structures cheaper to put on but harder to harvest theta from quickly. Pair the surface read with the dealer-gamma view, the upcoming-event calendar, and the underlying-trend context to choose the strike, the tenor, and the structure family that match both the regime and the conviction level.
Learn how volatility skew is reported and how to read the data →
MXL highest implied-volatility contracts
| Type | Strike | Expiration | Volume | OI | IV | Bid | Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CALL | $150.00 | Jun 18, 2026 | 51 | 2.0K | 150.9% | $1.70 | $1.90 |
| CALL | $145.00 | Jun 18, 2026 | 3 | 111 | 150.4% | $1.55 | $2.40 |
| CALL | $15.00 | Jun 18, 2026 | 8 | 113 | 150.1% | $76.90 | $80.00 |
| CALL | $17.00 | Jun 18, 2026 | 0 | 103 | 150.1% | $74.90 | $78.00 |
| CALL | $20.00 | Jun 18, 2026 | 0 | 349 | 150.1% | $71.90 | $75.50 |
| CALL | $22.00 | Jun 18, 2026 | 8 | 133 | 150.1% | $69.90 | $72.90 |
| CALL | $30.00 | Jun 18, 2026 | 66 | 167 | 150.0% | $61.90 | $64.90 |
| CALL | $35.00 | Jun 18, 2026 | 10 | 140 | 149.8% | $57.00 | $59.60 |
| CALL | $36.00 | Jun 18, 2026 | 0 | 236 | 149.7% | $56.00 | $58.90 |
| CALL | $37.00 | Jun 18, 2026 | 0 | 184 | 149.5% | $55.00 | $58.00 |
Top 10 contracts from the institutional-grade nightly options scan; ranked by iv within the broader S&P 500/400/600 + ETF universe.
Frequently asked MXL volatility skew questions
- What is the current MXL ATM implied volatility?
- As of May 29, 2026, MaxLinear, Inc. (MXL) at-the-money implied volatility is 133.9%. IV rank is 65.7% on a 0-100% scale anchored to the 1-year IV range. ATM IV is the volatility input that makes a Black-Scholes-equivalent model reproduce the listed at-the-money option prices.
- Is MXL IV high or low historically?
- IV is near its 1-year median, a regime where strategy choice depends on directional conviction and event calendar rather than vol regime.
- What does MXL volatility skew tell options traders?
- Volatility skew is the pattern by which IV varies across strikes for a given expiration. MaxLinear, Inc. carries the typical equity downside-protection skew: 25-delta puts price meaningfully richer than 25-delta calls. Skew matters for risk-defined strategy selection: when downside puts are rich, put-credit spreads capture more premium; when upside calls are rich, call-credit spreads or covered-call writes harvest more.