New York, Feb 20, 2026, 06:52 (ET) — Early premarket action.
- Ondas shares edged down in premarket action, pulling back after back-to-back sessions marked by heavy trading volume and gains.
- Defense and security contract news has drawn traders’ attention, with a product launch in Europe also on the horizon.
- Options trading remains active, with plenty of traders bracing for sharper moves heading into Friday’s expiry and the trade show next week.
Ondas Inc slipped roughly 0.6% to $11.32 ahead of the bell Friday, giving back some gains after a two-day, 13% rally that came with eye-catching volume in the hundreds of millions of shares. (MarketScreener)
Right now, speed is everything for the stock. Ondas has slipped back into the momentum trade camp, every new contract headline drawing in a wave of fast-moving money. Options flow? That’s when it gets interesting—sometimes pushing the tape higher off the bell, sometimes sending it sharply the other way.
Investors are weighing if this latest shift is simply a change in positioning, or if Ondas is on the verge of unveiling something tangible to boost demand for its counter-drone equipment. Eyes are now on a European security show set for next week; the company has already teased a new portable system there.
On Feb. 17, Ondas announced its Sentrycs unit had provided counter-drone technology to a German state police office, tying the news to an upcoming man-carried product launch. “Our deployment with the German State Police demonstrates the immediate impact of lawful, precise drone mitigation,” Sentrycs CEO Tal Cohen said in the release. (Nasdaq)
Sentrycs systems, according to the company, work by detecting and identifying drones—then taking control, all without resorting to jamming. That’s a distinction Sentrycs emphasizes, especially in crowded urban settings where radio interference can cause headaches of its own. The firm is marketing its soon-to-launch portable “Scout” system as a tool aimed squarely at tactical and law-enforcement applications.
Enforce Tac, the industry trade show where the company announced it will roll out Scout, takes place from Feb. 23 to 25 in Nuremberg, Germany. That’s now the key date traders are watching for the next round of headlines. (Enforce Tac)
Options activity in Ondas has been anything but quiet. According to TheFly data via TipRanks, traders snapped up 177,204 call options—roughly 50% more than anticipated. Implied volatility jumped, clocking in at about 128%. The put/call ratio landed at 0.19, with heavy interest showing up in March $12 calls and February $11.50 calls. (TipRanks)
Ondas works in private wireless and autonomous systems, offering drone platforms and counter-drone tech, Reuters company data shows. Annual losses have been the norm, according to Reuters figures—a factor pushing the stock to move on news flow and sentiment rather than consistent profits. (Reuters)
Still, those drivers can just as easily reverse. Turning contract wins into revenue isn’t instant, and a splashy trade-show launch doesn’t guarantee orders in the books. If the shares slide once the bell rings, loaded-up options bets can quickly unravel into hard selling.
Friday brings a wait-and-see: traders are eyeing whether that premarket slump gets worse when the bell rings, and how shares react as options expire. Looking ahead to next week, the spotlight turns to Enforce Tac (Feb. 23–25), with attention on any possible updates about deployments, new partnerships, or additional orders.
