NYSE Stocks With the Most Short Interest

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) saw its short interest rise 3.2% to 176.57 million shares, about 3.4% of the stock’s float. Days to cover is five. The company’s continuing battle with T-Mobile has turned into an old-fashioned price war, and while AT&T can certainly hold out longer than T-Mobile, such a holdout will nevertheless be costly. The stock closed at $32.23 Tuesday, in a 52-week range of $31.74 to $39.00. Shares were up about 0.7% in the two weeks since the last report on short interest.

Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) is new to the top five after a jump of 40.3% in short-interest to a total of 154.75 million shares. The stock closed at $17.27 Tuesday and was down about 1% in the two-week period to February 28. Year to date, however, the bank’s stock is up nearly 11%, the most of any of the big U.S. banks. It is a natural short and is trading about a dime below its 52-week high. The stock’s 52-week range is $11.23 to $17.63. About 1.5% of its shares are held short, and days to cover is one.

Short interest in J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) rose to 130.86 million shares, up 1.8% in the two-week period. Some 43.4% of its shares are held short, but days to cover is only four, based on the stock’s heavy trading volume. The growth in short interest is modest compared with the prior two-week period, likely because the stock keeps getting bid up and some shorts may be having second thoughts. The stock closed at $8.67 Tuesday, in a 52-week range of $4.90 to $19.63. Shares gained a whopping 45.5% in the two-weeks from February 14 to February 28.

Short interest in Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) fell 1.2% to 127.78 million shares, representing 11.9% of the company’s float and six days to cover. Shares have gained about 1.1% in the past two weeks. Alcoa’s prospects are tied to demand for aluminum and that has been building a bit as automakers build more cars and aircraft makers build more planes. Shares closed at $12.19, in a 52-week range of $7.63 to $12.36, a new high set Tuesday.

Short interest in EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC) fell 21.7% to 117.92 million shares, which represents 5.9% of EMC’s float and six days to cover. The company’s shares gained about 1.8% in the two-week period to February 28, partly due to investment by hedge fund Greenlight Capital, which took a 1% stake in the company. The stock closed at $26.83 Tuesday, in a 52-week range of $21.45 to $27.34.