Read Consolidated Flow, sweeps and blocks

Read groups rather than row counts

Options Flow → Consolidated organizes execution patterns such as sweeps, splits and blocks into grouped rows. A group can contain several original prints and venues. It is useful for reducing tape clutter while retaining constituent evidence. Its number of rows is therefore not expected to equal the raw tape's trade count, even when both show the same underlying and threshold.

Compare a group with its constituents

Start by matching the symbol and session to a raw tape view.

1. Open Consolidated and choose the intended symbols.
2. Apply the same right, size, premium and trade-type filters used for the comparison.
3. Inspect a grouped row's total contracts, premium and volume-weighted price.
4. Read the available legs, exchanges and exact contract details.
5. Compare constituent timestamps rather than assuming every group occurred at one instant.

What the aggregate fields mean

VWAP is weighted by the executions included in the group; it need not match every constituent price. Total premium and contracts summarize included observations, while a displayed side/classification describes the grouping convention. A split across exchanges can still represent several receipts. Distinguish grouping evidence from an exchange-defined order identifier, and keep exact root/expiry/strike/right visible when a group contains related but distinct option identities.

Worked example: five prints become one row

Suppose five eligible same-selection prints are consolidated into a single row. The consolidated view can show five times a constituent's contract size while the raw view shows five entries. A one-row count is not a missing-trade error. Compare total contracts and premium, then inspect whether filters apply to the group or admitted constituents in the view. A high group premium does not imply every individual execution met the same standalone premium threshold.

Troubleshoot apparent missing or duplicated activity

Clear narrow trade-type filters and compare a bounded time region. Check whether a similar row is a different exact root or expiration. A group that updates as constituents arrive should not be counted as several independent positions from screenshots taken at different moments. If detail is missing, preserve the unavailable state rather than reconstructing legs from the total. Support needs group identity/time and matching raw evidence to investigate aggregation.

Classification does not reveal a complete position

The inferred aggressor side compares an execution with eligible quote evidence. Above ask, at ask, midpoint, at bid, below bid and unknown describe classification, not verified participant identity. Midpoint and unknown prints do not receive a guessed buyer or seller just to complete a chart. A call transacted near the ask has a different conventional directional interpretation from a put transacted near the ask, but either can be one leg of a larger position.

A print can close a position, open one, roll an expiration, hedge something else or belong to a multi-leg trade whose other legs are outside the current filter. Public tape alone does not establish which explanation applies. A sweep or block label organizes execution evidence; it does not prove informed intent. Use exact contract, price, size, time, exchange and available constituent detail to investigate. Keep unknown classification visible in your interpretation, and avoid describing signed premium as actual net dealer buying without the additional positioning evidence that would require.

Use VWAP and constituents to check a group

A group with different execution prices should be checked using its weighted amount rather than expecting the displayed VWAP to equal one leg. Compare total contracts, premium and available leg count together. If some constituent detail is unavailable, keep that limitation explicit; do not reconstruct a perfect five-leg sequence from an aggregate price and size. The grouping summarizes admitted evidence and does not assert that an exchange issued one universally shared order identity for all displayed legs.

A practical audit chooses one stable group, records its time span and exact contract information, and locates corresponding raw prints under broad filters. Then apply the intended size/premium filters and note how the admitted set changes. This separates a grouping question from a filtering question. A group can continue to receive eligible constituents while live intake advances, so compare captures taken at consistent times. A large group printed across venues is evidence of grouped execution behavior, not proof that every constituent opened a new directional position or belonged to one beneficial owner.