NEW YORK, December 29, 2025, 12:16 ET — Market closed
- Zeta Global shares last ended up 8.3% at $20.70, after trading between $18.89 and $20.75.
- Options volume surged on Friday, with outsized call activity around the $20 strike, Nasdaq-published data showed. [1]
- Traders head into Monday watching whether the stock can hold above $20 as year-end positioning unwinds. [2]
Zeta Global Holdings Corp shares last ended Friday up 8.3% at $20.70, marking a sharp move above the $20 threshold as markets head into the final sessions of the year.
The jump matters now because late-December trading can magnify technical moves, with fewer investors active and derivatives positioning sometimes driving stock swings more than fresh company news. [3]
That dynamic can cut both ways: when an options-driven move fades, the stock can give back gains quickly once hedges are unwound and liquidity normalizes. [4]
Data published by Nasdaq.com showed Zeta options trading volume reached 26,546 contracts on Friday — roughly 2.7 million shares of exposure, based on standard contract size — with particularly heavy volume in the $20 strike call option expiring Jan. 16, 2026. [5]
A call option gives the buyer the right to purchase shares at a set price by a set date. Heavy call buying can push dealers to buy the underlying stock to hedge, a feedback loop traders often describe as a “gamma squeeze.” [6]
Trefis, a financial analysis firm, wrote that the Dec. 26 move looked disconnected from a fresh corporate catalyst and was more consistent with options-related mechanics and year-end positioning. [7]
Zeta traded between $18.89 and $20.75 in the session and changed hands about 10.2 million shares, more than double the recent average daily volume cited in the Nasdaq options note. [8]
The broader market offered little help. Major U.S. indexes finished only slightly lower in quiet post-Christmas trading on Friday, with moves of less than 0.1%, an AP report said. [9]
Several marketing and ad-tech names were little changed on the day, underscoring how idiosyncratic Zeta’s jump was. Trade Desk and Salesforce ended near flat, while Adobe also edged slightly higher.
Zeta sells an “AI marketing cloud” platform that uses data and artificial intelligence to help brands acquire and retain customers across channels, according to the company. [10]
The company’s most recent major update came in late November, when it said it raised 2025 and 2026 guidance after completing its acquisition of Marigold’s enterprise software business — a deal it said carried consideration of up to $325 million, and that it detailed in an SEC filing. [11]
“This acquisition is a powerful step forward for Zeta,” CEO David A. Steinberg said at the time. [12]
Earlier in December, Zeta said its platform usage rose 153% year over year during the Thanksgiving-to-Cyber Monday shopping period, pointing to increased activity in its AI agents. [13]
Before the next session, traders will watch whether Zeta can stay above $20 and retest Friday’s $20.75 high, after the stock opened the session at $19.11.
Options positioning will also stay in focus as January expirations approach, with market participants watching whether call activity around $20 persists — or whether hedges tied to those contracts unwind. [14]
On the company calendar, investors are looking toward early January: Zeta has said it will appear at CES 2026, including a Jan. 6 fireside chat featuring Steinberg and tech analyst Dan Ives focused on “Athena by Zeta,” its enterprise marketing agent. [15]
Beyond that, shareholders are likely to key on the next quarterly update for evidence that Marigold is contributing as expected and that the company can sustain the growth implied by its raised guidance. [16]
References
1. www.nasdaq.com, 2. www.trefis.com, 3. www.trefis.com, 4. www.trefis.com, 5. www.nasdaq.com, 6. www.trefis.com, 7. www.trefis.com, 8. www.nasdaq.com, 9. apnews.com, 10. investors.zetaglobal.com, 11. investors.zetaglobal.com, 12. investors.zetaglobal.com, 13. zetaglobal.com, 14. www.nasdaq.com, 15. investors.zetaglobal.com, 16. investors.zetaglobal.com
