Cars and Drivers

Electric Vehicle Stocks See Mixed Short Seller Action

Paul Ausick

Published: December 10, 2020 10:20 am

Short interest moves among automakers’ stocks were evenly mixed during the two-week reporting period that ended on November 30. Of the companies we watch, short interest decreased on three of six electric vehicle (EV) makers and increased on one of the traditional carmakers.

Tesla Inc.’s (NYSE: TSLA) short interest slipped by 3% in the latest period. Short sellers hold 46.5 million shares of Tesla stock. Days to cover fell from two to one. The share price soared by 39% in the two-week reporting period. The stock’s 52-week range is $70.10 to $654.32 (split-adjusted), and it closed at $649.88 on Wednesday after posting the new high. Shares traded down about 1% Thursday morning.

Nikola Corp. (NASDAQ: NKLA) short interest dipped by 1.7% in the two weeks to November 30. About 47.4 million shares were short, representing 32.9% of the company’s total float. Days to cover rose from four to five. Nikola’s share price fell by 3.6% during the reporting period. The stock’s post-IPO range is $10.29 to $93.99, and shares closed at $18.31 on Wednesday and traded down by about 15% Thursday morning at $29.38.

Nio Ltd. (NYSE: NIO) short interest rose by 5% in the period ending November 30. The stock’s 52-week range is $2.11 to $57.20, and shares closed Wednesday at $44.01. The stock traded down about 4.4% Thursday morning, after gaining more than 13% during the two-week reporting period.

Workhorse Group Inc. (NASDAQ: WKHS) short interest data tumbled by 34% in the two-week period. Some 25.8 million shares were short, or about 24% of the total float. The share price jumped by 32% in the period, and the stock closed at $21.04 on Wednesday and traded up by less than 1% Thursday morning. Its 52-week range is $1.32 to $30.99.

Li Auto Inc. (NASDAQ: LI) saw its short interest increase by more than 27% in the two-week period. About 11.1 million American depositary shares were short, representing about 2.4% of the China-based company’s total float. The share price rose by more than 15% in the period. The post-IPO range is $14.31 to $47.70, and the stock closed at $32.03 on Wednesday. It traded down about 1.3% Thursday morning.

Xpeng Inc.’s (NYSE: XPEV) short interest totaled 11.1 million shares, up about 27% in the two-week period. Short sellers held about 6.3% of the company’s total float. Shares jumped by 40%, in the two weeks and closed at $44.65 on Wednesday, in a post-IPO range of $17.11 to $74.49. The stock traded down less than 1% Thursday morning.

General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) short interest decreased by 17% in the latter half of November. About 21.5 million GM shares were short, or about 1.6% of the company’s float. Days to cover remained at two. Shares rose by about 6.4% in the two-week period and closed Wednesday at $44.43. The 52-week low is $14.33. The stock traded down about 3.4% at last look.

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) short interest increased by 8% to 98.3 million shares, or about 2.5% of the total float. Days to cover remained at two. The stock price increased by 6.3% in the reporting period, and shares closed at $9.45 on Wednesday, in a 52-week range is $3.96 to $9.57. Shares were down about 2.1% Thursday morning.