Major Oil Short Interest Remains Mixed

By Chris Lange Updated Jan 12, 4:22PM EST · Published Dec 28, 8:35AM EST

Follow 24/7 Wall St. on Google

This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them.

Major Oil Short Interest Remains Mixed — © Thinkstock

[cnxvideo id=”620993″ placement=”ros”]The short interest data have been released for the December 15 settlement date. After the election was decided with the Republican candidate taking the White House, short interest for major oil stocks is now more important than ever to follow. Crude oil has recovered to around the $55 level, which is a step in the right direction, but still this is less than half of what it was in 2014.

The December 15 short interest data have been compared with the previous figures, and short interest moves for the selected oil stocks was mixed.

Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) saw its short interest decrease to 34.77 million shares from the previous reading of 36.52 million. The shares closed Tuesday at $118.22, in a 52-week trading range of $75.33 to $119.00.

Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) had short interest that increased to 43.66 million shares from the previous 42.12 million. The stock closed Tuesday at $90.75, within a 52-week range of $71.55 to $95.55.

[nativounit]

BP PLC (NYSE: BP) short interest decreased to 9.47 million shares from the previous reading of 9.79 million. Shares closed Tuesday at $37.11, in a 52-week range of $27.01 to $37.28.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) saw the number of its shares short increase to 17.78 million from the previous level of 16.35 million. Shares closed Tuesday at $51.60, within a 52-week range of $31.05 to $53.17.

Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (NYSE: PBR), or Petrobras, had its short interest increase to 64.85 million shares from the previous 63.01 million. The stock closed Tuesday at $10.15 a share, in a 52-week range of $2.71 to $12.56. Unfortunately, Petrobras may be trading on an entirely different set of fundamentals and sentiment due to its ongoing woes in Brazil.

Occidental Petroleum Corp.’s (NYSE: OXY) short interest decreased to 11.96 million shares from the previous reading of 12.59 million. Shares closed most recently at $72.35, in a 52-week range of $58.24 to $78.48.

[wallst_email_signup]

About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.