NDLS Long Call Strategy
NDLS (Noodles & Company), in the Consumer Cyclical sector, (Restaurants industry), listed on NASDAQ.
Noodles & Company is a fast-casual dining enterprise, engaged in both the conceptualization and operation of its eateries. Patrons can choose from an extensive menu of meals prepared fresh to order, featuring a variety of noodle and pasta dishes, comforting soups, crisp salads, and enticing appetizers. By December 28, 2021, the company's operational reach spanned 29 U.S. states, with a total of 448 restaurants in service. This total was composed of 372 company-owned locations and 76 independently operated franchise outlets. The organization was established in 1995 and its corporate headquarters are situated in Broomfield, Colorado.
NDLS (Noodles & Company) trades in the Consumer Cyclical sector, specifically Restaurants, with a market capitalization of approximately $98.0M, a beta of 1.37 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 3.57-19, average daily share volume of 57K, a public-listing history dating back to 2013, approximately 7K full-time employees. These structural characteristics shape how NDLS stock options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.
A beta of 1.37 indicates NDLS has historically moved more than the broader market, amplifying both the directional payoff and the realized volatility relative to an index-equivalent position.
What is a long call on NDLS?
A long call buys upside exposure with a fixed maximum loss equal to the premium paid; profit accrues if the underlying closes above the strike plus premium at expiration.
NDLS snapshot
As of August 14, 2026, spot at $16.33, ATM IV 43.80%, IV rank 7.10%, expected move 12.56%. The long call on NDLS below is built from the end-of-day chain, with strikes snapped to listed contracts and premiums pulled from the bid/ask midpoint at a 7-day expiry.
Why this long call structure on NDLS specifically: NDLS IV at 43.80% is on the cheap side of its 1-year range, which favors premium-buying structures like a NDLS long call, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 12.56% (roughly $2.05 on the underlying). The 7-day window matched to the front-month expiry keeps theta exposure bounded while still capturing the post-snapshot move; longer-dated NDLS expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on NDLS should anchor to the underlying notional of $16.33 per share and to the trader's directional view on NDLS stock.
NDLS long call setup
The NDLS long call below is built from the end-of-day chain, with each option leg priced at the bid/ask midpoint of its listed strike. With NDLS at $16.33 on that close, the first option leg uses a $16.33 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed NDLS chain at a 7-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 NDLS shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).
| Action | Type | Strike / Basis | Premium (est) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buy 1 | Call | $16.33 | N/A |
NDLS long call risk and reward
- Net Premium / Debit
- N/A
- Max Profit (per contract)
- Unbounded
- Max Loss (per contract)
- Unbounded
- Breakeven(s)
- None on modeled curve
- Risk / Reward Ratio
- N/A
Max profit is unbounded; max loss equals the premium paid times 100. Breakeven is strike plus premium.
NDLS long call payoff curve
Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the long call on NDLS. 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.
When traders use long call on NDLS
Long calls on NDLS express a bullish thesis with defined risk; traders use them ahead of NDLS catalysts (earnings, product launches, macro events) when the expected upside justifies the premium and theta decay.
NDLS thesis for this long call
The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for NDLS extends from approximately $14.28 on the downside to $18.38 on the upside. A NDLS long call expresses a directional view that the underlying closes above the strike plus premium at expiration, ideally with implied volatility holding or expanding to preserve extrinsic value through the hold period. Current NDLS IV rank near 7.10% sits in the lower third of its 1-year distribution, where IV often re-expands toward the mean; this favors premium-buying structures and disadvantages premium-selling structures on NDLS at 43.80%. As a Consumer Cyclical name, NDLS options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to NDLS-specific events.
NDLS long call positions are structurally bullish; 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. NDLS positions also carry Consumer Cyclical sector concentration risk; news flow inside the sector (peer earnings, regulatory shifts, supply-chain headlines) can move NDLS alongside the broader basket even when NDLS-specific fundamentals are unchanged. Long-premium structures like a long call on NDLS are particularly exposed to IV-crush risk through scheduled events (earnings, FDA decisions, central-bank meetings) where IV typically contracts post-event regardless of the directional outcome. Always rebuild the position from current NDLS chain quotes before placing a trade.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a long call on NDLS?
- A long call on NDLS is the long call strategy applied to NDLS (stock). The strategy is structurally bullish: A long call buys upside exposure with a fixed maximum loss equal to the premium paid; profit accrues if the underlying closes above the strike plus premium at expiration. With NDLS stock at $16.33 on the most recent close, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed NDLS chain strike and the premiums come straight from that session's bid/ask midpoint.
- How are NDLS long call max profit and max loss calculated?
- Max profit is unbounded; max loss equals the premium paid times 100. Breakeven is strike plus premium. For the NDLS long call priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 43.80%), the computed maximum profit is unbounded per contract and the computed maximum loss is unbounded per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.
- What is the breakeven for a NDLS long call?
- The breakeven for the NDLS long call priced on this page is no defined breakeven on the modeled curve at expiration, derived from the end-of-day chain's premiums. Breakeven is the underlying price at which the strategy's P&L crosses zero ignoring transaction costs and assignment risk. The NDLS market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move in the same options snapshot is approximately 12.56%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.
- When should you consider a long call on NDLS?
- Long calls on NDLS express a bullish thesis with defined risk; traders use them ahead of NDLS catalysts (earnings, product launches, macro events) when the expected upside justifies the premium and theta decay.
- How does current NDLS implied volatility affect this long call?
- NDLS ATM IV is at 43.80% with IV rank near 7.10%, which is on the low end of its 1-year range. Premium-buying structures (long call, long put, debit spreads) are relatively cheap in this regime; premium-selling structures collect less credit per unit risk.